Guan Yu, Sainted Warrior

Guan Yu (simplified Chinese: 关羽; traditional Chinese: 關羽; pinyin: Guān Yǔ) was a general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han Dynasty and Three Kingdoms era of China. He played a significant role in the civil war that led to the collapse of the Han Dynasty and the establishment of the Kingdom of Shu , of which Liu Bei was the first emperor.

As one of the best known Chinese historical figures throughout East Asia , Guan Yu's true life stories have largely given way to fictionalized ones, mostly found in the historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms or passed down the generations , in which his deeds and moral qualities have been lionized.

Guan Yu was deified as early as the Sui Dynasty and is still being worshipped by Chinese people today , especially in southern China. He is respected as the epitome of loyalty and righteousnes

Physical appearance

Guan Yu is traditionally portrayed as a red-faced warrior with a long lush beard. While his beard was indeed mentioned in the Records of Three Kingdoms, the idea of his red face may have derived from a later description of him in Chapter One of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms , where the following passage appears:

“

Xuande took a glance at the man , who stood at a height of nine chi , and had a two chi long beard ; his face was of the color of a Zao , with red lips; his eyes were like that of a phoenix's , and his eyebrows resembled silkworms . He had a dignified aura and looked quite majestic.

”

Alternatively , the idea of his red face could have been borrowed from opera representation, where red faces depict loyalty and righteousness. Supposedly , Guan Yu's weapon was a guandao named Green Dragon Crescent Blade, which resembled a halberd and was said to weigh 82 catties (about 18 kg). A wooden replica can be found today in the Emperor Guan Temple in Xiezhou County , China. He traditionally dons a green robe over his body armour , as depicted in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

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