Creation of the Gods · chapter 6 of 10
Born from a Lotus
莲花里的哪吒
Nezha gives up his body to save his town. A jolly immortal grows him a new one out of lotus flowers, but his father is still angry when he flies home.
Read what you hear
- Narrator 那天夜里，陈塘关很安静。哪吒回到家里，跪在妈妈面前。
Nà tiān yèlǐ, Chéntángguān hěn ānjìng. Nézha huí dào jiā lǐ, guì zài māma miànqián.
That night, Chentang Pass was quiet. Nezha came home and knelt in front of his mother.
- Nezha 妈妈，对不起。我给你和爸爸惹了大麻烦。
Māma, duìbuqǐ. Wǒ gěi nǐ hé bàba rě le dà máfan.
Mother, I'm sorry. I've brought you and Father a lot of trouble.
- Lady Yin 傻孩子，你还小。妈妈不怪你，妈妈只想你好好的。
Shǎ háizi, nǐ hái xiǎo. Māma bú guài nǐ, māma zhǐ xiǎng nǐ hǎohǎo de.
Silly child, you're still small. Mother doesn't blame you. Mother only wants you to be well.
Chapter 6 is part of SayMei Stories ($2.99 a month) and SayMei Premium. Chapter 1 of Creation of the Gods is free, and so are The Second Cup of Tea, Mulan, The Butterfly Lovers, Journey to the West: The Monkey King, Cinderella, The Night of the Nian, Chang'e and the Moon, The Great Race: The Twelve Animals, Aesop's Fables, Little Red Riding Hood, The Three Little Pigs, The Ugly Duckling, Pangu and Nüwa: How the World Began, Beauty and the Beast, The Magic Lotus Lantern, Alice in Wonderland, Zhong Kui the Demon Queller, The Odyssey, Robin Hood and Jiang Ziya Goes Fishing from start to finish.
- Nezha 妈妈，我想了很久。我不想让全城的人哭。
Māma, wǒ xiǎng le hěn jiǔ. Wǒ bù xiǎng ràng quán chéng de rén kū.
Mother, I've thought about it for a long time. I don't want the whole town to cry.
- Lady Yin 你要做什么？哪吒，你别吓妈妈！
Nǐ yào zuò shénme? Nézha, nǐ bié xià māma!
What are you going to do? Nezha, don't frighten your mother!
- Nezha 妈妈，我的身体是你给我的，今天我还给你。你别哭，我会回来的。
Māma, wǒ de shēntǐ shì nǐ gěi wǒ de, jīntiān wǒ huán gěi nǐ. Nǐ bié kū, wǒ huì huílái de.
Mother, you gave me my body, and today I give it back to you. Don't cry. I will come back.
- Lady Yin 哪吒……我的孩子……
Nézha… wǒ de háizi…
Nezha... my child...
- Nezha 妈妈，你看，天要亮了。我走了。
Māma, nǐ kàn, tiān yào liàng le. Wǒ zǒu le.
Mother, look, the sky is getting light. I'm going now.
- Narrator 天亮以前，大水退了，陈塘关平安了。哪吒的魂，飞向了远方的山。
Tiān liàng yǐqián, dà shuǐ tuì le, Chéntángguān píng'ān le. Nézha de hún, fēi xiàng le yuǎnfāng de shān.
Before dawn, the flood water went back, and Chentang Pass was safe. Nezha's spirit flew off toward a faraway mountain.
- Taiyi 咦，谁在哭？哈哈，是我的小徒弟哪吒！
Yí, shéi zài kū? Hā hā, shì wǒ de xiǎo túdi Nézha!
Oh, who is crying? Ha ha, it's my little student Nezha!
- Nezha 师父，我把身体还给爸爸妈妈了。我没有身体了，我不能回家了。
Shīfu, wǒ bǎ shēntǐ huán gěi bàba māma le. Wǒ méiyǒu shēntǐ le, wǒ bù néng huí jiā le.
Master, I gave my body back to Father and Mother. I have no body now. I can't go home.
- Taiyi 谁说的？你看，那个荷花池里，有什么？
Shéi shuō de? Nǐ kàn, nàge héhuā chí lǐ, yǒu shénme?
Who says so? Look, what is in that lotus pond?
- Nezha 荷花！好多好多荷花，还有大大的绿叶子！
Héhuā! Hǎo duō hǎo duō héhuā, hái yǒu dàdà de lǜ yèzi!
Lotus flowers! So many lotus flowers, and big green leaves!
- Taiyi 我用荷花和荷叶，给你做一个新身体。比原来的还要好！
Wǒ yòng héhuā hé héyè, gěi nǐ zuò yí gè xīn shēntǐ. Bǐ yuánlái de hái yào hǎo!
I'll make you a new body from lotus flowers and lotus leaves. Better than the old one!
- Nezha 哇！我有手，有脚，我又能动了！
Wa! Wǒ yǒu shǒu, yǒu jiǎo, wǒ yòu néng dòng le!
