Yu the Great
Yu the Great, Color on silk at the National Palace Museum
Chinese	大禹
Transcriptions Mandarin - Hanyu Pinyin Dà Yǔ Min - Hokkien POJ Daí Wu Cantonese (Yue) - Jyutping Daai6 Yu5

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Yu the Great (Chinese: 大禹; pinyin: Dà Yǔ, c. 2200 - 2100 BC),^[1] was a legendary ruler in ancient China famed for his introduction of flood control, inaugurating dynastic rule in China by founding the Xia Dynasty, and for his upright moral character.^[2][3]

Few, if any, records exist from the period of Chinese history when Yu reigned. Because of this, the vast majority of information about his life and reign comes from collected pieces of oral tradition and stories that were passed down in various areas of China, many of which were collected in Sima Qian's famous Records of the Grand Historian. Yu and other "sage-kings" of Ancient China were lauded by Confucius and other Chinese teachers, who praised their virtues and morals.^[4]

Yu is one of the few Chinese rulers posthumously honored with the appellation "the Great".

Ancestry and early life[link]

According to several ancient Chinese records, Yu was the 8^th great-grandson of the Yellow Emperor: Yu's father Gun was the 5^th great-grandson of Emperor Zhuanxu; Zhuanxu's father Changyi was the second son of the Yellow Emperor.^[5][6][7][8] Yu was said to be born at Mount Wen (Chinese: 汶山), in modern day Beichuan County, Sichuan Province,^[9] though there are debates as to whether he was born in Shifang instead.^[10] Yu's mother was a woman of the Youxin clan named either Nüzhi (Chinese: 女志) or Nüxi (Chinese: 女嬉).

As a child, Yu's father Gun moved the people east toward the Chinese heartland. King Yao enfeoffed Gun as lord of Chong, usually identified as the middle peak of Mount Song. Yu is thus believed to have grown up on the slopes of Mount Song, just south of the Yellow River.^[11] He later married a woman from Mount Tu (Chinese: 塗山) who is generally referred to as Tushan-shi (Chinese: 塗山氏; literally "Lady Tushan").^[12] They had a son named Qi, a name literally meaning "revelation".^[12]

Great Yu Controls the Waters[link]

Han Dynasty depiction of Yu.

During the reign of king Yao, the Chinese heartland was frequently plagued by floods that prevented further economic and social development.^[13] Yu's father, Gun, was tasked with devising a system to control the flooding. He spent nine years building a series of dikes and dams along the riverbanks, but they were ineffective. As an adult, Yu continued his father's work and made a careful study of the river systems in an attempt to learn why his father's great efforts had failed.

Collaborating with Houji - a semi-mythical agricultural master about whom little is concretely known - Yu successfully devised a system of flood controls that were crucial in establishing the prosperity of the Chinese heartland. Instead of directly damming the rivers' flow, Yu made a system of irrigation canals which relieved floodwater into fields, as well as spending great effort dredging the riverbeds.^[7] Yu is said to have eaten and slept with the common workers and spent most of his time personally assisting the work of dredging the silty beds of the rivers for the 13 years the projects took to complete. The dredging and irrigation were successful, and allowed ancient Chinese culture to flourish along the Yellow River, Wei River, and other waterways of the Chinese heartland. The project earned Yu renown throughout Chinese history, and is referred to in Chinese history as "Great Yu Controls the Waters" (Chinese: 大禹治水; pinyin: Dà Yǔ Zhì Shuǐ). In particular, Mount Longmen along the Yellow River had a very narrow channel which blocked water from flowing freely east toward the ocean. Yu is said to have brought a large number of workers to open up this channel, which has been known ever since as "Yu's Gateway" (Chinese: 禹門口).^[7]

Apocryphal stories[link]

In a mythical version of this story, presented in Wang Jia's 4^th century AD work Shi Yi Ji, Yu is assisted in his work by a yellow dragon and a black turtle (not necessarily related to the Black Tortoise of Chinese mythology).^[14] Another local myth says that Yu created the Sanmenxia "Three Passes Gorge" of the Yangzi River by cutting a mountain ridge with a divine battle-axe to control flooding.^[15]

Traditional stories say that Yu sacrificed a great deal of his body to control the floods. For example, his hands were said to be thickly callused, and his feet were completely covered with callus. In one common story, Yu had only been married four days when he was given the task of fighting the flood. He said goodbye to his wife, saying that he did not know when he would return. During the 13 years of flooding, he passed by his own family's doorstep three times, but each time he did not return inside his own home. The first time he passed, he heard that his wife was in labor. The second time he passed by, his son could already call out to his father. His family urged him to return home, but he said it was impossible as the flood was still going on. The third time Yu was passing by, his son was older than 10 years old. Each time, Yu refused to go in the door, saying that as the flood was rendering countless numbers of people homeless, he could not rest.^[12][16]

The Nine Provinces[link]

The Nine Zhou, or provinces, in a reconstructed view.

King Shun, who reigned after his father Yao, was so impressed by Yu's engineering work and diligence that he passed the throne to Yu instead of to his own son. Yu is said to have initially declined the throne, but was so popular with other local lords and chiefs that he agreed to become the new emperor, at the age of 53. He established a capital at Anyi (Chinese: 安邑) - the ruins of which are in modern Xia County, in southern Shanxi Province - and founded what would be called the Xia Dynasty, traditionally considered China's first dynasty.^[17]

Yu's flood control work is said to have made him intimately familiar with all regions of what was then Han Chinese territory. According to the Book of History, Yu divided the Chinese "world" into nine zhou or provinces. These were Jizhou (冀州), Yanzhou (兗州), Qingzhou (青州), Xuzhou (徐州), Yangzhou (揚州), Jingzhou (荊州), Yuzhou (豫州), Liangzhou (梁州) and Yongzhou (雍州).^[18]

According to the Rites of Zhou there was no Xuzhou or Liangzhou, instead there was Youzhou (幽州) and Bingzhou (并州), but according to the Erya there was no Qingzhou or Liangzhou, instead there was Youzhou (幽州) and Yingzhou (營州).^[18] Either way there were nine divisions. Once he had received bronze from these nine territories, he created ding vessels called the Nine Tripod Cauldrons.^[19] Yu then established his capital at Yang City (陽城).^[20] According to the Bamboo Annals, Yu killed one of the northern leaders, Fangfeng (防風) to reinforce his hold on the throne.^[21][22]

Death[link]

Yu mausoleum in Shaoxing

Yu temple in Yu mausoleum

According to the Bamboo Annals, Yu ruled the Xia Dynasty for 45 years; and, according to Yue Jueshu (越絕書), he died from an illness.^[22][23] It is said that he died at Kuaiji Mountain (會稽山), south of present day Shaoxing, while on a hunting tour to the eastern frontier of his empire, and was buried there. The Yu mausoleum (大禹陵) known today was first built in the 6th century CE during the Southern dynasty in his honor.^[24] It is located four kilometers southeast of Shaoxing city.^[24] Most of the structure was rebuilt many times in later periods. The three main parts of the mausoleum are the Yu tomb (禹陵), temple (禹廟) and memorial (禹祠).^[25] In many statues he is seen carrying an ancient plow (耒耜). A number of emperors in imperial times have travelled there to perform ceremonies in his honor, notably Qin Shi Huang.^[23]

Influence on society[link]

Modern[link]

In the Republic of China era Sun Yat-sen envisioned great plans for water control like Yu the Great including a 30 million horsepower dam across the Yangtze River.^[26] However the plans did not come into being as the Kuomintang were at war with Japan and the Communist Party of China.^[26][27]

Beichuan, Wenchuan and Dujiangyan towns in Sichuan have all made claims to be the birthplace of Yu the great.^[28]

In popular culture[link]

Yu, played by Vince Crestejo, is the eldest of the System Lords, as seen in the science fiction television series Stargate SG-1. He did not assume the role of a god, but rather one of China's earliest emperors, and is notable for several positive influences made during his reign. In the show, he has been introduced as Yu the Great in Fair Game, and the Jade Emperor, the exalted Yu Huang Shang Ti in Summit, who are separate figures in Chinese mythology.

See also[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Yu the Great

• Chinese emperors family tree (ancient)
• Flood myth
• Great Flood (China)
• Natural disasters in China

References[link]

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There are many people in history who are commonly appended with the phrase "the Great", or who were called that or an equivalent phrase in their own language. Other languages have their own suffixes such as e Bozorg and e azam in Persian and Urdu respectively.

In Persia, the title "the Great" at first seems to be a colloquial version of the Old Persian title "Great King". This title was first used by the conqueror Cyrus II of Persia.^[1]

The Persian title was inherited by Alexander III of Macedon (336–323 BC) when he conquered the Persian Empire, and the epithet "Great" eventually became personally associated with him. The first reference (in a comedy by Plautus)^[2] assumes that everyone knew who "Alexander the Great" was; however, there is no earlier evidence that Alexander III of Macedon was called "the Great".

The early Seleucid kings, who succeeded Alexander in Persia, used "Great King" in local documents, but the title was most notably used for Antiochus the Great (223–187 BC).

Later rulers and commanders began to use the epithet "the Great" as a personal name, like the Roman general Pompey. Others received the surname retrospectively, like the Carthaginian Hanno and the Indian emperor Ashoka the Great. Once the surname gained currency, it was also used as an honorific surname for people without political careers, like the philosopher Albert the Great.

As there are no objective criteria for "greatness", the persistence of later generations in using the designation greatly varies. For example, Louis XIV of France was often referred to as "The Great" in his lifetime but is rarely called such nowadays, while Frederick II of Prussia is still called "The Great". A later Hohenzollern - Wilhelm I - was often called "The Great" in the time of his grandson Wilhelm II, but rarely later.

Rulers[link]

