The Qilin is a legendary chimerical creature from Chinese mythology often depicted as a hoofed creature. The creature is shown to appear with the imminent birth or passing of a sage or an illustrious ruler. Despite being a popular creature in Chinese mythology, it makes rare appearances in Disney properties.
Background[]
Origins[]
The qilin is a mythical beast that originates from Chinese mythology. It is often depicted as a dragon-like beast often with antlers, eyes, and thick eyelashes as well as beards with its body often shaped like an ox, a deer, or a horse always shown with hooves. In the original myth, the qilin shows a kind personality to other living beings, also shown to be careful to not harm insects and grass as well as signifying goodwill, benevolence, gentleness, and integrity. In addition to being a terrestrial creature which walks on land, the qilin is also said to walk on water. Besides appearing in Chinese mythology, the qilin also appears in other Asian mythologies such as Japanese, Korean, and Vietnamese mythology where it is spelled as kirin and kỳ lân respectively.
Appearances[]
Film[]
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings[]
Qilin are shown to be docile creatures living in the mystical realm of Ta Lo and are shown to live peacefully with other creatures living within the realm in the 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe film, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings. They are depicted to resemble Earth's horses albeit with the face of a dragon as well as being shown to live in herds. According to the Shang-Chi-inspired book, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings: Who Guards My Sleep, qilin are capable of swimming, flying, and are also known to show a gentle, kind, and powerful personality.
One qilin appears during the part where Shang-Chi, Xu Xialing, Katy Chen, and Trevor Slattery arrive at the mystical realm of Ta Lo. It is one of the creatures encountered by the group and as they approach the creature, it is shown that the qilin temporarily blocked Razor Fist's car when they were driving into the realm of Ta Lo. Trevor describes it as a weird horse-like creature and upon seeing the qilin, a herd of them continue walking by, just as they allow the group to continue driving across Ta Lo into a village.
Disney Parks[]
Garden of Wonders[]
In the Hong Kong Disneyland attraction Garden of Wonders at Mystic Point, one of the three anamorphic statues representing creatures from Chinese folklore depicts a statue of a qilin. It can be seen next to the statues representing a phoenix and a carp respectively.
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