On the meaning of the name Xi wangmu, Spirit-Mother of the West.

• Author: Goldin, Paul R.
• Position: Brief Communications

The standard translation of the ancient Chinese divinity known as Xi wangmu [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] is "Queen Mother of the West." This is misleading, because "Queen Mother" in everyday English refers to the mother of a ruler. But it is not suggested in any of the traditions concerning Xi wangmu that she earned her title by virtue of being the mother of a king. (1) The translation "Queen Mother" may be intended as something similar to "royal mother"-- but if this is what translators have in mind, they should say "Royal Mother" rather than "Queen Mother."

However, both "Royal Mother" and "Queen Mother" may be inappropriate, because wang in this context probably does not carry its basic meaning of "king, ruler." Wangmu is a cultic term referring specifically to a deceased paternal grandmother. This usage is explained in the Erya [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]:

One's father is one's kao [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] [i.e., "deceased father"]; one's mother is one's bi [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]; [i.e., "deceased mother"]. One's father's kao is one's wang-father [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]; one's father's bi is one's wang-mother [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]. One's wang-father's kao is one's ancestral wang-father [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII]; one's wang-father's bi is one's ancestral wang-mother [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (2)

And so on. The precise meaning of wang in this passage is not obvious. The commentator Guo Pu [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (276-324) suggests, plausibly, that "one adds wang in order to honor them." The opinion of Hao Yixing [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] (1757-1825) is similar: "Wang means 'great', 'lordly'; it is an appellation honoring one's superiors. Thus Wang-father and wang-mother are also called 'great father' and 'great mother:" (3)

Although this nomenclature is rare in received texts, (4) excavated manuscripts reveal that it was routine in ancient formulaic language. In the "almanacs" [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] from Shuihudi [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII], various diseases are said to be cured by sacrifice to wangfu or wangmu, as in the following example:

If there is an illness on bing [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] and ding [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] days, one should worship wangfu. He should be given (5) red meat, a rooster, and liquor. On geng [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] and xin [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] days, [the subject will still be] sick; on ren [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] day he will begin to be cured; (6) on gui [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] day there will be activity [i.e., the subject will arise from bed]. If there is no activity, then those who dwell in the south will have headaches; those who are in the south will be injured; (7) and those who pertain to the color red will die.

If there is an illness on wu [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] and ji [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] days, Shaman Kan carries it out [?] (8) and one should worship wangmu. She should he given yellow dried fish and tawny liquor. On ren and gui days, [the subject will still be] sick; on jia [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] day he will begin to be cured; on yi [CHINESE CHARACTERS NOT REPRODUCIBLE IN ASCII] day there will be activity. If there is no activity, then those who dwell in...