• Abbas I of Persia (1571–1629), Shah of Iran
• Akbar (1542–1605), ruler of the Mughal Empire of South Asia, mainly India
• Alain I of Albret (1440–1522), French aristocrat
• Alexander the Great (356-323 BC), King of Macedonia, Persia, Greece, Egypt, and all of Mesopotamia
• Alexander I of Georgia (1386–1446), King of Georgia
• Alfonso III of León (c. 848-910), King of León, Galicia and Asturias
• Alfred the Great (848/849-899), King of Wessex
• Antiochus III the Great (c. 241–187 BC), ruler of the Seleucid Empire
• Ashoka the Great (c. 304–232 BC), Indian emperor of the Maurya dynasty
• Ashot I of Iberia “the Great”(died 826/830), presiding prince of Iberia (modern Georgia),
• Askia Mohammad I (c. 1442–1538), ruler of the Songhai Empire
• Bhumibol Adulyadej (born 1927), King of Thailand
• Bolesław I Chrobry (967-1025), sometimes called "the Great", first King of Poland
• Bruno the Great (925–965), Archbishop of Cologne and Duke of Lotharingia (also listed in the following section)
• Buddha Yodfa Chulaloke (1736–1809), founder and ruler of the Rattanakosin Kingdom (in what is now Thailand)
• Cnut the Great (c. 985 or 995-1035), King of Denmark, England, Norway and parts of Sweden
• Casimir III the Great (1310–1370), King of Poland
• Catherine the Great (1729–1796), Empress of Russia
• Chandragupta II (reigned 375-413/415), also known as Vikramaditya, ruler of the Gupta empire in India
• Charlemagne (died 814), King of the Franks and Emperor of the Romans
• Chulalongkorn (1853–1910), King of Siam (now Thailand)
• Chlothar II (584-629), King of Neustria and King of the Franks
• Conrad, Margrave of Meissen (c. 1097-1157), Margrave of Meissen
• Constantine I (c. 272-337), Roman emperor
• Cyaxares the Great (c. 625-585 BC), third king of Media
• Cyrus the Great (c. 600 BC or 576 BC–530 BC), founder and ruler of the Persian or Achaemenid Empire
• Darius the Great (550 – 486 BC), third ruler of the Persian Empire
• Devapala (died 850), ruler of the Pala Empire in the Indian subcontinent
• Dionysius I, Greek tyrant of Syracuse^[3]
• Ferdinand I of León and Castile (c. 1015–1065), King of León and Count of Castile
• Frederick the Great (1712–1786), King of Prussia
• Genghis Khan (1162?-1227), founder and Great Khan of the Mongol Empire
• Gero (c. 900–965), ruler of Marca Geronis, a very large march in Europe
• Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden (1594–1632), King of Sweden, founder of the Swedish Empire, and noted military leader
• Gwanggaeto the Great, King of Goguryeo, one of the Three Kingdoms of Korea^[4][5]
• Hanno the Great, the name of three leaders of Carthage, in the 4th, 3rd, and 2nd centuries BC
• Henry I, Duke of Burgundy (946–1002)
• Henry IV of France (1553–1610), King of France and King of Navarre
• Herod the Great (73/74 BC-4 BC), King of Judea
• Hugh the Great (898-956), Duke of the Franks and Count of Paris
• Hugh Magnus of France (1007–1025), co-King of France
• Hugh I, Count of Vermandois (1057–1101)
• Humphrey I de Bohun (died c. 1123), Anglo-Norman aristocrat
• Ivan III of Russia (1440–1505), Tsar of Russia
• John I of Portugal (1358–1433), King of Portugal and the Algarve
• John II of Aragon (1398–1479), King of Aragon and, through his wife, King of Navarre
• Justinian I (483-565), Byzantine Emperor
• Kamehameha I (c. 1758-1819), first King of Hawai'i
• Kanishka (died c. 127), ruler of the Kushan Empire in Central Asia and parts of India
• Kvirike III of Kakheti (1010–1029), King of Kakheti in eastern Georgia
• Kublai Khan (1215–1294), Mongol ruler in the 13th century and Emperor of China; founder of the Yuan Dynasty
• Llywelyn the Great (c. 1172–1240), Prince of Gwynedd and de facto ruler of most of Wales
• Louis I of Hungary (1326–1382), King of Hungary, Croatia and Poland
• Mangrai the Great (1238–1317), Lanna, northern Thailand
• Emperor Meiji (1852–1912), Emperor of Japan
• Mircea I of Wallachia (1355–1418)
• Mithridates II of Parthia (died 88 BC), ruler of the Parthian Empire (in present day Iran)
• Mithridates VI of Pontus (134 BC–63 BC), ruler of Pontus and the Bosporan Kingdom
• Mstislav I of Kiev (1076–1132), Grand Prince of Kievan Rus
• Naresuan (1555–1605), King of Ayutthaya
• Narai (1633–1688), King of Ayutthaya (in what is now modern Thailand)
• Odo the Great (died c. 735), Duke of Aquitaine
• Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (912-973)
• K'inich Janaab' Pakal (603-683), ruler of the Mayan city-state of Palenque
• Parakramabahu I of Polonnaruwa (1123–1186), King of Sri Lanka
• Peter Krešimir IV of Croatia (died 1075), King of Croatia
• Peter the Great (1672–1725), Tsar of Russia
• Peter III of Aragon (1239–1285), King of Aragon and King of Sicily
• Pompey (106 BC-48 BC), military and political leader of the late Roman Republic, rival of Julius Caesar
• Radama I (1793–1828), first king of greater Madagascar
• Raja Raja Chola I (c. 947-1014), Indian emperor of the Cholas.^[6][7][8]
• Rajendra Chola I (reigned 1014–1044), Tamil King of India
• Ramesses II (reigned 1279 BC – 1213 BC), considered the greatest pharaoh of Ancient Egypt
• Ram Khamhaeng (around 1237 to 1247-1298), King of Sukhothai (in present day Thailand)
• Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona (1082–1131), also Count of Provence and various other counties
• Rhodri the Great (c. 820–878), King of Gwynedd (in present day Wales)
• Roman the Great (after 1160-1205), Grand Prince of Kiev
• Saladin (c. 1138-1193), Kurdish Sultan of Egypt and Syria, founder of the Ayyubid dynasty, and victor over the Crusaders
• Samudragupta (c. 335–375), ruler of the Gupta empire in the Indian subcontinent
• Sancho III of Navarre (c. 992-1035), King of Kingdom of Navarre
• Sargon of Akkad (died c. 2215 BC), ruler of the Akkadian Empire
• Sejong the Great (1397–1450), Korean king^[9]
• Shapur II (309-379), king of the Sassanid Empire, Persia
• Simeon I of Bulgaria (864/865-927), ruler of the First Bulgarian Empire
• Stephen III of Moldavia (1433–1504), Prince of Moldavia (Romania)
• Stephen Uroš IV Dušan of Serbia (c. 1308-1355), King of Serbia and Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks
• Taksin (1734–1782), King of the Thonburi Kingdom (Thailand)
• Tamar (1160-1123), Queen of the Georgian Empire
• Timur (1336–1405), better known as Tamerlane, founder of the Timurid Dynasty
• Theobald II, Count of Champagne (1090–1151), Count of Blois and of Chartres as Theobald IV, Count of Champagne and of Brie
• Theodoric the Great (454-526), King of the Ostrogoths, regent of the Visigoths and a viceroy of the Byzantine Empire
• Theodosius I (347-395), Roman emperor
• Tigranes the Great (140-55 BC), Emperor of Armenia
• Tiridates III of Armenia (285-339), King of Armenia
• Umar (c. 586 to 590–644), second caliph of the Muslim Empire
• Valdemar I of Denmark (1131–1182), King of Denmark
• Valentinian I (364-375), Roman Emperor
• Vladimir I of Kiev (c. 958-1015), ruler of Kievan Rus
• Vytautas (c. 1350-1430), archduke of the Lithuanian Grand Duchy
• William I, Count of Burgundy (1020–1087), Count of Burgandy and Mâcon
• William V, Duke of Aquitaine (969-1030), also Count of Poitou
• Xerxes I (519-465 BC), King of Kings of the Achaemenid Empire (Persia)
• Yu the Great (c. 2200-2100 BC), legendary ruler in ancient China

Religious figures[link]

• Abraham the Great of Kashkar (ca. 492-586), monk and saint of the Assyrian Church of the East
• Abraham Kidunaia (died c. 366, hermit, priest, and Christian saint of Mesopotamia
• Albertus Magnus (1193/1206–1280), medieval German philosopher and theologian
• Anthony the Great (c. 251–356), early Christian saint of Egypt
• Babai the Great (c. 551–628), Assyrian church leader
• Basil of Caesarea (330-379), Greek bishop and theologian
• Bruno the Great (925–965), Archbishop of Cologne and Duke of Lotharingia (also listed in the previous section)
• Euthymius the Great (377-473), abbot and Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox saint
• Gertrude the Great (1256-c. 1302), German Benedictine, mystic, theologian and Roman Catholic saint
• Pope Gregory I (c. 540-604)
• Hiyya the Great, 3rd-century rabbi, Palestine
• Pope John Paul II (1920–2005)
• Pope Leo I (c. 391 or 400-461)
• Macarius of Egypt (c. 300-391), Egyptian hermit
• Pope Nicholas I (c. 800-867)
• Photius I of Constantinople (c. 810–c. 893), Eastern Orthodox saint and Patriarch of Constantinople
• William of Maleval (died 1157), founder of the Catholic congregation of Williamites

Other[link]

• Beli Mawr, a figure in medieval Welsh literature and genealogies
• Emmy the Great, folk singer
• Matteo Rosso the Great, Roman politician and father of Pope Nicholas III
• Prokop the Great, Hussite general in Bohemia

See also[link]

• Epithet
• List of monarchs by nickname
• List of nicknames of European Royalty and Nobility: G-I
• James, son of Zebedee, also known as James the Greater, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus
• Ajax (mythology), called Ajax the Greater
• Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, whose common honorific "Mahatma" means "Great Soul"

Notes[link]

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Guan Yu
General of Liu Bei
Born	(Unknown)
Died	219
Names
Simplified Chinese	关羽
Traditional Chinese	關羽
Pinyin	Guān Yǔ
Wade-Giles	Kuan Yu
Style name	Yunchang (雲長)
Posthumous name	Marquis Zhuangmou (壮缪侯) 1
Buddhist name	Sangharama Bodhisattva Qíelán Púsà (伽藍菩薩)
Deity name	Guan Sheng Di Jun (關聖帝君) Saintly Emperor Guan
Other names	Guan Gong (關公) Lord Guan Guan Er Ye (關二爺) Lord Guan the Second Mei Ran Gong (美髯公) Lord of Magnificent Beard Guan Di (關帝) Emperor Guan Changsheng (長生) Shouchang (壽長) Possible former stylenames
^1 See General worship for more posthumous titles.

Guan Yu (died 219)^[1] was a general serving under the warlord Liu Bei during the late Eastern Han Dynasty of China. He played a significant role in the civil war that led to the collapse of the Han Dynasty and the establishment of the state of Shu Han during the Three Kingdoms period, of which Liu Bei was the first emperor.^[2]

As one of the best known Chinese historical figures throughout East Asia, Guan's true life stories have largely given way to fictionalized ones, mostly found in the historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms or passed down the generations, in which his deeds and moral qualities have been lionized. Guan is respected as an epitome of loyalty and righteousness.

Guan was deified as early as the Sui Dynasty and is still worshipped by many Chinese people today, especially in southern China, Taiwan, and Hong Kong and their descendants overseas. He is a figure in Chinese folk religion, popular Confucianism, Taoism, and Chinese Buddhism, and small shrines to Guan are almost ubiquitous in traditional Chinese shops and restaurants.^[3]

Physical appearance[link]

Guan is traditionally portrayed as a red-faced warrior with a long lush beard. While his beard was mentioned in the Records of Three Kingdoms, the idea of his red face may have derived from a later description of him in Chapter One of Romance of the Three Kingdoms, where the following passage appears:

Alternatively, the idea of his red face could have been borrowed from opera representation, where red faces depict loyalty and righteousness^{[citation needed]}. Supposedly, Guan's weapon was a guan dao named Green Dragon Crescent Blade, which resembled a halberd and was said to weigh 82 catties (about 18.25 kg or 40 lbs). A wooden replica can be found today in the Emperor Guan Temple in Xiezhou County, China. He traditionally dons a green robe over his body armour, as depicted in the Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Statue of Guan Yu in Zhuge Liang's temple in Chengdu

Biography[link]

Early life[link]

Guan Yu was born in Xie County, Hedong (present day Yuncheng (运城市), Shanxi). No details of the time of his birth are found in historical records until the late Qing Dynasty, when the tomb of Guan Yu was discovered, bearing some details of his family.^{[citation needed]} It was written that Guan Yu was actually born from a family of scholars.^{[citation needed]} His grandfather's name was Guan Shen. His father's name was Guan Yi. Guan Yu was born in the year 160^{[citation needed]}, and like his ancestors, often read the classics Book of Changes and Spring and Autumn Annals. He married Lady Hu and his son Guan Ping was born in 178.^{[citation needed]}

Guan Yu fled his hometown at the age of 23^{[citation needed]}, after slaying a local despot named Lü Xiong (呂熊). Five years later, he arrived in Zhuo Commandery (present day Zhuozhou, Hebei). He met Liu Bei, who was recruiting volunteers to form a civilian army to suppress the Yellow Turbans Rebellion. Together with Zhang Fei, Guan Yu joined Liu Bei and participated actively in fighting the Yellow Turban rebels in northern China.

When Liu Bei was appointed as the governor of Pingyuan County, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei were made "Senior Major" (别部司马) under Liu. According to Records of Three Kingdoms, the relationship of the three men was described to be as close as brothers. They slept in the same room and had their meals together, behaving as though they were real brothers. Guan Yu and Zhang Fei followed Liu Bei most of the time wherever he went and protected him from danger regardless of how perilous the situation was.

In 199, Liu Bei attacked Xu Province with an army after gaining independence from the warlord Cao Cao. He killed Che Zhou, the governor of Xu Province, and placed Guan Yu in charge of the regional capital city of Xiapi. Liu Bei returned to the city of Xiaopei.  Shortly after, Cao Cao personally led a campaign to reclaim Xu Province from Liu Bei and defeated him in battle.  Liu Bei fled to Hebei and joined the warlord Yuan Shao. Xiapi fell and Guan Yu was captured by Cao Cao's men. Cao Cao treated Guan Yu respectfully, and Guan surrendered to him under conditions. Guan Yu was appointed by Cao Cao as a Lieutenant General.

Service under Cao Cao[link]

In 200, Yuan Shao mustered an army of about 100,000 and started a campaign against Cao Cao, which subsequently culminated in the Battle of Guandu. To ensure a safe crossing of the Yellow River, Yuan Shao sent his general Yan Liang to attack Boma (northeast of present day Hua County, Henan), in order to claim a foothold on the southern bank of the Yellow River. Using a diversionary tactic, Cao Cao moved his main force westward towards Yan Ford along the river. Yuan Shao withdrew his troops from Baima and Cao Cao's forces struck back eastward to relieve the siege on Baima. Guan Yu and Zhang Liao led the vanguard, and attacked Yuan Shao's remaining troops at Baima. Identifying Yan Liang's parasol, Guan Yu slew Yan Liang in the midst of battle and brought back Yan's severed head.

On recommendation of Cao Cao, Guan Yu was conferred the title of "Marquis^[I] of Hanshou" (漢壽亭侯) in recognition of his effort in Boma. After that, Guan Yu left for Hebei to rejoin Liu Bei, who was currently in Yuan Shao's camp. He did not take any of Cao Cao's gifts with him and left behind a farewell letter. Some of Cao Cao's subordinates wanted to pursue Guan Yu and bring him back but Cao stopped them, saying "We are only serving different lords, let him go."

Battle of Red Cliffs[link]

Guan Yu captures Pang De, a Ming Dynasty painting by Shang Xi, c. 1430

After the Battle of Guandu, Liu Bei was defeated at the Battle of Runan by Cao Cao and forced to flee south. He sought refuge under the Jing Province governor Liu Biao. Liu Bei and his forces were placed in charge of the city of Xinye by Liu Biao.

In 208, Cao Cao initiated a southern campaign and seized control of parts of Jing Province north of the Yangtze River. Liu Biao had died of illness then and was succeeded by his son, Liu Cong, who surrendered to Cao Cao. Jing Province was thrown into confusion, and Guan Yu was ordered by Liu Bei to lead a navy and sail to Jiangling. Meanwhile, Liu Bei led some 100,000 refugees south, but was caught up by the elite cavalry of Cao Cao at Changban. Leaving his family and the populace behind, Liu Bei galloped away eastward to Han Ford, where he met up with Guan Yu's navy. Together, they sailed downstream to Xiakou to rendezvous with Liu Qi, who was the older son of Liu Biao. Liu Bei then successfully formed an alliance with the warlord Sun Quan, who held substantial influence in southeastern China, and the allies defeated Cao Cao at the Battle of Red Cliffs. As a result, the allied force pursued Cao Cao's forces to Jiangling.

