Book of Wumu
Encyclopedia
The Book of Wumu is a fictional military treatise mentioned in Jin Yong's Condor Trilogy
(The Legend of the Condor Heroes
, The Return of the Condor Heroes
and The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber). The book is authored by the Song Dynasty
general Yue Fei
.
, the book was hidden in a cave covered by a waterfall, 15 steps east of Cuihan Hall in the imperial palace in Lin'an (present-day Hangzhou
). The book was later stolen by Shangguan Jiannan, chief of the Iron Palm Sect, and brought back to Iron Palm Peak and hidden in the sect's forbidden grounds.
Southern Song Dynasty
. The Jurchens hope to use the military strategies and tactics described in the book to defeat the Mongols
in the north and conquer the Song Dynasty.
Wanyan Honglie, sixth prince of the Jin Dynasty, travels to Song in disguise to find the book. He enlists the help of Ouyang Feng
, Ouyang Ke, Peng Lianhu, Sha Tongtian and other pugilists. They break into the palace and enter the cave, where they found a box, which supposedly contains the book. Guo Jing
fights with Ouyang Feng to prevent him from stealing the book, but is severely wounded when Yang Kang
betrays and stabs him. Guo survives with the help of Huang Rong
and recovers from his injuries seven days later.
Guo and Huang discover a map to the book's location in Qu Lingfeng's rundown inn and realize that the book is actually on Iron Palm Peak. They travel there and succeed in retrieving the book. Guo later uses the knowledge he acquires from the book to lead the Mongol army to victory in the war against Khwarezmia
. However, as Guo is unwilling to side with the Mongols to conquer his native land in southern China (ruled by the Southern Song Dynasty), he leaves Mongolia for good and returns to Song.
next. Guo uses the tactics from the Book of Wumu, his understanding of Mongol warfare, Xiangyang
's natural barriers (Han River waterways and surrounding mountains), and his chivalrous allies from the wulin society to counter the invaders for 46 years with Xiangyang's defending commander Lü Wende and his subordinates. However, after the loss of Fancheng, Song's other fortified city, Guo eventually dies a martyr when Xiangyang finally falls to the Mongols
after Lü Wenhuan (Lü Wende's brother and successor) surrenders.
Before Guo's death, he hides the Book of Wumu in the blade of the Dragon Saber. The latest revision of The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber states that the manual was hidden on Peach Blossom Island
, together with Nine Yin Manual and "Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms" manual. The saber carries a piece of an iron-plated map of the books' location, while another half of the map is within the saber's counterpart, the Heaven Sword. The saber is passed to Guo Jing's son, Guo Polu, but is later lost in the jianghu
(martial artists' community) by the time of the Yuan Dynasty
. The sword comes into the possession of Guo's younger daughter, Guo Xiang, who founds the Emei Sect
later.
later. Zhou breaks the weapon by clashing it together with the Heaven Sword, and the secret items hidden in the blades are revealed. The Book of Wumu comes into Zhang Wuji
's possession and Zhang uses one of the strategies detailed in the book to defeat the Ruyang Prince's forces at the siege of Mount Song
. He passes the book to Xu Da
later and Xu becomes a brilliant military leader after studying it. Xu leads the Ming Cult
rebel forces to overthrow the Yuan Dynasty
and becomes one of the founding pioneers of the Ming Dynasty
.
Condor Trilogy
The Condor Trilogy is a trilogy of three wuxia novels by Jin Yong.The novels in the trilogy are:*The Legend of the Condor Heroes *The Return of the Condor Heroes...
(The Legend of the Condor Heroes
The Legend of the Condor Heroes
The Legend of Condor Heroes is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong, and the first part of the Condor Trilogy. It was first serialized between January 1, 1957 and May 19, 1959 in Hong Kong Commercial Daily...
, The Return of the Condor Heroes
The Return of the Condor Heroes
The Return of the Condor Heroes is a wuxia novel by Jin Yong, and the second part of the Condor Trilogy. It was first serialized between May 20, 1959 and July 5, 1961 on Ming Pao. The story revolves around Yang Guo and his lover Xiaolongnü in their adventure in the wulin fraternity, which does not...
and The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber). The book is authored by the Song Dynasty
Song Dynasty
The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a...
general Yue Fei
Yue Fei
Yue Fei , style name Pengju, was a military general of the Southern Song Dynasty. His ancestral home was in Xiaoti, Yonghe Village, Tangyin, Xiangzhou, Henan...
.
