Acting to meet the requirements for what a man might be looking for in a woman:
She
ignored the flirtatious things, not because of being numb, but missing the lost.
She
looked plain, not because of the lack of makeup, but the absence of aspiration.
She worked
hard, not because of the ambition for a successful career, but being needful as a lonely being.
She
did not witter about what she was told, not because of being obedient
dutifully, but suffocated herself on purpose.
She
was quiet, not because of being calm, but passionate disabled from her strong
will to hide her own thoughts.
Somehow,
she is a married woman with her children and having a sound income.
Chinese characters
The Chinese characters below tell how they were made by drawing pictures:
The Chinese
character of 女 is a figure of a human being (人)
with a very big belly, which shows her fertility to give the birth to her
child. And the character of a mother is made of the figure of woman (女)
having large breasts with nipples (母). On the other hand, the character of man
(男) is a square picture (□) of cultivated land (田) with a sign (力), which means hard working with efforts in the field.
Those characters do deliver what is typical of a man or a woman who is expected to play
gender roles.
Sexology in Taoism
The rooted concept
of both elements Ying (陰) and Yang (陽) in the universe comes
from the Taoism (道教), which has related to and also affected on
the daily life of most Chinese people for thousands of years. Both are characterized
as a whole in the universe like life and death and human relationships, between
woman and man in particular.
Ying associated
with female element is described as dark, black, deep and receptive like the
moon while Yang combined with the male is defined as bright, high and
penetrating like the sun. Both Yang and Ying are expected to make each other
the whole, with its concern about the philosophical aspects of sex. Therefore, women
and men are complementary well to form a balanced whole rather than opposing to
each other or strongly against each other the Taoists believe.
The duality of the
sexes is one of the older and more usual ways of representing universal powers
and relationships as Ying and Yang in Taoism. That is different from the dualism
of the west, Father Heaven and Mother Earth basically.
According what the Taoists believe, the ideology of sex sees human sexual activity as essentially associated with the balancing of principles necessary for human health, strength, and longevity. More than that, sexual intercourse in practice has two main purposes, one of which is the procreation of children and the other the strength of male vitality in Taoism. However, with the concept of the Great Mother (天上聖母), not the Earth Mother though, the negative of a woman has been praised by the its followers above the positive of a man. That shows how important a female figure could be in Taoism.
It is also interesting
that the religious creeds of Taoism value the harmony and happiness of the relationship
between a married couple even though the sexual practices even in a marriage had
been criticized and greatly opposed truly by Confucianism and Buddhism.
Harmony
Harmony
How could a
religion be so popular in conservative Chinese societies in different dynasties
for almost two thousands years, where one of its main purposes has been applied to sexual
activity in a marriage you must be curious about?
It did prevail over
the Chinese domains in different times that a good wife had to possess these
four points -- faithfulness, beauty, hard working and submissive. Nothing about
the marital relationship was considered about in a fairer way in Confucianism or
Buddhism than in Taoism.
Besides, the Taoists can get along well with others since it is not unusual in Taiwan if you are observing to learn that the family members honor their own gods/God in harmony with each other (discussed in We live together).
Was love a necessary or even important factor in accomplishing any of the purposes in Taoism ideology? Love was a luxury in the old days for sure.
What about
nowadays? Are you wondering whether or not the penetrating of western cultures
has changed the face of Taiwanese traditions in many aspects, especially the
status of women? Are modern Taiwanese women more liberal or still oppressed when
it comes to sexuality if the religion is not an issue?
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