Effort in the battle of Jiangling[link]

During the Battle of Jiangling, Guan Yu was sent to block Cao Ren's supply lines via infiltration. He led a special force composed of navy and infantry, to go up the Han River, and attacked the city of Xiangyang, which was guarded by Yue Jin. Guan Yu was defeated by Yue Jin outside the city walls.^[10] However, Liu Bei became a powerful warlord as he was joined by Lei Xu (雷绪) and his troops numbering to tens of thousands, and soon conquered southern Jing Province without much resistance. Liu Bei promoted Guan Yu to the rank of "General Who Exterminates Rebels" (蕩寇將軍) and appointed him as the governor of the city of Xiangyang. Backed by Liu Bei, Guan Yu led a force to Xiakou to fight Yue Jin and Wen Ping, but was repelled by his rivals.^[11] Wen Ping trailed Guan Yu to Han Ford, in which he had Guan's food storage burnt to the ground.^[12] As a result, Guan Yu attempted to recuperate at Jingcheng (荆城); however, his pursuer would not allow him to rest, and Guan was forced to fight a naval battle with Wen Ping, which resulted in a total destruction of the navy.^[13] Later, Guan Yu set up some layers of blockades to prevent Li Tong from reinforcing Jiangling, but Li removed the blockades and fought his way through. Guan Yu ordered a retreat and Li Tong managed to enter Jiangling.

After almost a year of fighting, Cao Cao could no longer afford continuous loss of materiel and labor in the siege, and ordered Cao Ren to withdraw from Jiangling fortress. Liu Bei convinced Sun Quan to lend him Nan Commandery, and stationed Guan Yu in its capital city, Jiangling. In 213, Liu Bei left for Yi Province (covering the Sichuan Basin) and wrestled control of the land from Liu Zhang after two years. Since then, Guan Yu had been the leading figure of Jing Province. Most of the Liu Bei's forces went to Yi Province when Liu was experiencing difficulty in his invasion, while Guan Yu and part of Liu's forces remained in Jing Province.

Defeat and death[link]

In 219, Guan Yu attacked the nearby enemy city of Fancheng (present-day Fancheng District, Xiangyang, Hubei), which was guarded by Cao Ren, and besieged it. In autumn, heavy showers in the region caused the Han River next to the city to overflow. The flood destroyed reinforcements troops from Cao Cao led by Yu Jin and Pang De. Both Yu Jin and Pang De were captured by Guan Yu in battle. However, reinforcements led by Xu Huang managed to force Guan Yu's troops to retreat.

At that time, Guan Yu realised that Sun Quan had secretly formed an alliance with Cao Cao and attacked Jing Province while he was attacking Fancheng. Mi Fang and Shi Ren, whom he left in charge of Jing Province, had surrendered to Sun Quan. When Guan Yu's troops received news that their families in Jing Province had fallen into the control of Sun Quan, some of them started deserting and returning to Jing Province to reunite with their families.

Guan Yu's army was severely depleted due to the desertions so he attempted to retreat to Yi Province in the west but was surrounded and besieged by Sun Quan's forces at Maicheng (southeast of present day Dangyang, Hubei). Guan Yu attempted to break out of the encirclement with his son Guan Ping and subordinate Zhao Lei but failed. They were captured in Zhang Town (east of present-day Yuan'an County, Hubei) and executed by Sun Quan after refusing to surrender. Sun Quan sent Guan Yu's severed head to Cao Cao, who performed the proper funeral rites and buried Guan's head with full honours. In 260, Liu Shan gave Guan Yu the posthumous title of "Marquis Zhuangmou" (壯繆侯), which states that he does not live up to his name in terms of his ability.^[14]

Family[link]

• Grandfather: Guan Shen (關審), style name Wenzhi (問之)

• Father: Guan Yi (關毅), style name Daoyuan (道遠)

• Spouse: Lady Hu (胡氏)

• Children:
  • Guan Ping, oldest son of Guan Yu, served in Liu Bei's army and was executed along with his father by Sun Quan. He was an adopted son of Guan Yu in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.
  • Guan Xing, second son of Guan Yu, served as a civil officer in Shu
  • Lady Guan, daughter of Guan Yu. Her name was said to be "Guan Yinping" (關銀屏) in folk tales. Sun Quan once proposed a marriage between his son and her, but was refused by Guan Yu.
  • Guan Suo, alleged third son of Guan Yu in folklores, not mentioned in historical records.

• Grandchildren:
  • Guan Tong, son of Guan Xing, married a princess, served as a general in Shu, did not have any children.^[15]
  • Guan Yi (關彝), son of Guan Xing, born to Guan Xing's concubine, succeeded Guan Tong and was killed during the turmoil caused by Zhong Hui.

According to Pei Songzhi's annotations in Records of Three Kingdoms, after the fall of Shu, Pang Hui (son of Pang De) massacred the Guan clan to avenge his father, who was put to death by Guan Yu.^[16]

Appointments and titles held[link]

• Senior Major (別部司馬)
• Administrator of Xiapi (下邳太守)
• Lieutenant General (偏將軍)
• Marquis of Hanshou (漢壽亭侯)
• Administrator of Xiangyang (襄陽太守)
• General Who Rocks the Bandits (盪寇將軍)
• General of the Vanguard (前將軍)
• Marquis Zhuangmou (壯繆侯) - granted to Guan Yu posthumously

In fiction[link]

Luo Guanzhong's historical novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms glorified Guan Yu by portraying him as a righteous and loyal warrior. Guan Yu was one of the most altered and aggrandised characters in the novel, which accounted for his popular image in Chinese society. The following are some significant stories involving Guan Yu from the novel:

Early life[link]

In Chapter 1, Liu Bei, Guan Yu and Zhang Fei met in Zhuo County and took an oath of fraternity in the fabled Peach Garden, thus becoming sworn brothers. Guan Yu was ranked second in seniority among the three. The oath served as a guiding principle for Guan Yu and influenced much of his later life. Guan Yu held on to his oath until his death and was always loyal to his sworn brothers.

In Chapter 5, Guan Yu made his name by slaying the seemingly "undefeatable" warrior Hua Xiong in the campaign against Dong Zhuo. Later, the sworn brothers challenged the mighty warrior Lü Bu at the Battle of Hulao Pass and managed to force him to retreat even though they were unable to defeat him.

Short service under Cao Cao[link]

In Chapter 25, Cao Cao attacked Liu Bei's territory of Xu Province and defeated Liu's army. The sworn brothers were temporarily separated. Guan Yu was in charge of defending Xiapi, where Liu Bei's wives were housed. Guan Yu was lured out of the city and besieged on a nearby knoll while the city fell to Cao Cao's troops. Cao Cao sent Zhang Liao to persuade Guan Yu to surrender. Guan Yu was worried about the safety of his sisters-in-law as he saw that as his responsibility. After much consideration, Guan Yu agreed to submit to Cao Cao on three conditions:

1. In name, Guan Yu submits to the Emperor Xian (who was actually a puppet ruler in Cao Cao's control) and not to Cao Cao.
2. Liu Bei's wives must not be harmed in any way. They must be treated with full respect and honour.
3. If Guan Yu discovers the whereabouts of Liu Bei (whose fate was unknown after the battle) one day, he will leave Cao Cao and reunite with his sworn brother.

Cao Cao agreed to the conditions although he felt uneasy about the last one. Guan Yu then submitted to Cao Cao and served Cao for a short period of time. Cao Cao treated Guan Yu with the utmost respect and bestowed upon him several gifts, luxuries and women, as well as the famous steed Red Hare, which once belonged to Lü Bu. Guan Yu was not very appreciative towards Cao Cao's other gifts, but when Cao gave him the steed, he knelt down and thanked Cao. When Cao Cao inquired the reason, Guan Yu replied, "Sir, I'm very grateful to you for the steed because with it, I can reach my sworn brother in a shorter period of time if I ever know where he is."

Also in Chapter 25, during the battle between the forces of Cao Cao and the warlord Yuan Shao on the banks of the Yellow River, Cao's generals were defeated by Yuan's general Yan Liang. Cao Cao wanted to send Guan Yu to challenge Yan Liang but he hesitated because he did not want Guan to make any contributions. Guan Yu had earlier said that he would show his gratitude towards Cao Cao by making some contributions during the period of time when he served Cao. Eventually, Cao Cao did send Guan Yu to fight Yan Liang and Guan emerged victorious, slaying Yan and returning with his opponent's head. In the following chapter, Wen Chou, another of Yuan Shao's generals, came to avenge Yan Liang. Wen Chou defeated a few of Cao Cao's best warriors, including Zhang Liao and Xu Huang. Guan Yu made another great contribution to Cao Cao again by slaying Wen Chou.

Crossing Five Passes and Slaying Six Generals[link]

Mural of Guan Yu's Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles (千里走單騎) in the Summer Palace

In Chapter 26, Guan Yu finally received news that Liu Bei was alive and currently in Yuan Shao's camp. He decided to leave Cao Cao with Liu Bei's wives to rejoin his sworn brother. Guan Yu attempted to bid Cao Cao farewell in person before his departure but Cao did not give him the chance to do so. Frustrated, Guan Yu eventually wrote a farewell letter to Cao Cao and left. He took with him none of the luxuries and gifts Cao Cao gave him, except the Red Hare. He even gave up his title as Marquis of Hanshou by leaving behind his official seal. Cao Cao's subordinates felt that Guan Yu behaved far too rudely and arrogantly by leaving without bidding farewell and wanted to pursue him and bring him back. However, Cao Cao knew that no one could stop Guan Yu and he gave orders for the officials along the way to give passage to Guan.

Guan Yu rode beside the carriage carrying his sisters-in-law and escorted them safely all the way. The first pass they reached was Dongling Pass (south of present-day Dengfeng, Henan). The guarding officer Kong Xiu denied Guan Yu passage as Guan did not have any official permits with him. Infuriated, Guan Yu killed Kong Xiu and forced his way through the pass.

They next reached the city of Luoyang. The governor Han Fu led 1,000 men to block Guan Yu. Han Fu's deputy Meng Tan challenged Guan Yu to a duel but was sliced in two by Guan. While Guan Yu was fighting with Meng Tan, Han Fu secretly took aim and fired an arrow at Guan. The arrow hit Guan Yu's arm and wounded him, but Guan drew the arrow from the wound and proceeded to kill Han Fu. The shocked soldiers immediately gave way and Guan Yu's party passed through safely.

Guan Yu's party arrived at Sishui Pass (north of present-day Xingyang, Henan). The guarding officer Bian Xi received Guan Yu's party with a warm welcome and invited Guan to a feast at the temple outside the pass. In fact, Bian Xi had ordered 200 men to lie in ambush inside the temple and kill Guan Yu. Fortunately, one of the monks called Pujing, who was also from Guan Yu's hometown, hinted to Guan of the hidden danger. The ambush failed and Guan Yu killed Bian Xi and passed through Sishui Pass.

The governor of Xingyang, Wang Zhi, adopted a similar scheme to kill Guan Yu. Like Bian Xi, he pretended to be welcoming towards Guan Yu and led Guan's party to a courier station for them to settle in for the night. After that, Wang Zhi ordered his subordinate Hu Ban to lead 1,000 men to surround the station secretly and set fire to it in the middle of the night. Curious to know how Guan Yu looked like, Hu Ban stole a glance at Guan. Guan Yu noticed Hu Ban and invited him into the room. Guan Yu had met Hu Ban's father earlier and carried a letter with him. He gave the letter to Hu Ban and, after reading his father's letter, Hu Ban decided to help Guan Yu. Hu Ban revealed Wang Zhi's plot and opened the city gates secretly for Guan Yu and his party to leave. Wang Zhi caught up with the party a while later but Guan Yu turned back and killed him.

Guan Yu's party finally arrived at a ferry crossing on the southern bank of the Yellow River. Qin Qi, the officer in charge, refused to allow them to cross the river and was killed by Guan Yu in anger. Guan Yu and his party then crossed the river safely and entered Yuan Shao's domain. However, they soon realised that Liu Bei was no longer in Yuan Shao's territory and had already left for Runan. Guan Yu and his party then made their long journey back and were finally reunited with Liu Bei and Zhang Fei at Gucheng.

During this trip of crossing five passes, Guan Yu met many men who would become his subordinates and remain loyal to him until his death, including Liao Hua, Zhou Cang, and even his adoptive son Guan Ping.

Releasing Cao Cao at Huarong Trail[link]

In Chapter 50, after his defeat at the Battle of Red Cliffs, Cao Cao made his escape with his surviving men towards the city of Jiangling. Liu Bei's strategist Zhuge Liang had foreseen Cao Cao's defeat and predicted Cao's escape route. He ordered Guan Yu to lead 5,000 men and lie in ambush along the Huarong Trail, a narrow shortcut in the woods leading towards Jiangling. Before his departure, Guan Yu made a military pledge that he would not spare Cao Cao's life on account of his past relationship with the warlord. If he failed to do so, he would face execution under military law. As expected, Cao Cao did pass through Huarong Trail after having met with several ambushes along his escape route.

Cao Cao and his men encountered Guan Yu and his army. Cao Cao spoke to Guan Yu and begged him to spare his life on account of their past relationship. Guan Yu was moved when he recalled the favours he received from Cao Cao while he was serving the warlord earlier for a short period of time. When he saw the plight of Cao Cao's defeated troops and Zhang Liao, whom he befriended when he serving Cao earlier, he decided to allow Cao and his men to leave. Upon his return, Guan Yu pleaded guilty to having violated the pledge he made earlier and expressed his willingness to accept execution. However, with the interference of Liu Bei and Zhang Fei, Zhuge Liang decided to pardon Guan Yu on account of his past contributions. It was later revealed that Zhuge Liang had expected Guan Yu to spare Cao Cao and his intention was actually to allow Cao to escape so as to hasten the formation of the Three Kingdoms, as detailed in his Longzhong Plan.

Hua Tuo treats Guan Yu's arm[link]

A 19th century Japanese woodcut of Guan Yu by Utagawa Kuniyoshi. In this scene he is being attended to by the physician Hua Tuo while playing weiqi.