Early history
After the death of Yue FeiYue Fei
Yue Fei , style name Pengju, was a military general of the Southern Song Dynasty. His ancestral home was in Xiaoti, Yonghe Village, Tangyin, Xiangzhou, Henan...
, the book was hidden in a cave covered by a waterfall, 15 steps east of Cuihan Hall in the imperial palace in Lin'an (present-day Hangzhou
Hangzhou
Hangzhou , formerly transliterated as Hangchow, is the capital and largest city of Zhejiang Province in Eastern China. Governed as a sub-provincial city, and as of 2010, its entire administrative division or prefecture had a registered population of 8.7 million people...
). The book was later stolen by Shangguan Jiannan, chief of the Iron Palm Sect, and brought back to Iron Palm Peak and hidden in the sect's forbidden grounds.
The Legend of the Condor Heroes
The book is highly sought by the Jurchens of the Jin Dynasty, enemies of the predominant Han ChineseHan Chinese
Han Chinese are an ethnic group native to China and are the largest single ethnic group in the world.Han Chinese constitute about 92% of the population of the People's Republic of China , 98% of the population of the Republic of China , 78% of the population of Singapore, and about 20% of the...
Southern Song Dynasty
Song Dynasty
The Song Dynasty was a ruling dynasty in China between 960 and 1279; it succeeded the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms Period, and was followed by the Yuan Dynasty. It was the first government in world history to issue banknotes or paper money, and the first Chinese government to establish a...
. The Jurchens hope to use the military strategies and tactics described in the book to defeat the Mongols
Mongols
Mongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
in the north and conquer the Song Dynasty.
Wanyan Honglie, sixth prince of the Jin Dynasty, travels to Song in disguise to find the book. He enlists the help of Ouyang Feng
Ouyang Feng
Ouyang Feng is a fictional character in Jin Yong's wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes and its sequel The Return of the Condor Heroes...
, Ouyang Ke, Peng Lianhu, Sha Tongtian and other pugilists. They break into the palace and enter the cave, where they found a box, which supposedly contains the book. Guo Jing
Guo Jing
Guo Jing is the fictional protagonist of The Legend of the Condor Heroes, a wuxia novel by Jin Yong. He plays a supporting role in the sequel novel The Return of the Condor Heroes as well...
fights with Ouyang Feng to prevent him from stealing the book, but is severely wounded when Yang Kang
Yang Kang
Yang Kang is the fictional antagonist and the foil to the protagonist, Guo Jing, in Jin Yong's wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes.-Birth and heritage:...
betrays and stabs him. Guo survives with the help of Huang Rong
Huang Rong
Huang Rong is a fictional character in the wuxia novel The Legend of the Condor Heroes by Jin Yong. She plays a supporting role in the sequel The Return of the Condor Heroes.-Character description:...
and recovers from his injuries seven days later.
Guo and Huang discover a map to the book's location in Qu Lingfeng's rundown inn and realize that the book is actually on Iron Palm Peak. They travel there and succeed in retrieving the book. Guo later uses the knowledge he acquires from the book to lead the Mongol army to victory in the war against Khwarezmia
Mongol invasion of Khwarezmia
The Mongol invasion of Khwarezmia from 1219 to 1221 marked the beginning of the Mongol conquest of the Islamic states, in the Mongol expansion would ultimately culminate in the conquest of virtually all of Eurasia, save for Western Europe, Fennoscandia, the Byzantine Empire, Arabia, Indian...
. However, as Guo is unwilling to side with the Mongols to conquer his native land in southern China (ruled by the Southern Song Dynasty), he leaves Mongolia for good and returns to Song.
The Return of the Condor Heroes
In the sequel novel, Guo Jing, now an adult, dedicates his life to defending Song China from foreign invasion. By then, the Jin Dynasty has been conquered by the Mongols, who proceed to attack the Song Dynasty and Kingdom of DaliKingdom of Dali
Dali or Great Li was a Bai kingdom centred in what is now Yunnan Province of China. Established by Duan Siping in 937, it was ruled by a succession of 22 kings until the year 1253, when it was conquered by an invasion of the Mongol Empire. The capital city was at Dali.- History :The Kingdom of...
next. Guo uses the tactics from the Book of Wumu, his understanding of Mongol warfare, Xiangyang
Xiangyang
Xiangzhou District is a district of Xiangyang, Hubei, China. The district itself was formerly known as Xiangyang. It was a city famous for the Siege of Xiangyang by invading forces of the Mongol-founded Yuan Dynasty...
