The Daoist Art of the Bedchamber of Male Homosexuality in Ming and Qing Literature
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: The Daoist art of the bedchamber (fangzhong shu 房中術) constitutes a form of cultivation practice with the objective of promoting health and longevity through sexual techniques, generally applied within heterosexual contexts. However, with the evolution of male homosexuality culture during the Ming and Qing dynasties, depictions of the art of the bedchamber related to male homosexuality emerged in the literature of that era. This art was imaginatively traced back to Laozi and his disciple Yin Xi 尹喜. The sources explained the beneficial outcomes of these techniques by referring to classical Chinese cosmology: underage males were considered to have yin energy in their bodies, a condition similar to that in females, aligning with the fundamental principles of the heterosexual art of the bedchamber. Serving as a religious interpretation of emerging cultural trends rather than representing a new cultivation technique, this fictive art legitimizes homosexual practices among males, particularly those adhering to Daoism.
Source: Religions
DOI: 10.3390/rel15070841
Author: Wanrong Zhang
Institution: Fudan University
Language: English
Subfield: Sociology and Political Science
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $2,046
OpenAlex ID: W4400577412