In Chapter 75, during a siege on Fancheng (present-day Fancheng District, Xiangyang, Hubei), Guan Yu's arm was wounded by a bolt fired by enemy crossbows. The arrow was promptly removed but the poison smeared on the arrowhead had already seeped through the wound into Guan Yu's arm. Guan Yu was unwilling to order a retreat so his subordinates had to send for a physician to treat his wound. The famous physician Hua Tuo appeared to treat Guan Yu's wound.

Hua Tuo diagnosed that he needed to perform surgery on Guan Yu's arm by cutting open the flesh and scraping off traces of poison on the bone. He also suggested that Guan Yu be blindfolded and have his arm secured tightly because the surgery would be performed in the absence of anesthesia and most patients were unable to bear with the excruciating pain. However, Guan Yu requested that the surgery be performed on the spot and he proceeded to continue a game of weiqi with Ma Liang during the surgery. Throughout the surgery, those watching nearby cringed as they watched the gory scene before them, but Guan Yu remained calm and did not show any sign of pain at all. Eventually, Hua Tuo managed to heal Guan Yu's wound and sewed it up after applying medication and then left without accepting any reward.

Enlightenment on Yuquan Hill[link]

In Chapter 77, after Guan Yu's death at the hands of Sun Quan, his spirit roamed the land, crying out, "Return my head!" His spirit came to Yuquan Hill outside Dangyang County (present-day Dangyang, Hubei), and encountered Pujing, the monk who saved his life several years ago at Sishui Pass. Pujing spoke to the spirit, "Now you ask for your head, but from whom should Yan Liang, Wen Chou, the pass guardians and many others ask for theirs?" Guan Yu's spirit was enlightened and disappeared, but henceforth it manifested itself around the hill and protected the locals from evil. The locals built a temple on the hill to worship the spirit.

The Buddhist monk Pujing was said to have built a grass hut for himself at the southeastern foot of Yuquan Hill during the last years of the Eastern Han Dynasty. The Yuquan Temple (玉泉寺), the oldest temple in the Dangyang region from where the worship of Guan Yu originated, was built on the exact location of the hut, and its construction was completed only until the Sui Dynasty.

After death[link]

In Chapter 77, after Sun Quan's general Lü Meng captured Jing Province and killed Guan Yu, Sun threw a banquet to celebrate the victory in honour of Lü Meng, who planned the attack. During the feast, Guan Yu's spirit possessed Lü Meng and seized Sun Quan. As the others rushed forward to save Sun Quan, the possessed Lü Meng swore vengeance before collapsing onto the floor and dying moments later. Sun Quan was terrified and he sent Guan Yu's head to Cao Cao, hoping to push the responsibility of Guan's death to Cao and sow discord between Liu Bei and Cao.

When Cao Cao opened the box containing Guan Yu's head, he saw that Guan's facial expressions resembled that of a living person. He smiled and spoke to the head, "I hope you are well since we last parted." To his horror, Guan Yu's head opened its eyes and mouth and the long beard and hairs stood on their ends. Cao Cao collapsed and did not regain consciousness until a long time later. When he came to, he exclaimed, "General Guan is truly a god from heaven!" Then he ordered the head to be buried with full honours befitting that of a noble.

Worship of Guan Yu[link]

Burning of incense during the veneration of lord Guan Yu, Xingtian Temple

Guan Yu was deified as early as the Sui Dynasty (581–618), and is still popularly worshipped today among the Chinese people. He is variedly worshiped as an indigenous Chinese deity, a bodhisattva in Buddhist tradition and as a guardian deity in Taoism and many religious bodies.^[17] He is also held in high esteem in Confucianism. These roles are not necessarily contradictory or even distinguished within the Chinese religious system, which often merge multiple ancient philosophies and religions.

In the Western world, Guan Yu is sometimes called the Taoist God of War, probably because he is one of the most well-known military generals worshiped by the Chinese people. This is a misconception of his role, as, unlike the Greco-Roman deity Mars or the Norse god Týr, Guan Yu, as a god, does not necessarily bless those who go to battle but rather people who observe the code of brotherhood and righteousness.

General worship[link]

A Guan Yu statue holding the guan dao in the right hand.

In general worship, Guan Yu is widely referred to as Emperor Guan (關帝), short for his Taoist title "Saintly Emperor Guan" (關聖帝君), and as "Guan Gong" (關公; literally "Lord Guan"). Temples and shrines dedicated exclusively to Guan can be found in parts of mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and other places with Chinese influence such as Vietnam, South Korea, and Japan. Some of these temples, such as the Emperor Guan Temple in Xiezhou (解州), Shanxi, were built exactly in the layout of a palace, befitting his status as an "emperor".

The apotheosis of Guan Yu occurred in stages, as he was given ever higher posthumous titles. Liu Shan, the second emperor of Shu, gave Guan Yu the posthumous title of "Marquis Zhuangmou" (壯繆侯) four decades after his death. During the Song Dynasty, Emperor Huizong bestowed upon Guan Yu the title of "Duke Zhonghui" (忠惠公), and later the title of a prince.  In 1187, during the reign of Emperor Xiaozong, Guan Yu was established as "Prince Zhuangmou Yiyong Wu'an Yingji" (壯繆義勇武安英濟王). After the Song Dynasty was annihilated by the Mongols, who established the Yuan Dynasty in China, Guan Yu was renamed "Prince of Xianling Yiyong Wu'an Yingji" (顯靈義勇武安英濟王) by Emperor Wenzong.

The escalation of Guan Yu's status to that of an emperor took place during the Ming Dynasty. In 1614, the Wanli Emperor bestowed on Guan Yu the title of "Saintly Emperor Guan the Great God Who Subdues Demons of the Three Worlds and Whose Awe Spreads Far and Moves Heaven" (三界伏魔大神威遠震天尊關聖帝君). During the Qing Dynasty, the Shunzhi Emperor gave Guan Yu the title of "Zhongyi Shenwu Great Saintly Emperor Guan" (忠義神武關聖大帝) in 1644. This title was expanded to "The Grand Emperor Zhongyi Shenwu Lingyou Renyong Weixian Huguo Baomin Jingcheng Suijing Yizan Xuande Guan Sheng Dadi" (仁勇威顯護國保民精誠綏靖翊贊宣德忠義神武關聖大帝), a total of 24 Chinese characters, by mid-19th century. This name is often shortened to "Saint of War" (武聖), which is of the same rank as Confucius, who was known as the "Saint of Culture" (文聖) during the same period. The Qing advancement of Guan Yu served to strengthen the loyalty of Mongol tribes, as the Mongols revered Guan as second only to their lamas.^[18]

Throughout history, Guan Yu has also been credited with many military successes. During the Ming Dynasty, his spirit was said to have aided Zhu Yuanzhang (founding emperor of the Ming Dynasty)'s fleet at the Battle of Lake Poyang. In 1402, Zhu Di launched a coup d'état and successfully deposed his nephew, the Jianwen Emperor. Zhu Di claimed that he was blessed by the spirit of Guan Yu. During the last decade of the 16th century, Guan Yu was also credited with the repulse of Japanese invasion of Korea by Toyotomi Hideyoshi (called the Seven-Year War of Korea). The ruling Manchu house of the Qing Dynasty was also associated with Guan Yu's martial qualities. During the 20th century, Guan Yu was worshipped by the warlord Yuan Shikai, president and later a short-lived emperor of China.

Today, Guan Yu is still widely worshiped by the Chinese, with many shrines to him are found in homes or businesses. In Hong Kong, a shrine for Guan is located in each police station. Though by no means mandatory, most Chinese policemen worship and pay respect to him. Although seemingly ironic, members of the triads and Heaven and Earth Society worship Guan as well. Statues used by triads tend to hold the halberd in the left hand, and statues in police stations tend to hold the halberd in the right hand. This signifies which side Guan Yu is worshiped, by the righteous people or vice versa. The appearance of Guan Yu's face for the triads is usually more stern and threatening than the usual statue. This exemplifies the Chinese belief that a code of honor, epitomized by Guan Yu, exists even in the underworld. In Hong Kong, Guan Yu is often referred to as "Yi Gor" (二哥, Cantonese for "second big brother") for he was second to Liu Bei in their fictional sworn brotherhood. Guan Yu is also worshipped by Chinese businessmen in Shanxi, Hong Kong, Macau and Southeast Asia as an alternative wealth god, since he is perceived to bless the upright and protect them from the wicked. Another reason being related to the release of Cao Cao during the Huarong Trail incident, in which he let Cao and his men pass through safely. For that, he was perceived to be able to extend the lifespan of people in need.

Among the Cantonese people who emigrated to California during the mid-19th century, the worship of Guan Yu was an important element. Statues and tapestry images of the god can be found in a number of historical California joss houses (a local term for Taoist temples), where his name may be given with various Anglicized spellings, including Kwan Dai, Kwan Tai, Kuan Ti, Kuan Kung, Wu Ti, Mo Dai, Guan Di, Kuan Yu, Kwan Yu, or Quan Yu. The Mendocino Joss House, a historical landmark also known as Mo Dai Miu, The Military God-King's Temple, or Temple of Kwan Tai, built in 1852, is a typical example of the small shrines erected to Guan Yu in America.

Worship in Taoism[link]

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Guan Yu is revered as "Saintly Emperor Guan" (simplified Chinese: 关圣帝君; traditional Chinese: 關聖帝君; pinyin: Gūanshèngdìjūn) and a leading subduer of demons in Taoism. Taoist worship of Guan Yu began during the Song Dynasty. Legend has it that during the second decade of the 12th century, the saltwater lake in present day Xiezhou County (解州鎮) gradually ceased to yield salt. Emperor Huizong then summoned Celestial Master Zhang Jixian (張繼先), 30th generation descendant of Zhang Daoling, to investigate the cause. The emperor was told that the disruption was the work of Chi You, a deity of war. Zhang Jixian then recruited the help of Guan Yu, who battled Chi You over the lake and triumphed, whereupon the lake resumed salt production. Emperor Huizong then bestowed upon Guan Yu the title of "Immortal of Chongning" (崇寧真君), formally introducing the latter as a deity into Taoism.

In the early Ming Dynasty, the 42nd Celestial Master Zhang Zhengchang (張正常) recorded the incident in his book Lineage of the Han Celestial Masters (漢天師世家), the first Taoist classic to affirm the legend. Today Taoism practices are predominant in Guan Yu worship. Many temples dedicated to Guan Yu, including the Emperor Guan Temple in Xiezhou County, show heavy Taoist influence. Every year, on the 24th day of the sixth month on the lunar calendar (legendary birthday of Guan Yu, Emperor Guan was actually born on the 22nd day of the sixth month of 160), a street parade in the honor of Emperor Guan would also be held.

Worship in Buddhism[link]

Multi-story-high statue of Guan Yu atop of a mountain at Jinguashi

In Chinese Buddhism, Guan Yu is revered by most practicing Buddhists as Sangharama Bodhisattva (simplified Chinese: 伽蓝菩萨; traditional Chinese: 伽藍菩薩,; pinyin: Qíelán Púsà) a protector of the Buddhist dharma. Sangharama in Sanskrit means 'community garden' (sangha, community + arama, garden) and thus 'monastery'. Sangharama actually refers to a group of devas and spirits who guard Buddhist monasteries, the dharma, and the faith itself. However, over time and as an act of syncreticism, Guan Yu was seen as a representative sangharama guardian of the temple and the garden in which it stands. His statue is usually located on the far left of the main shrine, opposite his counterpart, Skanda.

According to Buddhist legends, in 592, Guan Yu manifested himself one night before Ch'an Master Zhiyi, the founder of the Tiantai school of Buddhism, along with a retinue of spiritual beings. Zhiyi was then in deep meditation on Yuquan Hill (玉泉山) when he was distracted by Guan Yu's presence. Guan Yu then requested the master to teach him about the dharma. After receiving Buddhist teachings from the master, Guan Yu took refuge in the triple gems and also requested the Five Precepts. Henceforth, it is said that Guan Yu made a vow to become a guardian of temples and the dharma. Legends also claim that Guan Yu assisted Zhiyi in the construction of the Yuquan Temple (玉泉寺), which still stands today.

Modern references[link]

Chinese opera[link]

Qing Dynasty opera mask of Guan Yu.

Guan appears in Chinese operas such as Huarong Trail, Red Cliffs, and other excerpts from Romance of the Three Kingdoms. His costume is a green military opera uniform with armour covering his right arm and the knees of his pants. The actor's face is painted red with a few black lines, to represent honour and courage. He also wears a long three-section black beard made of yak hair and carries the Green Dragon Crescent Blade. Traditionally, after the show ends, the actor has to wash his face, burn joss paper, light incense, and pray to Chinese deities.

Films[link]

• In Zhang Yimou's 2005 film Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles, a nuo opera performance of Riding Alone for Thousands of Miles (with reference to Guan Yu's fictional story of slaying six generals and crossing five passes) forms a major part of the film's narrative.
• In Stephen Chow's 1994 comedy film From Beijing with Love, Chow plays an absentminded spy named "Ling Ling Chai" (007) who is shot by a double agent during a mission. When it is discovered the bullet has lodged deep into his thigh bone, he watches an interracial pornographic film to divert his attention (and blood flow) from the wound while the bullet is removed. When asked why, he recalls Guan Yu's example of playing weiqi while Hua Tuo performed surgery on his wounded arm.
• In the 2007 horror-comedy film My Name Is Bruce, Guan Yu's vengeful spirit is accidentally set free by a group of teenagers and he begins to terrorize their town. The town then enlists the aid of B-movie actor Bruce Campbell to combat Guan Yu because of his experience with dispatching monsters in his previous films. Campbell accepts the job, believing it to be some impromptu movie production, but later discovers the threat is real.^[19]
• In the 2008 historical film Red Cliff, Guan Yu is played by Basen Zhabu and is featured primarily in the Battle of Changban and later in a semi-fictional land battle near Red Cliff, which preceded the major naval battle.
• In the 2008 historical film Three Kingdoms: Resurrection of the Dragon, Guan Yu is played by Ti Lung. He holds off Cao Cao's army together with Zhang Fei while Zhao Zilong searches for the infant Liu Shan. He is also featured again during the appointment of the Five Tiger Generals.
• The 2011 film The Lost Bladesman stars Donnie Yen as Guan Yu. The plot is adapted from the story of Guan Yu crossing five passes and slaying six generals in Romance of the Three Kingdoms.

