Ma Wu

courtesy name A courtesy name ( zh, s=字, p=zì, l=character), also known as a style name, is an additional name bestowed upon individuals at adulthood, complementing their given name. This tradition is prevalent in the East Asian cultural sphere, particula ...

Zizhang, was a Chinese general during the

Eastern Han The Han dynasty was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China (202 BC9 AD, 25–220 AD) established by Liu Bang and ruled by the House of Liu. The dynasty was preceded by the short-lived Qin dynasty (221–206 BC ...

, who hailed from the Huyang Town,

Tanghe Tanghe County is administered by the prefecture-level city of Nanyang, in the southwest of Henan province, People's Republic of China, bordering Hubei province to the south. Its ancient name was Tangzhou (). The county consists of 3 subdistrict ...

, located in the

Henan province Henan; alternatively Honan is a province in Central China. Henan is home to many heritage sites, including Yinxu, the ruins of the final capital of the Shang dynasty () and the Shaolin Temple. Four of the historical capitals of China, Luo ...

. He was ranked 15th among the 28 Generals of Yuntai. He appeared as a figure in the ''

Book of the Later Han The ''Book of the Later Han'', also known as the ''History of the Later Han'' and by its Chinese name ''Hou Hanshu'' (), is one of the Twenty-Four Histories and covers the history of the Han dynasty from 6 to 189 CE, a period known as the Lat ...

'' and sometimes deified as a

door god ''Menshen'', or door gods, are divine guardians of doors and gates in Chinese folk religions, used to protect against evil influences or to encourage the entrance of positive ones. They began as the divine pair Shenshu () and Yulü () under ...

in Taoist pantheon, together with

Yao Qi Yao or YAO may refer to: People * Yao (surname), the transliteration of Chinese family names 姚, 銚, and 么 * Emperor Yao, a mythical Chinese ruler and emperor * Yao Ming (born 1980), Chinese basketball all-star who played for the Houston Roc ...

. He is also linked to a star deity called Kuimulang. In battle, he used the halberd and a steel mace. After joining future Emperor

Liu Xiu The asterisk ( ), from Late Latin , from Ancient Greek , , "little star", is a typographical symbol. It is so called because it resembles a conventional image of a heraldic star. Computer scientists and mathematicians often vocalize it as st ...

's rebellion, Ma Wu began to fight hard for his country. He was the only person who hated the incumbent evil rulers of his time. He wanted to see his country prosper, and saw

as the man who could make it happen. He was a brave, strong and capable military strategist of his time.

References

{{china-bio-stub 61 deaths Chinese gods Deified Chinese men