Gonggong Strikes Mount Buzhou

The Fall of the Sky Pillar

In defeat the water god Gonggong headbutted Mount Buzhou, breaking the pillar that held up the sky.

After losing his war for sovereignty, the water god Gonggong dashed his head against Mount Buzhou, the pillar that held up the sky. The pillar broke, the sky tilted to the northwest and the earth sank in the southeast; the sun, moon and stars shifted, and the rivers turned eastward forever. It was to mend this ruin that Nüwa melted five-colored stones and propped the sky on a giant turtle’s legs — the world we know is the world after the fall.