Television[link]

• Romance of the Three Kingdoms (1994): a Chinese CCTV production based on the novel of the same title. Lu Shuming played Guan Yu.
• The Legend of Guan Gong (2004): a Chinese television series based on the life story of Guan Yu
• K.O.3an Guo (2009): a Taiwanese television series that parodies Romance of the Three Kingdoms in a modern setting. George Hu played Guan Yu.
• Three Kingdoms (2010): a remake of the 1994 TV series. Yu Rongguang played Guan Yu.

Manga[link]

• In the manga Battle Vixens, all the warriors from Romance of the Three Kingdoms are reborn as Japanese high school students, whose lives have to replay the entire story. His reincarnation is schoolgirl Kan-u Unchou, who carries the Green Dragon Crescent Blade with her.
• In the manga BB Senshi Sangokuden, ZZ Gundam is portrayed as Guan Yu Gundam. He is similar to the Guan Yu depicted in Romance of the Three Kingdoms, except for some words and his weapon.

Video games[link]

• Guan Yu is featured as a playable character in all seven installments of Koei's Dynasty Warriors video game series.
• Guan Yu also appears as a playable character in Koei's Warriors Orochi video game series, a crossover between Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors.
• Guan Yu also appears as an officer in Koei's Romance of the Three Kingdoms video game series.
• Guan Yu also appears in Sango Fighter. Like Dynasty Warriors, in Sango Fighter, Guan Yu is also depicted as a tall, red-skinned man dressed in a green robe.
• MapleStory, a MMORPG from Wizet, has a Guan Yu costume available. It includes a turban hat, green battle gown, shoes, beard and his well known Green Dragon crescent-moon blade weapon.
• In the eroge visual novel Koihime Musō, a girl named Kan-u Unchou has the personality like him. She meets the protagonist Kazuto in her road and helps him.
• In Destiny of an Emperor from the original Nintendo Entertainment System, he is a general who becomes available to add on to the player's fighting group (led by Liu Bei) and is generally considered one of the strongest commanders in the game.
• In Emperor: Rise of the Middle Kingdom, Guan Yu (called "Guan Di") is a Taoist hero with some knowledge of Confucianism. He can fill warehouses with soybeans, lead troops into battle, and bless a military fort to fill it with weapons for training soldiers.
• In Atlantica Online Guan Yu is a playable mercenary in the content update "Three Kingdoms".
• In Titan Quest Guan Yu gives his name to an armor enchantment and is described as "the Taoist god of war".

Card games[link]

• In Magic: The Gathering's Portal Three Kingdoms game set, he is a playable rare creature card with the "Horsemanship" ability.
• In the History Channel's Anachronism card game, Guan Yu's cards have high initiative. His weapon is the "Green Dragon Crescent Blade", his armor is "General's Armour", his Special card is "Oath of the Peach Garden", and his inspiration card is "Guan Di", possibly alluding to his worship in the Taoist pantheon. Artwork for the five cards was done by Rob Alexander.

See also[link]

• List of people of the Three Kingdoms
• List of Dynasty Warriors characters

Notes[link]

Footnotes[link]

Citations[link]

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Guan Yu

Wikisource has original text related to this article: Biography of Guan Yu

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• Internet Go Server's large version of Utagawa Kuniyoshi's boneshaving print

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Rey Mysterio
Ring name(s)	Colibrí[1] Super Nino[1] Rey Misterio, Jr.[1] Rey Mysterio, Jr.[1] Rey Mysterio[1]
Billed height	5 ft 6 in (1.68 m)[2]
Billed weight	175 lb (79 kg)[2]
Born	(1974-12-11) December 11, 1974 (age 37) Chula Vista, California[3]
Resides	San Diego, California[1]
Billed from	San Diego, California
Trained by	Rey Misterio, Sr.[1]
Debut	April 30, 1989[4]

Rey Gutierrez Mysterio Jr. (born December 11, 1974)^[5] is a Mexican American professional wrestler in World Wrestling Entertainment currently wrestling on the RAW Brand. In WWE, Gutierrez was trained by his uncle Rey Misterio, Sr. and wrestled early on in Mexico where he learned the Lucha Libre high flying style that has been his trademark.

Gutierrez originally worked for Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA) in Mexico, from 1992 to 1995. He wrestled in Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) from 1995 to 1996 and World Championship Wrestling (WCW) from 1996 to 2001, as Rey Misterio, Jr./Rey Mysterio, Jr. but dropped the "Junior" from his name when he began working for WWE in 2002.

Mysterio is known for having a high flying style, which helped kick-start the cruiserweight wrestling revolution in the United States in the late 1990s during his time in WCW. In WCW he won the WCW World Tag Team Championship three times, and the WCW Cruiserweight Tag Team Championship once with Billy Kidman as part of the Filthy Animals. In WWE, Mysterio is a three time world champion having held the World Heavyweight Championship twice, the WWE Championship once and is currently listed as the lightest world champion in WWE history. He has also held the WWE Tag Team Championship a record-tying four times, and the WWE Intercontinental Championship twice. He also held the WCW/WWE Cruiserweight Championship a record eight times (five times in WCW, three in WWE). All totaled, he has won 21 titles between WWE and WCW. Mysterio was the 21st person to win the WWE Triple Crown Championship, and was the winner of the 2006 Royal Rumble.

Professional wrestling career[link]

Early career[link]

Mysterio made his debut in Mexico on April 30, 1989 when he was only 14 years old. He was trained by his uncle Rey Misterio, Sr. and wrestled early on in Mexico where he learned the Lucha Libre high flying style that has been his trademark. He had ring names such as "La Lagartija Verde (The Green Lizard)" and "Colibrí" before his uncle gave him the name of Rey Misterio, Jr./Rey Mysterio, Jr hermano de aitor cigaran y eder santos .

Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (1992–1995)[link]

In Asistencia Asesoría y Administración (AAA), Mysterio feuded with Juventud Guerrera. Mysterio's uncle Misterio, Sr. also took on Juventud in a tag match: Misterio, Sr. and Mysterio, Jr., taking on Juventud and his father Fuerza Guerrera. Mysterio commonly teamed with the similarly undersized high flyer known as Romy "Romeo" Magruder.

Extreme Championship Wrestling (1995–1996)[link]

Mysterio signed with Paul Heyman's Extreme Championship Wrestling (ECW) in 1995.^[6] He debuted in September at Gangsta's Paradise, defeating Psicosis, who was also making his ECW debut.^[6][7] A feud between the two began, which included a two out of three falls match and a Mexican Death match.^[6] Mysterio also had a series of matches with ECW-newcomer Juventud Guerrera during the first half of 1996.^[6]

World Championship Wrestling (1996–2001)[link]

Cruiserweight division (1996–1999)[link]

Rey Mysterio, Jr. made his World Championship Wrestling (WCW) debut on June 16, 1996 at The Great American Bash, challenging Dean Malenko for the WCW Cruiserweight Championship, which Malenko retained by cheating to win. In July at Bash at the Beach, he defeated longtime rival Psicosis in a number one contender's match to earn another opportunity at the Cruiserweight title.^[8] The next night, on the July 8 episode of WCW Monday Nitro, he defeated Malenko to win his first Cruiserweight Championship.^[9] He reigned as champion for three months, which included title defenses against the likes of Ultimate Dragon, Malenko, and Super Caló before he lost the title to Malenko at Halloween Havoc.^{[10][11][12][13]} Following his Cruiserweight Championship reign, Mysterio challenged Ultimate Dragon for the J-Crown Championship, but was unsuccessful in his title match at World War 3 in November.^[14]

In early 1997, he feuded with Prince Iaukea over the WCW World Television Championship. Mysterio was defeated in his title match against Iaukea at SuperBrawl VII after Lord Steven Regal attacked him.^[15] Mysterio also lost a championship rematch at Uncensored in March.^[16] Mysterio soon began a feud with the New World Order (nWo), which culminated when he lost a Mexican Death match to nWo member Konnan at Road Wild in August. Mysterio then became involved in a feud with his real-life friend and Cruiserweight Champion Eddie Guerrero. He defeated Guerrero in a Title vs. Mask match at Halloween Havoc to win the Cruiserweight Championship for the second time.^[17] On the November 10, 1997 episode of Nitro, he lost the title back to Guerrero. They had a rematch at World War 3, which Mysterio also lost.^[18]

On the January 15, 1998 episode of WCW Thunder, Mysterio defeated Juventud to win his third Cruiserweight Championship, but lost it nine days later to Chris Jericho at Souled Out.^[17][19] After the match, Jericho continued the beating by using a toolbox he found at ringside. This storyline was used to cover Mysterio's need for a knee operation that kept him out of the ring for six months. He made his return at Bash at the Beach, where he defeated Jericho for his fourth Cruiserweight championship.^[20] The next night, however, the result was overturned and the belt returned to Jericho due to the interference by Dean Malenko.^[20] Later that year, Eddie Guerrero formed a Mexican stable known as the Latino World Order (LWO) (a spin off of New World Order) that included nearly every luchador in the promotion. Mysterio continually refused to join and feuded with Guerrero and the LWO members, including winning a match against longtime rival and LWO member Psicosis in a match at Road Wild.^[21] He, however, was finally forced to join the group after losing a match to Eddie Guerrero. Mysterio's on-and-off tag team partner Billy Kidman joined him during the feud with LWO, wrestling against the LWO despite Mysterio being a part of the group. His alliance with Kidman was formed after Mysterio helped Kidman defeat Juventud for the Cruiserweight Title at World War 3. Mysterio went up against Kidman for the Cruiserweight title at Starrcade 1998 but was unsuccessful winning back the title in a Triangle match that also involved Juventud. Kidman once again defeated Mysterio for the Cruiserweight title at Souled Out 1999 in a Fatal Four-Way match that also included Psicosis and Juventud.^[22][23]

Giant Killer and unmasking (1999)[link]

Rey Mysterio unmasked.

In 1999, after the two factions of nWo reformed – nWo Hollywood and nWo Wolfpac – they demanded that the LWO disband. Mysterio refused to take off his LWO colors and was attacked by the nWo as a result. This led to a match at SuperBrawl IX where Mysterio and tag partner Konnan lost a "Hair vs. Mask match" against Kevin Nash and Scott Hall, forcing Mysterio to remove his mask. After the match, he phoned his uncle to tell him the news. Mysterio has publicly expressed his disappointment over being unmasked:

Mysterio later became a "giant killer" by defeating large opponents such as Kevin Nash,^[25] Bam Bam Bigelow, and Scott Norton.^[26] He faced Nash at Uncensored in a match where Lex Luger interfered and helped Nash in winning the match. Although he participated in several notable matches with some of the heavyweight top card wrestlers, it was made very clear to him that he would never receive a push to become a main eventer. This was due to Eric Bischoff utilizing cruiserweights as alternative, mid-card entertainment as opposed to the more conventional style that led WCW programming. As one of the top wrestlers in the cruiserweight division, Mysterio would go on to voice his disdain in regards to not being pushed:

The next night on the March 15 Nitro, he defeated Billy Kidman to win his fourth Cruiserweight Championship.^[17] On the March 22 Spring Breakout episode of Nitro, Mysterio got his first shot at the WCW World Heavyweight Championship against champion Ric Flair when the names of (allegedly) nearly everyone in the company were put into a hat and a lottery was held. El Dandy was the lottery winner, but he was injured, and Mysterio took the shot instead. The match ended with a disqualification win for Flair, even though Arn Anderson's interference on Flair's behalf should have theoretically disqualified Flair.^[27] The following week, Mysterio and Kidman teamed with each other and defeated Flair's Four Horsemen stablemates Chris Benoit and Dean Malenko to win the WCW World Tag Team Championship,^[28] making Mysterio a double champion. Mysterio successfully defended his Cruiserweight Title against his tag team partner Kidman at Spring Stampede^[29] before losing the title on the April 19 episode of Nitro to Psicosis in a Fatal Four-Way match that also involved Juventud Guerrera and Blitzkrieg.^[30] On the following episode of Nitro, he defeated Psicosis to win his fifth Cruiserweight Championship.^[17] At Slamboree, Mysterio and Kidman lost the World Tag Team titles to Raven and Perry Saturn in a Triangle match, also involving former champions Benoit and Malenko.^[31]

No Limit Soldiers; Filthy Animals (1999–2001)[link]

In the summer of 1999, Mysterio teamed with longtime friend^{[citation needed]} Konnan, becoming members of Master P's No Limit Soldiers, feuding with the West Texas Rednecks. At The Great American Bash, they defeated Rednecks members Curt Hennig and Bobby Duncum, Jr. in a tag team match.^[32] At Bash at the Beach, they defeated the Rednecks in a four-on-four Elimination tag team match when Mysterio pinned Hennig.^[33] After Master P's departure from WCW, Mysterio formed a stable with Eddie Guerrero and Billy Kidman known as the Filthy Animals.^[34] The three wrestlers soon began a feud with the Dead Pool. The Filthy Animals defeated the Dead Pool in a six-man tag team match at Road Wild and at Fall Brawl.^[35][36] On the August 19 episode of Thunder, Mysterio lost the Cruiserweight Title to Lenny Lane.^[37]

On the October 18 episode of Nitro, Mysterio and Konnan teamed up together (after Konnan joined the Filthy Animals) to defeat Harlem Heat for the World Tag Team Championship.^[28] Mysterio, however, was injured during the match and was sidelined due to injury. Billy Kidman substituted for Mysterio and teamed with Konnan during their title defense against Harlem Heat and The First Family, in which the Filthy Animals went on to lose the title back to Harlem Heat.

