TA Y

Pinyin Da Yu (Chinese: Y the Great), in Chinese mythology, the Tamer of the Flood, one of China's saviour-heroes and reputed founder of China's oldest dynasty, the Hsia. One legend among many recounts Ta Y's extraordinary birth: a man called Kun was given charge of controlling a great deluge. To dam the water, he stole from heaven what seems to have been a piece of magic soil. Angered by the theft, the Lord on High issued an order for his execution. After three years, Kun's miraculously preserved body was slit open and a son brought forth. This was Ta Y who, after years of strenuous labour, provided outlets to the sea through dredging, with the aid of dragons, thus making the world suitable for human habitation.