Queen Mother of the West
mother goddess in Chinese religion and mythology
The Queen Mother of the West, known by various local names, is a mother goddess in Chinese religion and mythology, also worshipped later in neighbouring countries. She is attested from ancient times.
The first historical information on her can be traced back to Shang dynasty oracle bone inscriptions that record sacrifices to a "Western Mother". Even though these inscriptions illustrate that she predates organized Taoism, she is most often associated with Taoism. The growing popularity of the Queen Mother of the West, as well as the beliefs that she was the dispenser of prosperity, longevity, and eternal bliss, took place during Han dynasty, in the 2nd century BCE, when the northern and western parts of China became more accessible through the opening of the Silk Road.
Names
Queen Mother of the West is a calque of Xiwangmu in Chinese sources, Seiōbo in Japan, Seowangmo in Korea, and Tây Vương Mẫu in Vietnam. She has numerous titles, one being Yaochi Jinmu (瑤池金母), the "Golden Mother of the Jade Pond (瑤池)" (also translated "Turquoise Pond"). She is also known in contemporary sources as the Lady Queen Mother.
In Chinese salvationist religions, she is believed to be the same being as their main deity, Wusheng Laomu (Chinese: 無生老母; lit. 'unborn old mother'), also known as Wujimu (無極母; lit. 'infinite mother').
The public source identifies “Queen Mother of the West” as mother goddess in Chinese religion and mythology. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Queen, Mother and West.
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Named sources, stable identifiers and responsible institutions provide the strongest route from overview to verifiable evidence. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 1, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q1064059. VIAF identifies the subject as 69733156. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
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This entry incorporates text from “Queen Mother of the West” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.