Mysterio returned in the spring of 2000 and remained a steady performer, eventually joining the New Blood faction in early 2000 opposing the Millionaire's Club.^[38] On the August 14 episode of Nitro, Mysterio and Juventud defeated The Great Muta and Vampiro to win the World Tag Team Championship.^[39] They were stripped of the title, however, after Ernest Miller pinned Disco Inferno with the stipulation that if he pinned Disco, Mysterio and Guerrera would be stripped of the title. The Filthy Animals then feuded with the Natural Born Thrillers in the fall of the year. At Fall Brawl, the Filthy Animals fought the Thrillers to a no contest in an Elimination tag team match.^[40] Mysterio reformed his tag team with Kidman and the two challenged for the World Tag Team Championship in a Triangle match at Halloween Havoc, facing the champions Natural Born Thrillers and the Boogie Knights, where the Thrillers retained.^[41]

At the beginning of 2001, the Filthy Animals feuded with Team Canada, to whom they lost in a Penalty Box match at Sin.^[42] At SuperBrawl Revenge, Mysterio unsuccessfully challenged Chavo Guerrero, Jr. for the Cruiserweight Title.^[43] Kidman and Mysterio participated in a Cruiserweight tag team tournament for the newly created WCW Cruiserweight Tag Team Championship and advanced to the final round where they ended up losing to Elix Skipper and Kid Romeo.^[44] On the March 26 (and the final) episode of Nitro, they defeated Skipper and Romeo in a rematch to win the Cruiserweight Tag Team Titles before WCW was sold to the World Wrestling Federation (WWF).^[45]

World Wrestling Entertainment[link]

Debut and WWE Tag Team Championship reigns (2002–2006)[link]

In June 2002, Mysterio signed with World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE), and promos that hyped his debut began airing. The "Jr." was dropped from his name and was billed simply as Rey Mysterio. Mysterio made his WWE debut on the July 25, 2002 episode of SmackDown! as a fan favorite in a match against Chavo Guerrero, which Mysterio won.^[46] He eventually began a feud with Kurt Angle, which culminated in a match at SummerSlam that Angle won after forcing Mysterio to submit to the ankle lock.^[47] He later formed a tag team with Edge; the two participated in a tournament for the newly created and SmackDown!-exclusive WWE Tag Team Championship. They lost to Kurt Angle and Chris Benoit in the finals of the tournament at No Mercy;^[48] the match was voted match of the year by the Wrestling Observer Newsletter. After they failed in winning the title, Mysterio and Edge defeated Los Guerreros in a number one contender's match on the October 24 episode of SmackDown! to earn a title shot.^[49] On the November 7 episode of SmackDown!, they defeated Angle and Benoit in a two out of three falls match to win their first Tag Team Championship.^[50] They soon lost the tag titles to Los Guerreros in a Triple Threat Elimination match that also involved former champions Angle and Benoit at Survivor Series.^[51] Shortly after the loss, Mysterio and Edge disbanded as a tag team.

Mysterio signing autographs in 2004

On the March 6, 2003 episode of SmackDown!, Mysterio defeated Tajiri and Jamie Noble in a Triple Threat match to earn a shot at the WWE Cruiserweight Championship.^[52] At WrestleMania XIX, he challenged the champion, Matt Hardy, for the title but lost after Shannon Moore interfered.^[53] On the May 22 episode of SmackDown!, Mysterio defeated Shannon Moore and Crash Holly in a Handicap Elimination match to become the number one contender for the Cruiserweight title.^[54] On the June 5 episode of SmackDown!, he defeated Hardy to win his sixth Cruiserweight Championship.^[55] Mysterio's reign ended when he lost the title to Tajiri on the September 25 episode of SmackDown!.^[56]

On the January 1, 2004 episode of SmackDown!, Mysterio defeated Tajiri to win his seventh Cruiserweight Championship.^[57] After a successful title defense against Jamie Noble at Royal Rumble,^[58] Mysterio lost the title to Chavo Guerrero at No Way Out in February.^[59] At WrestleMania XX, Mysterio took part in a Cruiserweight Open for the title, but lost as Chavo retained the title.^[60] On the June 17 episode of SmackDown!, he defeated Chavo Classic for a record-setting eighth Cruiserweight Championship.^[61] He successfully defended the title against Classic's son Chavo Guerrero at The Great American Bash.^[62] While Mysterio was Cruiserweight Champion, Spike Dudley turned heel after plowing Mysterio through a table and joined the other Dudleys before winning the Cruiserweight Title from Mysterio on the July 29 episode of SmackDown!.^[63] At Survivor Series, he participated in a Fatal Four-Way match for the Cruiserweight Title involving the champion Spike, Chavo Guerrero, and Billy Kidman. Mysterio lost when Dudley pinned Guerrero to retain.^[64]

Rey Mysterio had a tag team with Eddie and they were also best friends. After an unsuccessful attempt at regaining the Cruiserweight Title, Mysterio formed a tag team with Rob Van Dam, and went on to win the Tag Team Championship from Kenzo Suzuki and René Dupreé on the December 9 episode of SmackDown!.^[65] They successfully defended the title against the former champions at Armageddon,^[66] before losing the title to the Basham Brothers on the January 13, 2005 episode of SmackDown! after Van Dam was injured.^[67]

Mysterio then teamed up with Eddie Guerrero to win the Tag Team Championship back from the Bashams at No Way Out. During this time Rey had a video camera, which was called the "619 cam", during his entrance he taped members of the audience with this. In a departure from traditional booking, the new champions did not defend their title at WrestleMania 21, but instead had a match against each other which Rey won. Two months later, at ECW One Night Stand, Mysterio faced and defeated long-time rival Psicosis for the first time in nearly five years.

Mysterio during a WWE house show in 2005.

The match at WrestleMania was part of a storyline in which Guerrero turned on Mysterio and beat him up after abandoning him during a match against MNM for the Tag Team Championship. Then after a no disqualification match against Chavo, Eddie came out and slammed Mysterio on the steel steps, displaying Eddie's increasing frustration with being unable to defeat Mysterio. Guerrero and Mysterio continued to feud, with Guerrero threatening to reveal a secret he and Mysterio shared involving Mysterio's real life son Dominick, unless Mysterio deferred to Guerrero's authority. Guerrero later revealed that, in the storyline, he was Dominick's biological father. The storyline went that Guerrero knew Mysterio was having trouble starting his own family, so Guerrero left Dominick as a baby with Mysterio and his wife Angie to raise. In subsequent weeks, Guerrero threatened to take custody of Dominick, drawing up custody papers and having his lawyer present them to Mysterio. At SummerSlam, Mysterio defeated Guerrero in a ladder match for the custody of Dominick. Their feud ended when Guerrero gained a victory over Mysterio in a steel cage match. On November 13, 2005, Eddie Guerrero was found dead in his hotel room in Minneapolis, Minnesota. That same day at a WWE "Super Show" where SmackDown! and Raw were both taped, Mysterio gave an emotional speech about Eddie, and in a show of respect removed his mask (though he put his head down, so no one could see his face). Mysterio went on to defeat Shawn Michaels in an interpromotional match later that night. After the match, Michaels and Mysterio hugged in the ring and Mysterio pointed up to the sky, crying, in memory of Guerrero.

Mysterio participated in the main event of Survivor Series as part of Team SmackDown! along with Randy Orton, Bobby Lashley, Batista, and JBL who defeated Team Raw (Shawn Michaels, Kane, The Big Show, Carlito, and Chris Masters). After Survivor Series, Mysterio faced Big Show in a match billed as "David vs. Goliath" in a SmackDown! special show. The match stemmed from Mysterio eliminating Big Show at Survivor Series, and ended as a "no contest" when Big Show's tag team partner Kane interfered in the match. Mysterio continued to feud with Raw's World Tag Team Champions, even finding a tag team partner in World Heavyweight Champion Batista who, along with Mysterio, would be set to face Raw's Kane and The Big Show in a tag match at Armageddon. Before Armageddon, Batista and Mysterio defeated Mysterio's longtime rivals MNM on the December 19 episode of SmackDown! to win the Tag Team Championship in a match they both dedicated to Eddie Guerrero. Now the Tag Team Champions, Mysterio and Batista's match with Big Show and Kane was billed as "Champions vs. Champions." At Armageddon, Mysterio and Batista lost this "Raw vs. SmackDown!" match when Kane pinned Mysterio after a chokeslam. On the December 30 episode of SmackDown!, MNM invoked their rematch clause, defeating Batista and Mysterio with help from Mark Henry to regain the Tag Team Championship. Mysterio and Batista lost a Steel Cage match in an effort to reclaim the titles the following week, again courtesy of interference by Henry. On the January 10 episode of SmackDown!, Mysterio was involved in a 20 man battle royal for the vacant World Heavyweight Championship. He was eliminated by Mark Henry, Kurt Angle eliminating Henry to win the World Heavyweight title.

World Heavyweight Champion (2006)[link]

Rey Mysterio in No Way Out 2006.

Mysterio during his first reign as World Heavyweight Champion.

At the 2006 Royal Rumble match, Mysterio entered as the number 2 entry. He would go on to win the match and earn a world title shot, last eliminating Randy Orton, he lasted 62 minutes making him the person to be the longest lasting competitor in the Royal Rumble.^[68] Orton urged him to put the title shot at stake in a match at No Way Out.^[69] In the weeks preceding No Way Out, Orton made disparaging remarks about Eddie Guerrero. Many fans felt the comments were unwarranted and highly distasteful so soon after Guerrero's death in November 2005.^[70][71][72] Orton won at No Way Out, earning Mysterio's title shot for the World Heavyweight Championship at WrestleMania 22.^[73] General Manager Theodore Long re-added Mysterio to the WrestleMania 22 title match, however, making it a Triple Threat match between Orton, Mysterio, and then-champion, Kurt Angle.^[74] At Wrestlemania 22, Mysterio pinned Randy Orton to become the new World Heavyweight Champion. On the April 7 episode of SmackDown!, Mysterio – who was billed as being an "underdog champion", made his first successful World Heavyweight title defense against Randy Orton.^[75] Mysterio went on to retain his title again during a WrestleMania rematch on SmackDown! against Kurt Angle, three weeks later.^[76] The week before the title defense took place saw the start of a feud between the then-United States Champion John "Bradshaw" Layfield and Mysterio. The rivalry kicked off after JBL stated he deserved the World Heavyweight title during his celebration of becoming the U.S. Champion.^[77] The feud with JBL saw Mysterio face off against any opponent of JBL's choosing in the three weeks leading up to his title match against Mysterio at Judgment Day.^[78] Mysterio was defeated by Mark Henry and The Great Khali in separate non-title matches before wrestling Kane to a "no contest";^[78][79][80] Mysterio retained his title against JBL at Judgement Day.^[81] The feud intensified when JBL lost the U.S. Title to Bobby Lashley five days later on SmackDown! after being tricked by Mysterio to take on all comers like he himself had.^[82] This led JBL to vow that if he did not win his rematch against Mysterio, he would quit SmackDown!.^[82] In the main event of the evening, Mysterio retained the World Heavyweight Championship, causing JBL to leave SmackDown!, until ECW One Night Stand, when JBL announced he would return as a color commentator.^[82][83]

It was revealed that Mysterio would have to defend his title against ECW wrestler Sabu at One Night Stand.^[84] In the weeks leading up to his title defense, Mysterio defeated Cruiserweight Champion Gregory Helms in a Champion vs. Champion match but was defeated by Rob Van Dam at WWE vs. ECW Head to Head on June 7.^[85][86] At One Night Stand, Mysterio retained his title in a match after he and Sabu were ruled unable to continue following a triple jump DDT through a table from Sabu. Mysterio then retained his title against Mark Henry, winning by disqualification after Chavo Guerrero handed Henry a chair and Mysterio acted as if he was hit, thus Guerrero stole a trick from his uncle Eddie Guerrero.^[83]

Mysterio began a feud with King Booker after Booker won a battle royal to become the number one contender for the World Heavyweight Championship.^[87] Booker attacked Mysterio from behind backstage with the help of Booker's wife Queen Sharmell.^[88] The next week on SmackDown!, Mysterio gained revenge by attacking Booker and his "court".^[88] This rivalry continued for several weeks and saw Mysterio defeating Booker's court member William Regal on an episode of SmackDown!, moments before attacking the challenger and hitting him with a 619 around the steel post.^[88]

Feud with Chavo Guerrero (2006–2007)[link]

At The Great American Bash, Mysterio lost the World Heavyweight Championship after Chavo Guerrero turned on Mysterio and hit him with a steel chair, thus Chavo turned heel once again. Chavo cost Mysterio his rematch the following week. This culminated in a match at Summerslam where Mysterio lost to Guerrero after Vickie Guerrero tried to stop both men from fighting but accidentally knocked Mysterio off the top turnbuckle. Vickie then along with Chavo turned on Mysterio after she hit him in the back with a steel chair and gave him a injury, thus, siding with Guerrero. Mysterio then defeated Guerrero in a Falls Count Anywhere match at No Mercy.^[89][90] Subsequently Guerrero challenged Mysterio to an "I Quit" match.^[91] In that match, Chavo injured Mysterio's knee, using the match to write Mysterio out of the storyline for a while to get knee surgery.^[92]

