Mr. Xiang and Mrs. Xiang (English spelling)

Japanese: 湘君･湘夫人 - しょうくんしょうふじん（英語表記）Xiāng jūn,Xiāng fū rén

Two goddesses sung about in the Nine Songs of the Chu Ci, an ancient Chinese literary work. They are said to be the deities of the Xiang River in Hunan Province, and are also the water deities of Dongting Lake, with their shrines on Mount Jun in the lake. The Shan Hai Jing (Classic of Shan and Sea) mentions two daughters of the Heavenly Emperor who lived in the mountains of Dongting, and the Han Dynasty's Liejuan (Records of Women) states that these two were the daughters of Emperor Yao and wives of Shun, E Huang and Nu Ying, and that when Shun died at Cangwu, they threw themselves into the Xiang River and became his gods. Xiang Jun and Xiang Fu are identified with these two goddesses, but one theory holds that Xiang Jun is a god and Xiang Fu is a goddess, and that the two are husband and wife.

Source: Heibonsha World Encyclopedia, 2nd Edition Information

Japanese:

中国古代の文学作品《楚辞》九歌篇に歌われる2人の女神。湖南省にある湘水の神とされ，また洞庭湖の水神でもあって，湖中の君山にその祠廟がある。《山海経（せんがいきよう）》に洞庭の山に住む天帝の2人の娘のことが見え，漢の《列女伝》では，この2人は尭帝の娘で舜の妃である娥皇と女英であって，舜が蒼梧で死ぬと2人は湘水に身を投げてその神になったのだとされている。湘君と湘夫人はこの2女神に比定されるが，一説には湘君は男神，湘夫人は女神で，2人は夫婦なのだともされる。

出典　株式会社平凡社世界大百科事典第２版について　情報

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