后羿射日
Hou Yi shoots the nine suns
Name: ________________ Date: ________
你有没有想过，天上为什么只有一个太阳？中国古代的神话说，以前其实有十个。
这十个太阳是天上的大神帝俊的儿子。他们住在东边大海里的一棵大树上，九个在下面休息，一个在最上面。每天早上，只有一个太阳去天上上班，其他的在家等着。十兄弟就这样轮流，一人一天。
可是过了很久，太阳们觉得一个人上班太无聊了。有一天，他们商量好了：“今天我们一起去！”
于是，十个太阳同时出现在了天上。
这下，地上的人可受不了了。河里的水被晒干了，地里的庄稼被晒死了，树木和小草都干死了，人们没有东西吃，也没有水喝。山里的怪物也跑了出来，到处害人。
那时候管理天下的是尧，他急得吃不下饭，睡不着觉。最后，他找来了一个射箭特别厉害的人，名字叫羿。今天的人一般叫他后羿。古书上说，帝俊送给了他一张红色的弓和一些白色的箭，让他去帮助地上的人。
后羿先对着天大喊：“快回去，一个一个来！”太阳们根本不听，还在天上哈哈大笑。
后羿生气了。他拉开弓，一箭射了出去。只听见天上一声大响，一个太阳就掉了下来。人们跑过去一看，掉在地上的不是火球，而是一只三条腿的大黑鸟。
后羿一箭接一箭，太阳一个接一个地掉下来。天上越来越凉快，人们越来越高兴。
射到第九个的时候，后羿又拿起了一支箭。这时候，尧赶紧拦住了他：“别射了，一个都不留的话，世界就永远是黑夜了！”有一种说法是，尧偷偷拿走了后羿的最后一支箭。
就这样，天上只剩下了一个太阳。它再也不敢偷懒，也不敢乱跑，每天按时升起来，按时落下去，一直到今天。
不过，帝俊知道自己的九个儿子死了，心里很难过。后来的一些故事说，羿本来是天上的神，帝俊一生气，就不让他回天上了。后羿只好留在人间，和嫦娥一起过日子。他们后来怎么样了，又是另一个有名的传说。
Key words
| Word | Pinyin | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 棵 | kē | classifier for trees, plants and vegetables |
| 兄弟 | xiōngdì | brother; bro (friendly address among men) |
| 无聊 | wúliáo | boring; bored |
| 商量 | shāngliang | to discuss; to consult |
| 同时 | tóngshí | at the same time; simultaneously |
| 出现 | chūxiàn | to appear; to emerge; to arise |
| 死 | sǐ | to die; dead |
| 管理 | guánlǐ | management; administration; to manage; to administer |
| 厉害 | lìhai | impressive; amazing; really good (at it) |
| 响 | xiǎng | to sound; to ring; sound; noise |
| 掉 | diào | to fall; to drop |
| 永远 | yóngyuǎn | forever; always; eternally |
English (for the teacher)
Have you ever wondered why there is only one sun in the sky? Ancient Chinese myth says there used to be ten.
The ten suns were the sons of Dijun, a great god in the sky. They lived in a great tree in the eastern sea: nine rested lower down and one at the very top. Every morning only one sun went up into the sky to work, while the others waited at home. The ten brothers took turns like this, one day each.
But after a long time the suns found working alone too boring. One day they agreed: “Today we all go together!”
And so ten suns appeared in the sky at once.
Now the people on earth could not bear it. The sun dried up the rivers and scorched the crops in the fields to death; trees and grass withered, and people had nothing to eat and nothing to drink. Monsters came out of the mountains too and attacked people everywhere.
The ruler of the land at that time was Yao, and he was so worried he could neither eat nor sleep. At last he sent for a man who was a superb archer, named Yi. Today people usually call him Hou Yi. The old books say Dijun gave him a red bow and white arrows and told him to help the people on earth.
First Hou Yi shouted at the sky: “Go back! One at a time!” The suns didn’t listen at all; they just laughed up in the sky.
Hou Yi got angry. He drew his bow and let fly. There was a loud crack in the sky, and one sun fell. People ran over to look, and what lay on the ground was not a ball of fire but a big black bird with three legs.
Hou Yi shot arrow after arrow, and the suns fell one after another. The sky grew cooler and cooler, and the people happier and happier.
When he had shot the ninth, Hou Yi picked up another arrow. At that moment Yao rushed to stop him: “Stop shooting! If you leave none, the world will be night forever!” One version says Yao secretly took away Hou Yi’s last arrow.
And so only one sun was left in the sky. It never dared to slack off or wander again: it rose on time and set on time every day, right up to today.
But when Dijun learned that nine of his sons were dead, he was heartbroken. Some later stories say that Yi had been a god from heaven, and in his anger Dijun would not let him go back. Hou Yi had to stay in the human world and live there with Chang’e. What became of them is another famous legend.