Bóyú

薄魚Boyu

The one-eyed sturgeon of the Geshui River from the Shan Hai Jing: shaped like a sturgeon with one eye, crying like retching, its sighting portends great drought.《山海经》记载东山女烝之水异鱼薄鱼：状如鲟鱼而一目，其音如呕，见则天下大旱。

Body身形

Like a sturgeon身姿修长若大鲟鱼

其狀如鱣魚

Eyes独目

One eye头额正中生单目

一目

Voice叫声

Like retching水底悲鸣宛如呕吐

其音如歐

Omen灾异

Universal drought现身兆示赤地大旱

天下大旱

Woodblock print from Gujin Tushu Jicheng showing the one-eyed sturgeon fish Boyu leaping in water, inscribed 'Boyu Tu'一目Single eye额间独目一目Single eye额间独目鱣魚Sturgeon body鲟鱼身躯鱣魚Sturgeon body鲟鱼身躯薄尾Broad tail fin开叉尾鳍薄尾Broad tail fin开叉尾鳍音如歐Retching jaws如呕之嘴音如歐Retching jaws如呕之嘴
石膏水出焉，其中多薄魚

The Shigao waters flow from here, in which are many Bo fish.

山海經·東山經
薄魚圖, Gujin Tushu Jicheng 古今圖書集成, Qin Chong Dian (Section on Birds and Animals), woodblock print, 1726清·陈梦雷等编《古今图书集成·禽虫典》“薄魚图”，雍正四年（1726）铜活字印本 · Public domain公有领域

Highlighted words: anatomy part · feature · form type — tap to jump标色词：形态部位 · 特征 · 形态类别，点击可跳转

The texts原文

Original Text & Translation原文与译文

山海經·東山經 · 山海經·東山經 · Wikisource

女烝之山，其上無草木。石膏水出焉，而西注于鬲水，其中多薄魚，其狀如鱣魚而一目，其音如歐，見則天下大旱。
Within it there are many Boyu-fish, shaped like a sturgeon with a single eye, their sound like retching; when they appear there is great drought under heaven.

山海經·東山經 · 山海經·東山經 · Wikisource

女烝之山，其上無草木。石膏水出焉，而西注于鬲水，其中多薄魚，其狀如鱣魚而一目，其音如歐，見則天下大旱。
Within it there are many Boyu-fish, shaped like a sturgeon with a single eye, their sound like retching; when they appear there is great drought under heaven.

Comparing the Books典籍对比

The Classic of the Eastern Mountains details the Boyu of Mount Nüzheng: a one-eyed sturgeon whose emergence and retching cries forewarn of nationwide drought.

The story来历与故事

A baleful aquatic harbinger of scorched earth: built with the prehistoric mass and plated scales of an ancient river sturgeon, peering out through a solitary cyclopean eye in the center of its skull. Emitting a guttural retching sound from riverbeds, its rare surfacing strikes fear into agrarian dynasties as the supreme omen of catastrophic nationwide drought.

The One-Eyed Sturgeon of the Geshui Waters女烝之山与天下大旱之鱼

In the Classic of the Eastern Mountains, the Shan Hai Jing recounts that three h《山海经·东山经》记载，又东南三百里曰女烝之山，其上无草木，石膏水出焉，而西注于

In the Classic of the Eastern Mountains, the Shan Hai Jing recounts that three hundred li southeastward lies Mount Nüzheng, a barren range without vegetation. From its crevices flows the mineral-heavy Shigao Stream, pouring westward into the Geshui River. In these waters multiply the Boyu, giant fish built like river sturgeons with only a single central eye.

The fish emits a discordant biological sound: 'its voice is like retching' ('yin ru ou'). Ancient hydrologists observed that when subterranean seismic or geothermal shifts parched the water tables, the cold-dwelling Boyu surfaced in distress, retching for oxygen. To early farming empires, their surfacing was an infallible sign of impending celestial dryness: 'when it is seen, there is great drought under heaven' ('jian ze tianxia dahan').

Aquatic Omens and Ancient Drought Ecology上古旱灾生态学与异鱼文化记忆

Ancient Chinese natural philosophy observed that water creatures heralding fire 汉晋五行经师在注《东山经》时，常将“水虫兆旱”视作阴衰阳亢之极致反映。薄鱼的独目

Ancient Chinese natural philosophy observed that water creatures heralding fire and drought represented cosmic imbalances between Yin and Yang. The cyclopean vision of the Boyu mirrored the solitary, unyielding glare of the scorching sun upon dried-out riverbeds.

In subsequent dynastic encyclopedias like Gujin Tushu Jicheng, the Boyu was drawn leaping desperately from churning water, forever remembered as nature’s dramatic distress beacon before the onset of famine.

Record档案

Record Card档案卡

TypeDrought Fish (one-eyed drought-bringing sturgeon)
Also known asDrought Sturgeon; One-Eyed Retching Fish
Earliest sourceShan Hai Jing 山海經 (Classic of the Eastern Mountains)
OmenSightings directly portend nationwide scorching droughts and parched rivers
HabitatDwells in the mineral-rich waters of Geshui issuing from Mount Nüzheng
Earliest source山海經·東山經
Source books山海經·東山經
Image sourceChen Menglei 陳夢雷 (ed.) · Wikimedia Commons
LicensePublic domain
CalamityCalamityShan Hai JingBeast-bodied兽身

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Boyu in Chinese mythology?

The Boyu is a one-eyed, sturgeon-like fish from the Shan Hai Jing that makes retching sounds. Its appearance portends catastrophic nationwide drought.

Where does the Boyu live?

According to the Shan Hai Jing, it lives in the Geshui River flowing from Mount Nüzheng.

Why does a fish herald a drought?

Ancient naturalists observed that subterranean heat or drying riverbeds forced deep-water sturgeons to the surface in distress, linking them to incoming dry weather.

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