Qilin & Kirin

In this week's episode, we're going over to ancient East Asia for a majestic monster, the Qilin or the Kirin - depending on where you're from! How does this monster relate to one of the greatest sages of our times? How can you get one to respect you? Find out this week!

Transcript

INTRO:
Hello and welcome to Myth Monsters, my name is Erin and I’ll be your host for these little snack bite size podcasts on folklore and mythical monsters from around the world. 

These podcasts focus on the actual cryptids, folklore and mythic monsters from global mythology, rather than focusing on full stories of heroes and their big adventures.

I’ll also be dropping in some references that they have to recent culture and where you can see these represented in modern day content so you can learn more, and get as obsessed as I am about these absolute legends of the mythological world.

Summer is in full swing over here in the UK with gorgeous summery weather, so much so that I’ve actually done the cringiest British thing and bought an AC unit for my house for the two days a year that it’s unbearable - how awful but I am truly the coolest cucumber whilst sitting playing video games now and for the whole summer to come. Lovely.

DESCRIPTION:

Anyway, moving away from the horrendous heat - we’re heading over to East Asia for a monster from three different mythologies, which is a first and super exciting. I can hear the Fantastic Beast fans scream, because this week we’re talking about the majestic Qilin. 

Now before I get started you might be wondering why there might be two spellings of this and why I’ve put two different names in the title this week. This is because the same monster is known under two names and both of them are equally popular, and this is because where they are from different countries, it’s spelled differently. I’ll get into it more later, but just in case you were wondering, yes - it’s the same monster, I’m not doing two in this episode.

So the Qilin; they are usually described as having the body of a horse or deer, with a shimmering, scaly coat like a fish, a lion’s tail, cloven hooves like a cow and a face like a dragon, with long manes and whiskers. They are often mistaken and called unicorns, because they are sometimes found with a singular horn, but sometimes can have majestic antlers like stags. They are said to be bigger than normal horses, if we’re taking their body into account, and are said to be able to get to around 9 feet tall. 

They are usually surrounded by a fire or glow of some kind, especially around their manes or legs to represent their ethereal nature. Qilins are known for their peaceful nature though, and they can drift through the world at superspeed, floating, not even harming a blade of grass as they gallop. 

They’re known as being gentle and benevolent creatures, with a kind heart towards humans and any other animals or plant-life. They are also known as being incredibly wise and just, and are able to sense good and evil in a person. Whilst they’re not known to speak to humans directly, they can communicate through clear body language and expression rather than through speaking itself. 

The Qilin’s main job though is being elusive and that’s because they only appear when either a great peace has been achieved or to mark the birth or death of an enlightened leader or sage. So they were very rare to see, especially in ancient Asia when war was rife within the countries in the region.

Because of this, their divine judgement was extremely important and they would bow to the person they deemed worthy, showing the people around them the honour of that person's character. They would shun evil people and would only attack in the last instance, but would with some ferocity. 

They are also immortal and because of this, are seen as an omen of enduring peace and prosperity in the realm. They are also able to ward off evil and malicious spirits, and can purify regions and restore balance, which can also involve healing people too. 

We don’t know where the Qilin comes from, or where they live when they’re not in our Earthly realm, but the belief is that they are made from starlight, a gift straight from the heavens to celebrate peace amongst all men. Because of this, we also don’t know what they eat or how they reproduce, but we do know they can be both male and female, so the assumption is that they have babies like any other mammal I guess. 

Their immortality is also almost invulnerability, as these monsters are often considered dragons, although they are not technically dragons I hasten to add - their scales shield them from most damage and there have been no records of the death of a Qilin within folklore. However, there have been records of injury, and I’ll get into that later.

ORIGIN:

Now moving onto etymology, unfortunately there isn’t a direct translation but I can tell you some cool things about the Qilin as a word. Qi and Lin are actually two separate words brought together, and they represent the male and female versions of this monster, which is pretty cool. But in Chinese, this word directly relates to the monster - but is often translated into English as unicorn, which is fundamentally incorrect, but it is what it is.

In Korea, the Qilin are called Girin and Kirin with a K, but the term Girin is actually their word for giraffe - which is the same Japan, it’s Kirin with a K too - and I’m sure you imagine why the giraffe, but I’ll go deeper into it in a bit. 

