I have a question is there any symbolism of the colors with the other three supreme ghosts like green lantern black water white no face? Like with hua Chang?
Like I mentioned in the previous post about Hualian’s colour symbolism, in Chinese culture, white is mainly associated with purity and death/mourning. This duality is perfect for someone who is simultaneously the first Calamity recognized by his laugh-crying mask & the Emperor of Heaven known for his virtue and wisdom. They represent the “heavenly” and “deadly” sides of one person, but neither fully convey who the Crown Prince of Wuyong was. It is noteworthy that white can also symbolize new beginnings and starting from a blank slate. That’s exactly what the prince wanted after losing his original self to overwhelming tragedy. He “died” and was “reborn” by deliberately crafting the personas of Jun Wu and White-No-Face through deceit and destruction.
Moreover, White No Face sharing Xie Lian’s signature colour further accentuates his position as Xie Lian’s foil and how far he could have fallen had it not been for moments of kindness that protected the last bit of purity within him. Both White No Face and Xie Lian exhibit the duality associated with the colour white. But while Xie Lian was able to reconcile the beauty and the pain of his life within himself and recover early on, Jun Wu/White No Face was intent on keeping those opposite qualities separated through his divine and demon persona. But to reconnect with his original self and most importantly his own humanity, he needed to gain a sense of unity between the two extremes.
That’s why it is fitting that his story ended with him finding freedom by reconciling with Mei Nianqing, the one person who’s personally seen him at his best and worst yet still cared for him, at Mount Tonglu. They represent the last remnants of the home he’s tried to hide for a millenia, embodying both his past failures and the glimmer of hope that lies ahead for him. With all that said, I’d say coming to terms with the duality and complexity of human nature would be the main message shown through Jun Wu’s colour motif.
Black Water Submerging Boats
He Xuan’s own given name immediately show his connection with black as his colour motif (xuan/玄 is one way of saying “black” or “mysterious”). He’s a low-profile, enigmatic person hiding a dark secret that’s a prime example of the corruption underneath the splendour of Heaven. Additionally, he’s a water demon and according to what’s in the Five Elements system of Taoism, the element of water is actually associated with the colour black.
Within Chinese culture in general, black is viewed as an unlucky colour, being associated with evil, sadness, suffering and all that bad stuff. That’s painfully fitting for He Xuan’s situation. Even though he’s not an inherently evil person, the sheer suffering brought upon by the misfortune he experienced took such a toll on him that it led him to commit evil deeds for the sake of revenge, which led him to hurt and lose his closest friend in the process. Instead of valuing the connection beside him, he prioritized his hatred and ended up contributing to a cycle of suffering by involving the innocent Shi Qingxuan.
He Xuan having black as his signature colour is also something that underlines his foiling with Hua Cheng, given the latter’s connection with the auspicious colour red. The unlucky He Xuan was driven by vengeance to reach Supreme status in contrast to the lucky Hua Cheng who was driven by love. Both were born impoverished and affected by a switch of fate, but while He Xuan’s life was ruined beyond repair by a stranger’s selfish wish, Hua Cheng’s life took a turn for the better by a meeting with a saviour who nullified his curse from the Star of Solitude. They both fulfilled their life goal and grew to embody the colour associated with them…
There’s much more that could be said in regard to their foiling, but that’s about the gist of it for their colour symbolism.
Night Touring Green Lantern
Now for last and certainly least (:P), let’s look at Qi Rong the Green Lantern. Well...when it comes to “this ancestor” and his colour symbolism, it’s actually not as clear-cut as the other three. Green in China is traditionally connected with qualities such as cleanliness, nature, life and hope...not exactly words one would tend to think of for Qi Rong XD
Not at first glance anyway.
Despite how messy and crass Qi Rong is, his subplot ultimately does involve him undergoing positive character development through his bond with Guzi. His ending does enforce the message about how people can change for the better through the meaningful connections in their lives. That at least makes Qi Rong a somewhat hopeful character, especially when considering the fact that his sacrifice is what gives a child like Guzi the chance to live and let him know that his life matters.
Moreover, another interesting meaning for green in Chinese culture is that it’s a symbol of infidelity due to the ancient custom of men with unfaithful wives wearing green hats. For Qi Rong, this could be applicable when thinking of how he went from Xie Lian’s most extreme devotee to his loudest anti. His loyalty only lasted so long as Xie Lian was the invincible “Cousin Crown Prince”.
Overall, in a sense, I find that Qi Rong not fully living up to his colour motif like the three other Calamities works to highlight the fact that he’s technically not like the rest of them, being in reality just a wrath-level ghost ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
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