Er Lang Shen （二郎神） is also worshipped as the god of water, the god of water suppression, and the chief ruler of water. Er Lang Shen’s ruling of water （二郎治水） is the most central part of the myth of Er Lang Shen, and no matter how many variations of the image of Er Lang Shen there are in the literature, most of his core deeds are the ruling of water. This selection is made from one of the many versions of the legend.
In ancient times, after Nu Wa （女娲）, the Mother of the Earth, repaired the hole in the sky, Er Lang Shen Yang Jian （杨戬） was ordered to guard the Yellow River.
At that time, the Yellow River was turbulent and prone to floods, causing great suffering for the people living on both banks. They lived in great distress.
Er Lang Shen Yang Jian always guarded this great river. He was very brave and possessed immense magical powers. But the river was never calm, and floods often occurred.
He went among the people to understand their pain, observed the flow of the Yellow River, and studied the causes of the frequent floods.
After some time of observation and reflection, Er Lang Shen Yang Jian discovered that it was the dragons in the Yellow River causing trouble. These Longs (dragons) often stirred up trouble and caused the river to overflow.
So, Er Lang Shen Yang Jian decided to deal with these Longs. He took his magical sword and jumped into the river to engage in a fierce battle with the Longs.
After a heated battle, Er Lang Shen Yang Jian finally defeated these Longs and subdued them.
From then on, the Yellow River became calm, and the floods were brought under control. The people on both banks could finally live peacefully and happily.
They were very grateful to Er Lang Shen Yang Jian and came to worship him.
The deeds of Er Lang Shen Yang Jian were sung for a long, long time, and he became a great hero in people’s hearts. His bravery and wisdom became a model for later generations. In people’s beliefs, Er Lang Shen Yang Jian is always the hero who guards the Yellow River and controls floods.
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