Japan: 'Chang'e flees to the moon', woodblock painting by Tsukioka Yoshitoshi (1839-1892), 1885

Chang'e or Chang-o, originally known as Heng'e, is the Chinese goddess of the moon. There are many tales and legends about her in Chinese mythology and folk religion, usually involving her husband Houyi, the elixir of life and the moon, and representing the origin of the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival. The general tale goes that in the distant past, ten suns had risen up into the sky to scorch the earth and cause great calamity for the people. The suns were, in some versions of the story, the children of the Jade Emperor, and so he sent the immortal archer Hou Yi to stop their mischief. Hou Yi instead shot down nine of them, leaivng only one in the sky, and therefore was punished by being made mortal and sent down to the earth, where he lived with his wife, Chang'e. In other versions of the tale, he was mortal at first, and freely given the elixir of immortality as a reward for his efforts. Whatever version of the story, he ends up with the elixir of immortality in his care, but does not consume it right away, wishing to share it with Chang'e. However, while Hou Yi was away, his apprentice Fengmeng, broke into the house and attempted to forcefuly steal the elixir. Chang'e escaped his wrath by consuming the elixir herself, becoming immortal and flying up towards the heavens, eventually landing on the moon. Hou Yi became greatly saddened at what had occurred, and gave sacrifices of fruits and cakes to her memory, and thus the Mid-Autumn Moon Festival came to be, a celebration that still occurs on the full moon night of the eighth lunar month.