P’an Hu

P’an Hu means Dragon Dog, is known as the ancestors of the tribe that is found at the lower area of Chang Jiang in China, The Yao people.  He is also known as a shape shifter which usually takes the form of canine specie and he supposedly married the daughter of the Emperor.

P’an Hu is depicted in most legends as a superhuman dog, a creature with the body of a human and a head of the dog.  His whole part can turn into a human except for his head.  The Yao people, which is a descendant of P’an Hu is always described as monster creature that is a mix of human and dog.

The story happened a long time ago in the ancient land now known as China. A king named Gao Xin has a beautiful wife who suddenly experience an unbearable pain on her ear for three years.  The doctors in the area were unable to alleviate the pain and suffering she was experiencing until a wizard came and took something from her ear that made the pain go away.  The stuff looked like a golden cocoon; the queen took it and kept it inside a jar which she covered using a plate.

A dog came out from the cocoon after a few days, he was named Pan Hu because of the manner that he was kept.  The dog grew in just a matter of days and became a favorite pet of everyone.

The king Gao Xin is not in good term with the king of the neighboring land named Fang. He told everyone that anyone who would bring the head of the Fang would marry his daughter.  Pan Hu immediately left and slays Fang.  King Gao was shocked to see Pan Hu dragging the head of Fang, he was so happy that he ordered them to get the best roast and gave it to Pan Hu.  But for some reason, Pan Hu refused to eat the roast; the king thought that it might be because he was not able to keep his promise.

Pan Hu allegedly talked saying that if he do not want her daughter to marry a dog, he should leave him under a golden bell for 7 days and it would change him into a man and he would be able to marry the princess.

The king did as he was told, but on the sixth day, the princess was a bit worried that Pan Hu might die cause he was not eating any stuff so she lifted the golden bell that cause the spell to be broken. True to his word, Pan Hu changed into a human, but her head remains a dog.  But the king took pity on him and let him marry the princess.

They settle in the mountain where they allegedly had 12 kids that eventually became the 12 clans of Yao.  Up to this day, the yao-minority, still believes that they came from the children of Pan Hu and the princess.