Now for their history, they have been around for a long time - since the 11th century BC when they were noted in a poem called Lin zhi zhi or Feet of the Lin. In this poem, it talks about Lin, a female Qilin, being captured and identified by a great sage, Confucius. Remember that name, he’s kind of important.

There are a couple of stories around Qilin, but the most famous is actually around our great sage. He’s a very famous man, like in reality, he actually coined the saying; “Do not do unto others what you do not want done to yourself” and his teachings still live on in the teachings of Confucianism, which is practised today. He lived in about 550 BC, and it was said that when he was born, a Qilin arrived on Earth to celebrate the birth of a great sage. He went on to do great things, encouraging music, art, politics and poetry throughout the Chinese cultural space - and when the same Qilin was injured years later, it foretold of his death - which then happened. The idea of being associated to a Qilin is a big thing still within Chinese politics and social spaces, and prior, their monarchy too. 

Another famous story is about Zheng He, from the Ming Dynasty or around 1368-1644, who is still regarded as the greatest admiral in China’s history. He took a trip to East Africa, mostly Somalia and picked up a few exotic animals, including a giraffe and presented them to the Emperor, who genuinely believed they were Qilin and he was being shown to be a great ruler. This had a massive lasting effect and the word Qilin is still used for the Korean and Japanese languages when talking about this creature, and it’s important to note that their versions of the monster came after the Chinese - this is originally a Chinese myth monster.

Legends also tell that the Qilin were featured in the legendary garden of the Yellow Emperor and Emperor Yao, who are both, important note here, mythical Emperors. It was believed that they were so brilliant at ruling that they were blessed with their own Qilins that lived in their beautiful palace gardens - so as no one would question their leadership.

Lastly, there is another mythology that also has Qilin and that’s the Thai. In Thailand, the Qilin is known as the Gilen and is a member of their mythical animal pantheon known as the Himapant. These again were brought across from China, but represents elemental magical forces and so is a bit different in looks, as he personifies the elements themselves. This Qilin is also mentioned within an epic poem called Phra Aphai Mani, where there’s a monster ridden by the main character who is described like a Qilin, but called Ma Nin Mangkorn or ‘Ceylonite Dragon Horse’, with diamond fangs, ceylonite scales and black sequins all over its body. 

The legend of the Qilin goes on today in the Hakka people of China, where at Chinese New Year or weddings, they perform Qilin dances. These are similar to the lion and dragon ones that most people are familiar with, but the Qilin dance tells the story of a Qilin leaving its lair and looking for food, after it finds a vegetable, it spits it out, alongside a jade book, when it then returns to its lair again. The costume is beautiful, and believed to mimic cats, and symbolises good fortune, prosperity and harmony. 

On the other side of the East China Sea, in Japan, they have the Kirin Brewery Company keeping the myth alive! They’ve been around since 1888, and the Kirin is the logo as well as the name for their lovely looking lager. They’ve said that the Kirin is the symbol of their “unwavering commitment to uncompromising quality and to bringing joy to our customers’ lives.” I have had Kirin Beer in the past, but I can’t say I remember it unfortunately - but if you have it near you, please go give it a try and appreciate the mystical creature bringing it to you.

Now time to bust this one open, of course what we believe this monster might be inspired by is the Giraffe from that wonderful story earlier. When the Giraffes and other exotic creatures from Africa were brought over to China and the rest of Asia, I imagine they did believe that these were their long-lost mythical monsters, and you can kind of see why with their spotty coats, long necks and hooved feet.

We do also have two creatures worth mentioning as counterparts, the Unicorn and the Dragon. I’ve covered both of these in other episodes if you want to know more but here’s the rundown. Unicorns are a Scottish mythical monster, mostly horse but with a singular horn on their head - with many many super powers including healing and bowing to worthy people, which does make it an easy comparison, and a regular one too to the Qilin. Dragons on the other hand, are from all over the world, but especially Asian dragons could also be related, with their wise nature and connection to Chinese royalty and the stars, it makes sense. These creatures float through the air in a more serpentine way, and generally avoid people when they have to.

CULTURAL SIGNIFICANCE: 

Now onto modern media, we actually have a bit on these this week! If you’re a bit of a Potterhead, you’ll know them already - but there are a whole load of other media that both the Kirin and Qilin have starred in.

