Dianmu (), also known as Leizi, is the Chinese goddess of lightning, who is said to have used flashing mirrors to send bolts of lightning across the sky. She is married to

Leigong Leigong () or Leishen (), is the god of thunder in Chinese folk religion, Chinese mythology and Taoism. In Taoism, when so ordered by heaven, Leigong punishes both earthly mortals guilty of secret crimes and evil spirits who have used their know ...

, the god of thunder. She is one of the gods who work together to produce the phenomena of thunder. Other companions are Yun Tong ("Cloud Youth"), who whips up clouds, and

Yu Shi Yu Shi () is a Chinese spirit or god of rain, also known as or conflated with Red Pine (Chisong, 赤松, or Chisongzi – Master Red Pine), among other names. Translations of ''Yu Shi'' into English include "Lord of Rain" and "Leader of Rain". As ...

("Rain Master") who causes downpours by dipping his sword into a pot. Roaring winds rush forth from a type of goatskin bag manipulated by Fengbo ("Earl of Wind"), who was later transformed into

Feng Po Po Feng Po Po (), also called Feng Popo or Feng Pho Pho, is the goddess of the wind in Chinese mythology who rules over storms and moisture. She is referred to as "Madame Wind", and is usually depicted as a crone, old and wrinkled. Feng Po Po can be s ...

("Lady Wind").

Legend

Dianmu was once a human, who lived with her mother. One day, she was dumping rice husks, because they were too hard for her mother to eat. When the short-tempered thunder god

saw her dumping the husks out, he thought she was wasting food, so he killed her. When the Jade Emperor found out, he was infuriated at Leigong's careless murder. The Jade Emperor revived Dianmu, making her a goddess. Dianmu was made to marry Leigong, who took on the responsibility of caring for her. Dianmu's job is now to work with Lei Gong. She uses mirrors to shine light on the Earth, so Leigong can see who he hits and makes sure they aren't innocent. This is why lightning comes before thunder.

Storms

The following have been named after her: * Typhoon Dianmu (T0406, 09W, Helen) – struck Japan. * Severe Tropical Storm Dianmu (2010) (T1004, 05W, Ester) *

Tropical Storm Dianmu (2016) Tropical Storm Dianmu was a weak tropical cyclone that struck Leizhou Peninsula, China and Northern Vietnam in mid August 2016. It was the eighth named storm of the annual typhoon season. Meteorological history Tropical Storm Dianmu was firs ...

(T1608, 11W) – struck Indochina * Tropical Storm Dianmu (2021) (T2115, 21W)

References

{{Reflist Chinese goddesses Thunder goddesses