Wow! I have hands and feet, and I can move again!
- Taiyi 还有两件礼物：风火轮和火尖枪。踩上风火轮，你就能飞。
Hái yǒu liǎng jiàn lǐwù: fēnghuǒlún hé huǒjiānqiāng. Cǎi shàng fēnghuǒlún, nǐ jiù néng fēi.
And two more gifts: the Wind-Fire Wheels and the Fire-Tipped Spear. Step on the wheels and you can fly.
- Nezha 风火轮！我能飞起来了！师父，我要回家看妈妈，也要看爸爸！
Fēnghuǒlún! Wǒ néng fēi qǐlái le! Shīfu, wǒ yào huí jiā kàn māma, yě yào kàn bàba!
Wind-Fire Wheels! I can fly! Master, I want to go home to see Mother, and Father too!
- Taiyi 去吧。可是你要记住，你爸爸的心里，还有一个结。
Qù ba. Kěshì nǐ yào jìzhù, nǐ bàba de xīn lǐ, hái yǒu yí gè jié.
Go. But remember, there is still a knot in your father's heart.
- Narrator 哪吒飞回了家。妈妈笑着哭了。可是他的爸爸李靖，一点儿也不高兴。
Nézha fēi huí le jiā. Māma xiàozhe kū le. Kěshì tā de bàba Lǐ Jìng, yìdiǎnr yě bù gāoxìng.
Nezha flew home. His mother laughed and cried at the same time. But his father Li Jing was not happy at all.
- Nezha 爸爸！你为什么把我的小庙也拆了？
Bàba! Nǐ wèishénme bǎ wǒ de xiǎo miào yě chāi le?
Father! Why did you tear down my little temple too?
- Li Jing 你是一个给全城惹祸的孩子！我不想别人再想起你！
Nǐ shì yí gè gěi quán chéng rě huò de háizi! Wǒ bù xiǎng biérén zài xiǎngqǐ nǐ!
You are a child who brought trouble to the whole town! I don't want people to remember you!
- Nezha 你不是我的爸爸！我不要再叫你爸爸了！
Nǐ bú shì wǒ de bàba! Wǒ bú yào zài jiào nǐ bàba le!
You're not my father! I won't call you Father ever again!
- Li Jing 哪吒！你别过来！
Nézha! Nǐ bié guòlái!
Nezha! Don't come any closer!
- Randeng 孩子，先把枪放下。李将军，这座小金塔，请你拿着。
Háizi, xiān bǎ qiāng fàngxià. Lǐ jiāngjūn, zhè zuò xiǎo jīn tǎ, qǐng nǐ ná zhe.
Child, put the spear down first. General Li, please take this little golden pagoda.
- Li Jing 大师，这个小塔……有什么用？
Dàshī, zhège xiǎo tǎ… yǒu shénme yòng?
Master, this little pagoda... what is it for?
- Randeng 塔一亮，哪吒的火就会安静。可是真正让火安静的，是你的话。
Tǎ yí liàng, Nézha de huǒ jiù huì ānjìng. Kěshì zhēnzhèng ràng huǒ ānjìng de, shì nǐ de huà.
When the pagoda glows, Nezha's fire grows calm. But what truly calms the fire is your words.
- Li Jing 哪吒……那天晚上，爸爸怕了。爸爸不是不要你，是怕再也见不到你。
Nézha… nà tiān wǎnshang, bàba pà le. Bàba bú shì bú yào nǐ, shì pà zài yě jiàn bu dào nǐ.
Nezha... that night, Father was afraid. Father didn't not want you. He was afraid he would never see you again.
- Nezha 爸爸……我也怕。我以为你不要我了。
Bàba… wǒ yě pà. Wǒ yǐwéi nǐ bú yào wǒ le.
Father... I was afraid too. I thought you didn't want me anymore.
- Li Jing 傻孩子。你永远是我的儿子。
Shǎ háizi. Nǐ yǒngyuǎn shì wǒ de érzi.
Silly child. You will always be my son.
- Randeng 好了。周国的姜太公，正在找帮手。你们父子，愿不愿意去？
Hǎo le. Zhōuguó de Jiāng Tàigōng, zhèngzài zhǎo bāngshǒu. Nǐmen fùzǐ, yuàn bu yuànyì qù?
Good. Jiang Taigong of Zhou is looking for helpers. Father and son, will you go?
- Nezha 姜太公？他在哪儿？我准备好了！
Jiāng Tàigōng? Tā zài nǎr? Wǒ zhǔnbèi hǎo le!
Master Jiang? Where is he? I'm ready!
Hear the chapter
What changed in the story?
- Why does Nezha give back his body?
“我不想让全城的人哭”
- What does Taiyi use to make Nezha a new body?
“我用荷花和荷叶，给你做一个新身体”
- Why is Nezha angry with his father?
“你为什么把我的小庙也拆了”
- What is the little golden pagoda for?
“塔一亮，哪吒的火就会安静”
- Why was Li Jing so cold to his son?
“是怕再也见不到你”