Traditional Chinese legend, retold in simple Mandarin
The Pearl of West Lake
西湖明珠
The Pearl of West Lake (西湖明珠, Xīhú míngzhū) is a Chinese legend, retold in simple Mandarin as a 3-chapter story with audio for learners at about HSK 1 (Beginner).
Retold from a Hangzhou folk legend: a jade dragon and a golden phoenix polish a stone into a glowing pearl, and a greedy goddess wants it. Where it falls, West Lake is born.
Meet the voices
- Narrator · 旁白 — A warm storyteller who tells the old legend.
- Yulong, the Jade Dragon · 玉龙 — A cheerful young jade dragon who believes in the ugly stone.
- Jinfeng, the Golden Phoenix · 金凤 — A proud, quick-tempered phoenix who is brave and loyal.
- Queen Mother of the West · 王母娘娘 — A proud goddess of the sky who wants everything her way.
- Old Farmer · 老爷爷 — A grumbling but kind old man of the village.
- Little Girl · 小女孩 — The old farmer's curious, cheerful granddaughter.
3 chapters, one journey
Chapter 1: The Gray Stone
一块石头
Two friends find an ugly little stone and start rubbing it. Years later it shines like the sun, but someone in the sky is watching.
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Chapter 2: The Queen Comes
娘娘来了
A goddess wants the shining pearl, and the dragon and phoenix say no. That night, while the village sleeps in its glow, something happens.
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Chapter 3: The Pearl Falls
西湖
The pearl is pulled in two directions and slips from every hand. Where it lands, something very big and very beautiful appears.
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Key words in The Pearl of West Lake
Behind the story
West Lake (西湖) is the most famous lake in China. It lies beside the city of Hangzhou, and poets and painters have loved it for over a thousand years. Many folk legends explain how it began, and the tale of the fallen pearl is one of the best known.
In the story, the Queen Mother of the West (西王母) rules a palace in the sky. In Chinese myth she keeps the peaches of long life. Here she is proud and greedy, until she sees how happy the lake makes people.
Did you know?
- West Lake became a UNESCO World Heritage site in 2011.
- A famous saying about Hangzhou and nearby Suzhou goes: 上有天堂，下有苏杭. It means that if heaven is above, then Suzhou and Hangzhou are heaven on earth.
- Hangzhou really has hills called Yulong (Jade Dragon) and Fenghuang (Phoenix) near West Lake, and the legend explains their names.