A Confucian temple in Chufu, Shandong province, the birthplace of Confucius, whose ideas have permeated all aspects of Chinese life.

Jokes dealing with cleverness and stupidity, tales of Buddhist and Taoist deities, immortals, supernatural beings, and ghosts are also quite popular among the Chinese.  They have not been included here because of the limited amount of space.  On the other hand, animal tales, which play a very important role in other cultures, such as India and Persia, for some reason do not enjoy the same popularity in China.  Some scholars feel that many of the animal tales which do exist in China are of foreign origin.

It is typical of Chinese culture that the majority of their traditional tales are concerned with human relationships in connection with high moral principles.  This is the legacy of Confucianism.  Confucianism is no longer the state philosophy; it has been replaced by Marxism.  

In the past Confucianism has been officially criticized on mainland China as a feudal philosophy.  But certainly signs of its survival in the life and thought of the Chinese are still quite evident, especially among the older generations.  Interestingly, tales like those included here are regaining their popularity.

The Clam and the Sandpiper

One bright clear morning, a giant clam felt extraordinarily happy and thought to himself, “What a beautiful day!  What a beautiful day!  I would like to bask in the sun and suck in the sea mist.”  He opened his iridescent shells to let in the sun and the sea spray.

Just then a hungry sandpiper flew by.  “Oh! look at that delicious morsel on the beach!” he thought.  Tempted by the juicy and soft clam meat, the sandpiper dived down, losing no time to pick at the clam.  Sensing the attack, the giant clam snapped shut his shells just in time to catch the beak of the sandpiper.

“Let go of my beak!” the sandpiper demanded.

“You let go of my flesh first,” said the clam.