The Legend of the White Snake

Introduction

This is a Chinese love story about White Snake and a mortal. White Snake and Green Snake succeeded in transforming themselves into human beings after thousand years of practice. Then the white snake fell in love with a mortal…

Synopsis

A thousand-year-old white snake in the O-Mei Mountains decided to visit the famous West Lake. Taking her sister-servant, a green snake, she transformed herself into a beautiful young lady and toured the West Lake, where she met a handsome young man in the rain. She and the young man shared an umbrella, and fell in love with each other. Later on, the white snake married the young man.

The monk in the Jin-shan Temple heard about this marriage and resolved to save the young man from “the devil.” He encouraged the young man to serve liquor at the Dragon-boat Festival. After a few reluctant drinks, the beautiful lady revealed her true identity. The appearance of a snake in his bed frightened the young man to death.

The white snake went to some sacred mountains for a sacred medicine to help her husband regain consciousness. She fought the guarding spirits and lost, but the mountain god pardoned her and granted her the medicine on account of her true love for her man.

The monk came again to save the young man’s soul. He asked the young man to call at the Jin-shan Temple, and, upon the young man’s arrival, shut him up in the monastery. The pregnant white snake, accompanied by the green snake, went for her husband and got into a battle, with the snakes commending the fishes and turtles and the monk summoning the heavenly guards. The snakes caused a flood, nearly destroying the temple, and fled.

The young man escaped the temple and met his wife at the West Lake. The two made peace after apologies, complaints, and quarrels. The white snake was ready to give birth; the three went home as a family again.

The monk, having borrowed some heavenly gadgets, came to rescue the young man from evil again. This time the monk succeeded; the white snake was caught and imprisoned at the bottom of the Lei Feng Tower near the Jin-shan Mountains for good.

The green snake ran away and, years later, was able to raise a huge army of water animals. They tore down the Lei Feng Tower. The white snake was re-united with her husband and son.