Tiangou

Heavenly Dog of Protection

White-headed wildcat-like beast whose cry wards off misfortune — unlike the later moon-eating dog.

The celestial dog of the Shanhaijing is a white-headed wildcat-like beast whose cry protects against misfortune — an auspicious guardian of the western mountains. Astronomy later gave the name Tian Gou to a baleful star, and folklore turned it into the beast that swallows sun and moon during eclipses. One name, two faces: the protector and the devourer.