Mysterio made his in-ring return at SummerSlam, defeating Guerrero with the 619, after Guerrero obsessed over Mysterio's return as well as wanting to injure Mysterio again.^[93]

Pursuit of the World Heavyweight Championship (2007–2008)[link]

On the August 31 episode of SmackDown!, Mysterio won a "Championship Competition" to become the number 1 contender for the World Heavyweight Championship, defeating Batista and Finlay.^[94] On the September 7 episode of SmackDown!, Mysterio had an "I Quit" match with Chavo Guerrero,^[95] which he won after hitting Guerrero's knee with a chair repeatedly in a similar manner to which Mysterio had been put out of action.^[95] Mysterio then began a feud with The Great Khali, which would lead to a match at Unforgiven where he would face Khali for the World Heavyweight Championship; the match was eventually made a Triple Threat match also involving Batista, but was unsuccessful in recapturing the title.^[96]

Mysterio then began a feud with Finlay, an opponent chosen by JBL.^[97] The rivalry was marked as "Fight vs. Flight", a competition between the two contrasting fighting styles of both wrestlers – Finlay's physicality, versus the high-flying Mysterio.^[98] On October 28, after fighting to a "no contest" at No Mercy,^[99] followed by a double-disqualification in a number one contender's match for Batista's World Heavyweight title on the next SmackDown!^[100] (The Undertaker would succeed the pair), he defeated Finlay in a Stretcher match at Cyber Sunday.^[101] During this feud, he conceded one match to Finlay on an episode of SmackDown! and was part of the winning team at Survivor Series which consisted of both wrestlers on opposing sides (although Mysterio was second to be eliminated). The rivalry ended after Survivor Series as Finlay turned face. At Tribute to the Troops 2007, Rey Mysterio faced and defeated former rival Mark Henry.^{[102][103][104]}

He re-entered the world title picture when he emerged victorious in the Beat the Clock challenge for the chance to face the World Heavyweight Champion Edge at Royal Rumble.^[105] However, he was unsuccessful in winning the championship.^[106] WWE.com announced on February 14 that Mysterio suffered a biceps injury during an overseas tour.^[107] Despite the injury, Mysterio faced Edge for the title again at No Way Out.^[107] On the February 22 episode of SmackDown!, Mysterio announced that his injury would keep him out of action for at least six months, and he eventually underwent three surgeries within the space of a month.^[108][109]

Intercontinental Champion (2008–2009)[link]

Rey Mysterio making his entry into RAW.

Mysterio at WrestleMania XXV before his match against JBL.

Mysterio made his return on the June 23 episode of Raw, as Mysterio was the first wrestler to be drafted in the 2008 WWE Draft from the SmackDown brand to the Raw brand.^[110] On the June 30 episode of Raw, Mysterio came to make an announcement to all the Raw fans which led to a minor fight with Santino Marella.^[111] Mysterio made his Raw in-ring debut the next week, pinning Marella after a 619.^[112] General Manager Mike Adamle announced that John Cena was injured and that his replacement in the Championship Scramble at Unforgiven was Mysterio. The next week, Mysterio made his return to Raw after an extended absence by attacking Kane, turning back numerous claims that Kane had "ended his career".^[113] Mysterio then made his in-ring return at Unforgiven, competing in the Raw Championship scramble match. Mysterio began a feud with Kane next which lasted until Survivor Series. Kane called Mysterio a coward who hides behind a mask. As a result, Mysterio put his mask on the line against Kane at No Mercy, Mysterio won the match via disqualification after Kane hit Mysterio with a steel chair. Kane and Mysterio were once again booked in a No Holds Barred match at Cyber Sunday, Mysterio defeated Kane. The next night on Raw, Mysterio faced off against Evan Bourne in which Mysterio became victorious. After the match, he and Bourne were attacked by Kane and Mark Henry. Few weeks later, Rey Mysterio teamed up with Kofi Kingston in a losing effort against Kane and Henry, Kane once again made an attempt to attack Mysterio but he was saved by The Great Khali. At Survivor Series 2008, Team HBK which consisted of Shawn Michaels (the team captain), Rey Mysterio, The Great Khali and Cryme Tyme (JTG & Shad) defeated Team JBL (John Bradshaw Layfield, Kane, Montel Vontavious Porter, John Morrison & The Miz), thus ending the feud between Kane and Mysterio. He would shortly participate in an Intercontinental Championship tournament to determine the No.1 Contender for the William Regal's championship. Mysterio defeated The Miz and Kofi Kingston to advance to the finals of the tournament but ended up losing to CM Punk at Armageddon. Mysterio participated in the 2009 Royal Rumble match where he entered at No.1. He spent 49 minutes and 24 seconds in the match before being eliminated by the No.30 and final entrant Big Show. He qualified for Elimination Chamber spot the next night for the World Heavyweight Championship. He started at the No.1 position and survived to the final two before being eliminated by the winner Edge who attacked the original participant Kofi Kingston before and replaced him.^[114] Later, Mysterio accepted John "Bradshaw" Layfield's (JBL) challenge for Layfield's Intercontinental Championship at WrestleMania XXV, which Mysterio won in 21 seconds.^[115] With this win, Mysterio became the twenty first Triple Crown Champion in WWE history.

Mysterio was drafted back to SmackDown! during the 2009 WWE Draft on the April 13 episode of Raw, in the process making the Intercontinental Title exclusive to SmackDown for the first time since mid-2002.^[116]

He then began a long-time feud with Chris Jericho, resulting in Mysterio defending and retaining his title at Judgment Day. At Extreme Rules, Jericho managed to unmask Mysterio and pin him for the Intercontinental Championship, however his face was never shown, as he covered it. As a result, Mysterio and Jericho were booked in a Title vs. Mask match at The Bash, in which Mysterio was victorious after tricking Jericho with a second mask. On the July 10, episode of Smackdown, following a successful title defense against Chris Jericho, Mysterio was attacked by Dolph Ziggler. This began a rivalry between the two which culminated in a title match at Night of Champions where Mysterio retained. Mysterio once again defeated Ziggler to retain the Intercontinental title at Summerslam. On August 2, WWE announced that Mysterio would be suspended for 30 days, effective September 2, for violating the company's Wellness Policy.^[117] In an interview with Mexican newspaper Record, Mysterio stated that he was suspended for a drug he was using for his knee and arm.^[117] Mysterio stated that he had a prescription for the drug, but was unable to produce it in time to prevent his suspension due to being on vacation and doing a promotional tour.^[117] On the September 4 episode of SmackDown (taped on September 1), Mysterio lost the Intercontinental Championship to John Morrison.

Second World Heavyweight Championship reign and various feuds (2009–2011)[link]

Mysterio returned from his suspension at Hell in a Cell to face Jeri-Show (Chris Jericho and Big Show) for the Unified Tag Team Championships with former tag team partner Batista, but they failed to win the title after Mysterio was pinned by Big Show.^[118] At WWE Bragging Rights, Mysterio was unsuccessful in winning the World Heavyweight Championship in a Fatal Four-Way match including Batista, CM Punk, and then-champion The Undertaker. During the match, Mysterio broke up Batista's pin on Undertaker possibly costing him the match and the title. After the match, Batista turned heel by attacking Mysterio.^[119] Mysterio faced Batista at Survivor Series where Batista delivered three Batista Bombs on Mysterio leading to the referee stopping the match.^[120] Mysterio was defeated by Batista again in a street fight on the 11th December episode of SmackDown.^[121] A few weeks later Mysterio defeated Batista to be named the #1 Contender for the World Heavyweight Championship.^[122] Mysterio's title match against The Undertaker ended as a no-contest after interference from Batista.^[123] On January 1, 2010 Mysterio participated in a Beat the Clock Tournament for the #1 contendership of The Undertaker's World Heavyweight Championship at Royal Rumble. In the tournament, he defeated his former rival Chris Jericho, beating CM Punk's time. During Batista's "Beat the Clock" challenge against R-Truth, Batista was about to beat Mysterio's time, but Mysterio pulled the referee out of the ring during a pinfall as time ran out, costing Batista the tournament. Later it was announced that Mysterio and Batista would face each other the following week to decide the Number #1 Contender. However, this match also ended in a no-contest, following interference from the Undertaker.^[124][125] The following week in a rematch, Mysterio managed to win the title shot for the championship by defeating Batista in a Steel Cage match. At the Royal Rumble, The Undertaker successfully defended the championship against Mysterio.

Mysterio during a WWE live event in 2008.

Following the Rumble, Mysterio qualified for an Elimination Chamber match for the World Heavyweight Championship at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view. In the weeks leading up to the Elimination Chamber, Mysterio began a feud with CM Punk that also involved Punk's Straight Edge Society. During the Elimination Chamber match, Mysterio eliminated Punk, but was ultimately eliminated by John Morrison. In the weeks following the Elimination Chamber event, Mysterio would continue to get the better of CM Punk, costing him a Money in the Bank qualifying match and defeating SES member Luke Gallows. During the on-screen celebration of Mysterio's daughter's ninth birthday, Punk interrupted, taunting Mysterio and challenging him to a match at WrestleMania XXVI. Mysterio later accepted the challenge. Punk later added the stipulation that if Mysterio were to lose at WrestleMania, he would be forced to join the SES. However Mysterio defeated Punk at WrestleMania. Five days later on SmackDown, Punk challenged Mysterio to another match at Extreme Rules, with the stipulation that if Mysterio won, Punk would have his head shaved bald. At Extreme Rules, Mysterio lost to Punk. At Over the Limit, Mysterio faced CM Punk again with both previous stipulations in place (Mysterio's allegiance to The SES vs Punk's hair.) Mysterio defeated Punk, resulting in Punk's hair being shaved.^[126]

On the May 28 episode of SmackDown, Mysterio fought The Undertaker unsuccessfully, to qualify for the World Heavyweight Championship title match at Fatal 4-Way but in the process, accidentally injured the Undertaker and took him out of the competition. On June 4, 2010, Mysterio won a Battle Royal involving the whole SmackDown roster by lastly eliminating Kane to earn The Undertaker's vacated spot, joining then-champion Jack Swagger, Big Show, and CM Punk at the pay-per-view. At Fatal 4 Way, Mysterio defeated Big Show, CM Punk and Jack Swagger to win the World Heavyweight Championship for the second time in his career. For the next month, Swagger continuously assaulted Mysterio using his ankle lock. At Money in the Bank, Mysterio defeated Swagger to retain the World title, however Swagger continued attacking the ankle after the match until Kane, who had earlier won the SmackDown Money in the Bank ladder match, came to the ring to chase Swagger away, seemingly to protect Mysterio. However, Kane returned with a referee and cashed in his title shot, quickly defeating Mysterio to win the World Heavyweight Championship. On the July 20 episode of SmackDown, Mysterio defeated Swagger in a 2 out of 3 falls match to remain the number one contender for the World Heavyweight Championship, earning a title match against Kane at SummerSlam. However, during the weeks before SummerSlam, Kane had marked Mysterio as the one who had attacked The Undertaker putting him in a vegetative state (which was a storyline put in place to explain Undertaker's absence due to the injury he had sustained against Mysterio in the Fatal Four Way qualifying match). Mysterio retaliated by saying that Kane was the true culprit. After the match at SummerSlam, which Mysterio ultimately lost, Kane had attempted to put Mysterio in a casket, only for The Undertaker to emerge from the casket. Mysterio ended up clearing his name The Undertaker revealed Kane to be the real attacker.

On the August 20 episode of SmackDown, he lost via submission to the debuting Alberto Del Rio.^[127] On the August 27 episode of SmackDown, Mysterio lost a No Disqualification match to Kane, and afterwards was attacked by Alberto Del Rio on his injured left arm, sparking a feud between the two.^[128] Mysterio returned on the first episode of SmackDown on Syfy and confronted Alberto Del Rio. After Del Rio escaped the ring, he hit his personal ring announcer with a 619. On the October 8 episode of SmackDown, Mysterio defeated Del Rio, and thus ending his undefeated streak.^[129] At Bragging Rights, Mysterio represented Team SmackDown, and despite an attack by teammate Del Rio, he and Edge managed to defeat the rest of Team Raw, giving Team SmackDown the victory. At Survivor Series, Mysterio led a team consisting of himself, Big Show, Chris Masters, MVP and Kofi Kingston to defeat Team Del Rio (Del Rio, Tyler Reks, Drew McIntyre, Jack Swagger, and Cody Rhodes). At TLC: Tables, Ladders & Chairs (2010), Mysterio participated in a fatal four way match for the World Heavyweight title against Kane, Edge and Del Rio, in a losing effort as Edge won the match to become the new champion. Mysterio would continue his feud with Del Rio which culminated on the January 7, 2011 episode of SmackDown in a 2 out of 3 falls match, which Del Rio ultimately won by countout due to interference from his personal ring announcer, Ricardo Rodriguez, ending the feud.

