Towards the Body of Androgyny
A Feminist Perspective on Daoist Philosophy of Yinyang and Cultivational Practices
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 20249603 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Lili Zhang (0000-0002-5383-8435, Chinese Academy of Social Sciences), Peiwei Wang (0000-0002-9712-8849, Wuhan University, corresponding author) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 16 |
| Issue | 12 |
| Pages | 1493 |
| Publication date | 2025-11-25 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Religions (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 2077-1444 • E-ISSN: 2077-1444 |
| Publisher | MDPI AG (PUBLISHER • IT) |
| DOI | 10.3390/rel16121493 |
| OpenAlex | W4416666010 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 1 |
| References cited | 10 |
This paper re-examines Daoist philosophy and practice through a feminist lens, arguing that Daoist cosmology articulates a dynamic ontology of gender grounded in cixiongtongti (雌雄同體, “the body of androgyny”). Drawing on classical and religious texts—including the Daodejing, Zhuangzi, Taishang Laojun Zhongjing, Santian Neijie Jing, and later alchemical writings—it demonstrates how Daoism envisions embodiment as a site of coexistence where masculine and feminine forces mutually generate and transform. Rather than privileging “feminine” values or reversing patriarchal hierarchies, Daoist yinyang metaphysics dissolves the binary itself, redefining equality as interdependence within difference. The study situates Daoism in dialogue with feminist and ecofeminist theories, acknowledging shared anti-dualist impulses while highlighting Daoism’s distinct cosmological grounding in the circulation of qi. Through analysis of textual metaphors and inner-alchemical practices such as male pregnancy and female transformation, the paper shows that Daoist cultivation performatively realizes male-female-co-existence (nannü gongsheng 男女共生) as both a philosophical and embodied principle. In doing so, it reveals Daoist thought as a vital resource for reimagining embodiment beyond essentialism—offering a non-hierarchical, pluralistic model of gender that integrates cosmology, corporeality, and spiritual practice
Alchemy · Binary opposition · Embodied cognition · Feminist philosophy · Metaphysics · Ontology · Chinese history and philosophy · Environmental and Cultural Studies in Latin America and Beyond · Jungian Analytical Psychology
The Cultural and Religious Background of Sexual Vampirism in Ancient China
The Taoist Canon
Yinyang
The Bloomsbury Research Handbook of Chinese Philosophy and Gender
Men and Women in He Longxiang's Nüdan hebian
Confucian propriety without inequality
Daoist Ecofeminism as a New Democracy
On the Classical Principles and Contemporary Practices of Taoist Female Worship
The Body, Gender, and Religious Practices
| Unique citing works | 1 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 1 |
| Citation span | 2026 - 2026 (1) |
| Citation velocity | current |
| Highly cited | No |