For art, have a look at architecture this week because they’re not often used in traditional paintings. I’d recommend looking at independent and more modern art depictions of them too because what people have made is truly beautiful and reflects these wonderful monsters.

In movies, we have; Princess Mononoke, 47 Ronin, Shang-Chi and the Golden Rings, Buddha’s Palm, The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor, Mysterious Ancient Beasts, The Great Yokai War & Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them.

For TV, we have; Beyblade, Fairy Tail: 100 Years Quest, Super Sentai, B’t X, Digimon Data Squad, One Piece, Naruto, Pet Shop of Horrors & My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic. 

In video games, we have ones such as; Arcana Heart, Bunny Must Die, Final Fantasy 11,12 & 14, Puzzle and Dragons, Age of Mythology, World of Warcraft, Pokemon, Guild Wars, Monster Sanctuary, Steel Assault, Endless Nightmare, Hangzo, Mystic Riders, Golden Sun, Heroes of Might and Magic, Genshin Impact, Bloody Spell, Dynasty Warriors, Fire Emblem, Yokai Watch, Terra Battle, Yakuza 3, Mystical Fighter, Monster Hunter, Gaia Crusaders, Dragalia Lost, Arknights & Arabian Magic. 

My book recommendation this week is for The Japanese Myths: A Guide to Gods, Heroes and Spirits by Joshua Frydman, The Korean Myths: A Guide to the Gods, Heroes and Legends by Heinz Insu Fenkl and The Chinese Myths: A Guide to the Gods and Legends by Tao Tao Liu within the Thames & Hudson Myths series for a great look at both of these mythologies. This series is great for anyone looking to get info about the bigger mythology spaces, I really recommend them!

For my younger audience and their parents, have a look at East Asian Folktales, Myths and Legends by Eva Wong Nava for a smaller handful of monster tales from this region, but she does a worldwide series that I really recommend for our younger listeners. 

DO I THINK THEY EXISTED? 

Now it’s time for, do I think they existed?

This one is a tricky one, because they are so rare to spot. Mainly because we’ve been slacking in the great leader category for a long time, especially over here in the UK - but I’m not looking at anyone specific. cough cough

Either way, do I think a Unicorn/Dragon creature is going to come down from the heavens when a great leader or sage is born? I think not, and I think we might be beyond that point of grace too as a species. If anything the wise Qilin would take one look at the state of our world now and leave that giant hole in the ozone layer, never to return - thinking if there are any clever humans left, they’re gonna die soon anyway. 

Not to fearmonger, but realistically - no, I do not believe Qilins are going to come and save us. However, I love the idea of them. I love the connection to human intelligence and that you are blessed by them if you are that good a person, if it was just based on how wonderful or kind, or generous you were, we’d have Qilin’s in the bucketloads. Maybe we’re just not that great and not that clever - which is kind of sad.

Maybe one day we’ll really spot one, and that’s our omen that something good is coming in the next 30 years or so whilst that person grows up - I don’t know, call me a cynic, but I have hope for us and for the Qilin to return one day. But I hope it’s soon.

But what do you think? Did the Qilin and Kirin roam East Asia? Let me know on social media!

OUTRO: 

What a fabulous creature, and so nice to cover a wider chunk of countries in one continent with one monster! So definitely a new one for us this week and I’m glad we got to cover it finally. 

Next time, we’re heading over to the Nordic Isles, mostly Iceland, for a softer spirit for once. Follow this spooky entity in your dreams for a potentially bad ending, but at least they’re nice on the way? Join us next time for the haunting Fylgja from Norse mythology!

For now, thank you so much for listening, it’s been an absolute pleasure. If you enjoyed this podcast, please give it a rating on the service you’re listening on - I’ve got loads of social media for any questions, or suggestions on what monsters to cover next and I’d love to hear from you. The social media handles for Tiktok, YouTube and Instagram are mythmonsterspodcast, and twitter is mythmonsterspod and I’m now also on BlueSky under mythmonsters. But all of our content can be found at mythmonsters.co.uk, and you can also find us on Goodpods, Buymeacoffee and Patreon if you want to help me fund the podcast too.

Come join the fun though and share this with your pals, they might love me as much as you do.

But for now, stay spooky and I’ll see you later babes.