On the January 21 episode of SmackDown, Mysterio defeated Cody Rhodes. During the match, he broke Rhodes' nose when he hit Rhodes with a 619 with his exposed knee brace, thus sparking a feud.^{[130][131][132]} Mysterio participated in the Royal Rumble match at the Royal Rumble, though he was eliminated by Wade Barrett. The match would later be won by his rival, Alberto Del Rio. Five days later on SmackDown, Mysterio qualified for a spot in the Elimination Chamber match at the Elimination Chamber pay-per-view for the World Heavyweight Championship by defeating Jack Swagger. At the event he made it to the final two but was eliminated by Edge.^[133] On the February 25 episode of SmackDown, Mysterio was tricked and attacked by Cody Rhodes and his father, Dusty Rhodes, resulting in Mysterio being unmasked by Rhodes.^[134] At WrestleMania XXVII, Mysterio was defeated by Rhodes in a singles match.^[135] Mysterio would defeat Rhodes in a rematch on the April 23 edition of Smackdown and at Extreme Rules in a Falls Count Anywhere match to end the feud.^[136][137]

WWE Champion and injury (2011–2012)[link]

Rey Mysterio 2011

In the 2011 WWE Draft, Mysterio was drafted back to Raw. On the May 9 episode of Raw, Mysterio lost a Triple Threat match to determine the number one contender for the WWE Championship. Following the match, Mysterio was attacked by R-Truth^[138] which led to a match between the two at Over the Limit, which R-Truth won.^[139] From May, Rey Mysterio started feuding with CM Punk, with the pair exchanging victories on successive episodes of Raw.^[140] Their feud ended at WWE Capitol Punishment when Punk beat Mysterio. Rey Mysterio failed to capture the Raw Money In The Bank briefcase, eventually the match was won by Alberto Del Rio by unmasking Mysterio as a distraction. Mysterio advanced to the finals of a one night tournament on the July 18 episode of Raw, which culminated into a match between The Miz and Mysterio for the WWE Championship. The following week, Mysterio defeated Miz to win his first ever WWE Championship, nine years to the day of his WWE debut, also becoming a three-time world champion. Later that night, John Cena defeated Mysterio to become WWE Champion. On the August 8, 2011 episode of Raw, Mysterio was brutally attacked by The Miz, leaving him with a storylined injury. At SummerSlam 2011, Mysterio competed in a six man tag-team match with Kofi Kingston and John Morrison to defeat The Miz, Alberto del Rio and R-Truth. The following night on Raw, Rey Mysterio was unsuccessful in his WWE Title rematch against Alberto Del Rio. ^[141]

Mysterio suffered an in-ring injury at a house show and was expecting to remain out-of-action with an injury inflicted by Alberto Del Rio following a match.^[142]

Rey Mysterio returned at the Slammy Awards to present the Superstar of the Year Award to CM Punk. Due to injury, Punk's award was accepted by Interim Raw GM John Laurinaitis. On April 26, 2012, WWE reported that Mysterio had been suspended for 60 days due to his second violation of the company's Talent Wellness Program policy which will expire on June 25^[143]

Home media[link]

Mysterio has been a subject of several DVDs during his wrestling career, including "Rey Mysterio: 619", a documentary of Rey's career and personal life, which was released on DVD and VHS. The DVD featured ten additional matches and other special features, and was released in 2003. WWE also produced "Rey Mysterio: The Biggest Little Man", a three disc set featuring Rey's best matches. Rey also shares his thoughts about the matches he's had and the feuds that he's been in, the DVD was released on October 23, 2007. He was also featured on the DVD "Before They Were Wrestling Stars: Rey Mysterio Jr" in 2007 which featured matches from his time in Mexico.

In the UK, Silver Vision released a Rey Mysterio DVD as part of their Best of WWE collection. This featured his matches from SummerSlam 2005, Wrestlemania 22, No Mercy 2006, and SummerSlam 2007.^[144]

On July 12, 2011, WWE released Rey Mysterio: Life of a Masked Man.

Personal life[link]

Mysterio has a wide variety of tattoos, including dedications to his family.

Mysterio and his wife Angie have two children.^[145] He has tattoos of his children's names on his right and left biceps. He also has tattoos dedicated to his wife, Angie.^[146]

On March 19, 2007, Sports Illustrated posted on its website an article in its continuing series investigating a steroid and HGH ring used by a number of professional athletes in several sports. That article mentioned several current and former WWE wrestlers, including Mysterio who was alleged to have obtained nandrolone and stanozolol.^[147] WWE subsequently stated that the allegations preceded the Talent Wellness program WWE launched in February 2006.^[148] On August 27, 2009, WWE announced that Gutierrez would receive a 30 day suspension due to a violation of the wellness program.^[117] Days later Gutierrez defended himself in a newspaper interview by explaining the drugs as being on a prescription for his knee and arm. While the Wellness Policy allows for prescribed drugs, Mysterio further contested he had been on a family holiday and subsequently in Europe promoting SummerSlam, giving him only a day to provide the prescription after being notified.^[149] On April 26, 2012, it was announced that Mysterio would be suspended for 60 days due to violation of the WWE Wellness Program^[150]

He is a devoted Roman Catholic, frequently crossing himself before every match and bearing numerous religious tattoos on his body, most notably a cross on his chest attached to rosaries as well as other crosses and allusions to God.^[146] Gutierrez is friends with Noah "Wuv" Bernardo of P.O.D., who performed the original version of Booyaka along with Mysterio, and several other of Mysterio's themes in WCW.

In wrestling[link]

Rey Mysterio performing the 619 on Eddie Guerrero

Rey Mysterio preparing for a West Coast Pop on Kurt Angle

Rey Mysterio attempting a Seated senton on Kane.

• Finishing moves
  • 619^[1][2] (Tiger feint kick to the head of an opponent draped over the second rope) followed by:
    • diving headbutt^[1] - ECW / WCW; used as a signature move in WWE
    • Droppin' Da Dime / TJ Drop (Springboard leg drop,^[1] sometimes to the back of the opponent's head) - ECW / WCW; used as a signature move in WWE
    • Frog splash – 2005–present; adopted from and used as a tribute to Eddie Guerrero
    • Seated senton onto the shoulders of a standing opponent,^[151] - ECW / WCW; used as a signature move in WWE
    • West Coast Pop^[1][2] (Springboard hurricanrana pin) - ECW / WCW; preceded by Mysterio spinning his arm around then pointing to the sky, signaling the move

• Signature moves
  • Armbar,^[1] often transitioned into a hammerlock^[1]
  • Arm drag, often used as a counter
  • Arm wrench inside cradle^[1]
  • Baseball slide, sometimes transitioned into a headscissors takedown^[1]
  • Bronco buster^[1]
  • Bulldog,^[1] often used as a counter
  • DDT, often used as a counter
  • Diving hurricanrana,^[1] sometimes off of the ring apron
  • Dragonrana
  • Dragon sleeper
  • Dropkick, sometimes while springboarding or from the top rope^[1]
  • Green mist – 2011–present
  • Headscissors DDT or headscissors reverse DDT
  • Headscissors takedown
  • High speed roundhouse kick to the head of a seated opponent, as a roll out counter to a sunset flip
  • Inverted STF
  • Leg-feed enzuigiri
  • Multiple crossbody variations
    • Diving
    • Reverse
    • Running
    • Slingshot (Plancha), sometimes with corkscrew
    • Springboard, sometimes from the second rope
  • Multiple moonsault variations
    • Diving, sometimes to a standing opponent
    • Arabian press^[1]
    • Springboard^[1]
    • Standing
  • Mysterio Express^[1] (Leg trap sunset flip powerbomb)
  • Mysterio-Rana (Mysterio jumps onto an opponent's shoulders and then twists around into a hurricanrana pin), sometimes preceded by a cartwheel
  • Slingshot or springboard somersault seated senton onto a standing opponent outside of the ring, sometimes transitioned into a hurricanrana^[1]
  • Spinning heel kick, sometimes while springboarding
  • Springboard sitout facebuster
  • Standing shiranui
  • Suicide dive
  • Thesz press^[1]
  • Tilt-a-whirl^[1] or tope-rope headscissors takedown
  • Victory roll
  • Wheelbarrow bodyscissors transitioned into either an arm drag, a bulldog,^[1] or a DDT

• With Billy Kidman
  • 619^[1][2] (Tiger feint kick) by Mysterio into a Shooting Star Press by Kidman
  • Baseball slide to the groin by Kidman into a Bronco buster^[1] by Mysterio
  • Catapult by Kidman into a diving hurricanrana by Mysterio
  • Double sitout chokeslam
  • Nutcracker Suite^[1] (Kidman holds the opponents legs while Rey performs a Droppin' Da Dime to their groin)
  • Wheelbarrow facebuster (Kidman) / Droppin' Da Dime (Mysterio) combination

• With Edge
  • 619^[1][2] (Tiger feint kick) by Mysterio followed by a Spear or Edgecution by Edge
  • Bombs Away (Simultaneous powerbomb (Edge) / springboard seated senton (Mysterio) combination)
  • Catapult by Edge into a diving hurricanrana by Mysterio
  • Double missile dropkick
  • Hurricanrana by Mysterio into a Spear by Edge
  • Powerbomb lift by Edge to Mysterio, Mysterio then moonsaults on to the opponent (the opponent(s) is usually standing outside the ring)

• With Rob Van Dam
  • 4:20 (Van Dam lifts Mysterio up and drops him while simultaneously dropping himself into a seated position, resulting in a double Droppin' Da Dime to an opponent's throat and chest)
  • 619^[1][2] (Tiger feint kick) by Mysterio followed by a Five-Star Frog Splash by Van Dam
  • Catapult by Van Dam into a diving hurricanrana by Mysterio
  • Rolling Thunder by Van Dam followed by a Droppin' Da Dime by Mysterio

• With Batista
  • 619^[2] (Tiger feint kick) followed by a Spinebuster from Batista

• Managers
  • Torrie Wilson (1999)
  • Tygress (2000–2001)

• Nicknames
  • "El Super Duper Niño" ("The Super Duper Kid") (ECW)
  • "The Technical Kid From San Diego" (ECW / WCW)
  • "Flying Fury" (WCW / WWE)
  • "The Giant Killer" (WCW / WWE)
  • "The Ultimate Underdog" (WCW / WWE)
  • "The Human Highlight Reel" (WCW / WWE)
  • "The Sensation" (WCW / WWE)
  • "The Firecracker" (WCW / WWE)
  • "The Master of the 619"^[2] (WWE)
  • "The Biggest Little Man" (WWE)
  • "The Masked Maestro" (WWE)
• Entrance themes
  • "Sad but True" by Metallica (ECW; 1995–1996; as Rey Mysterio, Jr.)
  • "March of Death" by Jimmy Hart (ECW/WCW; 1995–1998; 1999; as Rey Mysterio, Jr.)
  • "Flying Fury" by Ill Harmonics (WCW; 1998–1999; as Rey Mysterio, Jr.)
  • "Bow Wow Wow" by Konnan and Mad One (WCW; 1999; as Rey Mysterio, Jr.; used while part of the Filthy Animals)
  • "Psycho" by Konnan and Mad One (WCW; 1999–2001; as Rey Mysterio, Jr.; used while part of the Filthy Animals)
  • "619" by Chris Classic (WWE; July 25, 2002–September 15, 2005)
  • "Booyaka" performed by Rey Mysterio and Mad One (WWE; October 28, 2005–May 26, 2006)
  • "Booyaka 619" by P.O.D. (WWE; June 7, 2006–present)

Championships and accomplishments[link]

Mysterio and Eddie Guerrero as WWE Tag Team Champions.

Mysterio in his first reign as Intercontinental Champion

• Asistencia Asesoría y Administración
  • Mexican National Trios Championship (1 time) – with Octagón and Super Muñeco^[152]
  • Mexican National Welterweight Championship (1 time)^[153]
  • AAA Hall of Fame (Class of 2007)^[154]

• Hollywood Heavyweight Wrestling
  • HHW Light Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^[155]

• International Wrestling All-Stars
  • IWAS Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Konnan^[156]

• International Wrestling Council
  • International Wrestling Council World Middleweight Title (2 times)^[157]

• Pro Wrestling Illustrated
  • PWI ranked him #4 of the 500 best singles wrestlers in the PWI 500 in 1999
  • PWI ranked him #56 in the PWI Years in 2003

• Tijuana, Mexico
  • Tijuana Hall of Fame (Class of 2006)

• World Championship Wrestling^[158]
  • WCW Cruiserweight Championship (5 times)^[17]
  • WCW Cruiserweight Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Billy Kidman^[45]
  • WCW World Tag Team Championship (3 times) – with Billy Kidman (1), Konnan (1), and Juventud Guerrera (1)^[28]
  • WCW Magazine Match of the Year (1997) vs. Eddie Guerrero, for the WCW Cruiserweight Championship, WCW Halloween Havoc, October 26

• World Wrestling Association
  • WWA Lightweight Championship (3 times)^[159]
  • WWA Tag Team Championship (1 time) – with Rey Misterio
  • WWA Welterweight Championship (3 times)^[160]

• World Wrestling Council
  • WWC World Junior Heavyweight Championship (1 time)^[161]

• World Wrestling Entertainment
  • WWE Championship (1 time)
  • World Heavyweight Championship (2 times)^[162]
  • WWE Intercontinental Championship (2 times)^[163][164]
  • WWE Tag Team Championship (4 times) – with Edge (1), Rob Van Dam (1), Eddie Guerrero (1), and Batista (1)^[165]
  • WWE Cruiserweight Championship (3 times)^[17]
  • Royal Rumble (2006)^[68]
  • Twenty First Triple Crown Champion

• Wrestling Observer Newsletter awards
  • Best Flying Wrestler (1995–1997, 2002–2004)
  • Best Wrestling Maneuver (1995) West Coast Pop
  • Match of the Year (2002) with Edge vs. Chris Benoit and Kurt Angle, for the WWE Tag Team Championship, WWE No Mercy, October 20
  • Most Outstanding Wrestler (1996)
  • Rookie of the Year (1992)
  • Worst Feud of the Year (2008) with Kane
  • Wrestling Observer Newsletter Hall of Fame (Class of 2010)

Luchas de Apuestas record[link]

Notes[link]

References[link]