Kong Xuan (Chinese: 孔宣; pinyin: Kǒng Xuān) is a character in the classic 16th-century Chinese novel Fengshen Yanyi. He is a peacock spirit who became King Zhou's general.^[1] His character is based on Mahamayuri from Buddhist myth.^[2][3]

In Fengshen Yany

His original form was the first peacock in the world. In the original text of Fengshen Yany, Kong Xuan was once said to have been born "when chaos first divided". His mother was the phoenix, the ancestor of birds. Kong Xuan was born with a proud and independent spirit, and his ambitions were far-reaching. The novel praises him, saying: "The world is vast, but he can go anywhere".

After he attained enlightenment, he transformed into a human form. He later became an official and served as the general of the Three Mountains Pass, under King Zhou, the last ruler of the Shang dynasty. After Hong Jin defected to the Zhou side, Kong Xuan was transferred to the frontline of Jinji Ridge to block the Zhou army from entering the pass.^[4]

Kong Xuan had five different rays of light which would sweep his enemy into a void, thus he gave King Wu's armies a hard time. Even King Wu's mightiest generals such as Nezha and Yang Jian (Erlang Shen) were no match against him.^[5] According to research by Chinese scholars, the description of Kong Xuan's ability to emit five-colored light in the novel comes from the Buddhist Mother Great Peacock Sutra and the Tathagata Protection of the Countryside Dharani Sutra. These two sutras are classics of Tantric Buddhism.^[6]

However, in the end, Kong Xuan was defeated by Candi, a Buddha from the west. He then reverted into his original form, a giant peacock, and became Candi's mount. Later, he was also ordered to help Zhou, and when he fought against the Zhuxian Evil Formation, he helped Candi attack Tongtian Jiejiao.^[7]

In folktale

The story of Kong Xuan and the Lacquer Treasure is a popular Chinese folktale. It is often told to explain the origins of lacquer and the importance of lacquer craftsmanship.

Once upon a time, there was a peacock demon named Kong Xuan who lived in a lacquer tree. One day, he saw the Taoist priest Candi sleeping under the tree. Kong Xuan was afraid that Candi would harm him, so he attacked first. He kicked down a branch of the tree, hoping to crush Candi.

Unbeknownst to Kong Xuan, Candi caught the branch in midair. He took the branch back to his Taoist temple and, after trimming and polishing it, he used it to cultivate a magical treasure called the Lacquer Treasure. Later, Candi used the Lacquer Treasure to subdue Kong Xuan. He threw the treasure at Kong Xuan, and it struck him on the forehead. Kong Xuan was immediately subdued, and he became Candi's disciple.^[8]