's natural barriers (Han River waterways and surrounding mountains), and his chivalrous allies from the wulin society to counter the invaders for 46 years with Xiangyang's defending commander Lü Wende and his subordinates. However, after the loss of Fancheng, Song's other fortified city, Guo eventually dies a martyr when Xiangyang finally falls to the Mongols
Battle of Xiangyang
The Battle of Xiangyang also known as the Battle of Xiangfan was a six-year battle between invading Yuan Dynasty armies founded by the Mongols and Southern Song forces between AD 1267 and 1273. After the battle, the victorious Yuan forces pushed farther into the Song heartland...
after Lü Wenhuan (Lü Wende's brother and successor) surrenders.
Before Guo's death, he hides the Book of Wumu in the blade of the Dragon Saber. The latest revision of The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber states that the manual was hidden on Peach Blossom Island
Taohua Island
Taohua Island is one of the islands of the Zhoushan Archipelago. The island is currently under the administration of Putuo District, Zhoushan City, Zhejiang, China....
, together with Nine Yin Manual and "Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms" manual. The saber carries a piece of an iron-plated map of the books' location, while another half of the map is within the saber's counterpart, the Heaven Sword. The saber is passed to Guo Jing's son, Guo Polu, but is later lost in the jianghu
Jianghu
The jianghu is the milieu, environment, or sub-community, often fictional, in which many Chinese wuxia stories are set.In modern Chinese culture, jianghu is commonly accepted as an alternative universe coexisting with the actual historical one in which the context of the wuxia genre was set...
(martial artists' community) by the time of the Yuan Dynasty
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
. The sword comes into the possession of Guo's younger daughter, Guo Xiang, who founds the Emei Sect
Emei Sect
The Emei Sect is one of the leading orthodox Chinese martial arts sects in the jianghu in several works of wuxia fiction. Its home base is on Mount Emei in Sichuan...
later.
The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber
Nearly a century after the Battle of Xiangyang, the Dragon Saber is taken by Xie Xun after it is found by the Heavenly Eagle Cult. Xie keeps it with him for several years as he lives on an isolated island away from the Chinese mainland. He loses it to Zhou ZhiruoZhou Zhiruo
Zhou Zhiruo is one of the two female lead characters in Jin Yong's wuxia novel The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber. Jin Yong describes Zhou's physical appearance as "beautiful, pure and free of worldly traits" .-Biography:...
later. Zhou breaks the weapon by clashing it together with the Heaven Sword, and the secret items hidden in the blades are revealed. The Book of Wumu comes into Zhang Wuji
Zhang Wuji
Zhang Wuji is the fictional protagonist of the wuxia novel The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber by Jin Yong.-Early life:Zhang was born on Ice Fire Island to Zhang Cuishan and Yin Susu. He is named by his godfather, Xie Xun, in memory of Xie's deceased son, Xie Wuji...
's possession and Zhang uses one of the strategies detailed in the book to defeat the Ruyang Prince's forces at the siege of Mount Song
Mount Song
Mount Song, known in Chinese as Song Shan , is one of the Five Sacred Mountains of Taoism and is located in Henan province on the south bank of the Yellow River in China...
. He passes the book to Xu Da
Xu Da
Xu Da was a Chinese military general who lived in the early Ming Dynasty and contributed to the founding of the dynasty. Apart from being a friend of the Hongwu Emperor, founding emperor of the dynasty, Xu was also the father of Empress Xu, who would marry the third ruler of the Ming, the Yongle...
later and Xu becomes a brilliant military leader after studying it. Xu leads the Ming Cult
Ming Cult
The Ming Cult is a fictional cult and martial arts sect based on the actual Gnostic religion Manichaeism. It plays an important role in Jin Yong's The Heaven Sword and Dragon Saber of all wuxia fiction works. It is also briefly mentioned in The Legend of the Condor Heroes as well...
rebel forces to overthrow the Yuan Dynasty
Yuan Dynasty
The Yuan Dynasty , or Great Yuan Empire was a ruling dynasty founded by the Mongol leader Kublai Khan, who ruled most of present-day China, all of modern Mongolia and its surrounding areas, lasting officially from 1271 to 1368. It is considered both as a division of the Mongol Empire and as an...
and becomes one of the founding pioneers of the Ming Dynasty
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
.
External links
Book of Wumu on Baidu BaikeBaidu Baike
Baidu Encyclopedia is a Chinese language collaborative Web-based encyclopedia provided by the Chinese search engine Baidu. Like Baidu itself, the encyclopedia is heavily self-censored in line with government regulations....