Jing Mu An (Well Wooden Han Beast)

The Well Mansion is the first of the Seven Mansions constituting the Vermilion Bird, the southern celestial symbol, and is associated with the Wood element. Its embodiment is the ‘an’—a colossal, antelope-like beast resembling a northern wild canine. As the mansion containing the largest number of stars among the Twenty-Eight Lunar Mansions, it governs matters related to water, especially springs and wells; it corresponds to the Eastern Well asterism and historically governed the Qin region under the system of astrological terrestrial correspondence. In Daoism, it is venerated as Lord Jing Mu An. In *Journey to the West*, Jing Mu An accompanied Sun Wukong to subdue the Rhinoceros Demon, demonstrating formidable spiritual power. In folk practice, devotees worship Lord Jing Mu An to ensure plentiful water supplies and to dispel drought calamities.