In Chinese mythology, Nu Wa is the goddess of order who created humans and saved the world from destruction. According to legend, Nu Wa came to earth before there were any people.
Nu Wa became lonely and decided to make copies of herself from mud in a pool. The figures she created came to life and wandered off to populate the earth. After a while, Nu Wa realized that it would take too long to fill the earth with people if she made each one by hand. So she took a rope, dipped it into the mud, and flung the drops of mud in all directions. Each drop became a separate human being. The people Nu Wa created by hand became the rich and powerful people in the world; those she flung as drops from the rope became the poor and the weak.
Another popular story recounts how Nu Wa saved the earth. The water god Gong Gong had tried to overthrow the fire god Zhu Rong. When Gong Gong failed, he became angry and rammed Imperfect Mountain with his head. The mountain, which supported the heavens, crumbled, tearing a hole in the sky and causing the ends of the earth to give way. The disorder that followed included fires and floods. Selecting several stones from a river, Nu Wa shaped them to repair the hole in the sky. She also slew a giant tortoise and used its legs to support the heavens. Nu Wa's actions restored the order of the universe and saved the world from destruction.
See also Chinese Mythology .