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Historicizing Great Bliss:

Erotica in Tang China (618–907)
P ing Ya o
California State University, Los Angeles

S e x u a l u n i o n , b y d e s i g n , i s t h e c o m m e n c e m e n t of human
society and the beginning of nature. The intercourse of Heaven and Earth
balances the universe; intercourse of a man and a woman results in the
proper order of yin and yang. This is why Confucius declared the great-
ness of marriage and why the ancient poet composed the masterpiece
“Zhongsi” (“Locusts”).1 These are all rooted in sexual union, if one
explores the fundamentals thoroughly. I thus visualize the desires of men
and women, depicting both the beautiful and the unpleasant encounters.
I formulate patterns in accordance with their feelings and discern purposes
from various settings. Sordid trysts and twisted signals are included, and
nothing is left unaccounted for. I supply pronunciation and annotation
to puzzling words and bizarre names; I cover the human life from infancy
until death. Although some passages might be seen as obscene, they nev-
ertheless present the marvelous delight of such union. For of all the joys
humanity has, nothing surpasses this. Therefore, I titled this piece “Poetic
Essay of the Great Bliss.”
“Poetic Essay of the Great Bliss” was authored by Bai Xingjian (776–826),
a high-ranking court official in the Tang dynasty. As the above preface prom-
ises, the essay, with the full title “Tiandi yinyang jiaohuan dale fu” (“Poetic
Essay on Great Bliss of the Sexual Union of Heaven and Earth and Yin and
Yang,” hereafter cited as “Great Bliss”), depicts sexual acts committed in
various settings by persons involved in various relationships. The graphic
details must have astounded post-Tang readers so much that the text disap-
peared after the Tang. It was unknown to Chinese readers until its discovery

I am grateful to Stanley Burstein, Choi Chatterjee, Weijing Lu, Phal Vaughter, and Scott
Wells for their critical suggestions.
1
“Locusts” (“Zhongsi”) is one of 306 poems from the Zhuo dynasties (ca. 1050–256
BCE) collected in the Book of Songs (Shijing). “Locusts” celebrates fertility and the continua-
tion of family lines. For a full translation of the Book of Songs, see Arthur Waley, ed. and trans.,
The Book of Songs: The Ancient Chinese Classic of Poetry (New York: Grove, 1996).

Journal of the History of Sexuality, Vol. 22, No. 2, May 2013

© 2013 by the University of Texas Press
DOI: 10.7560/JHS22202

207
208 Ping Yao

among the Dunhuang manuscripts in 1908 by French explorer Paul Pelliot

(1878–1945) and publication by Ye Dehui (1864–1927) in 1914.2
“Great Bliss,” however, was not the only lost text of Tang erotica. About
a century before Bai’s time, another eminent Tang official and examination
graduate, Zhang Zhuo (660–740), authored the first Chinese novelette,
You xianku (Merrymaking in a Transcendent Dwelling, hereafter cited as
Merrymaking), which entices readers with its tale of a sexual encounter be-
tween an official and a mystical widow. As with “Great Bliss,” Merrymaking
was not recorded in any post-Tang bibliographies in China, but it found a
receptive audience in Japan and played an important role in the develop-
ment of Japanese literature.3 Only in 1929 was the text reintroduced from
Japan by publisher Chen Naiqian, who included it in his Gu yi xiaoshuo
congkan (Collections of Lost Novels from Ancient Times).4 “Great Bliss” and
Merrymaking signified the first wave of erotica in Chinese history.
As unique and important as the two texts are in the history of sexuality in
China, much remains to be understood about them. Scholarship has concen-
trated mainly on approaching the texts from philological and textual perspec-
tives, investigating their linguistic origin, authorship, editions, and rhetoric.5
To be sure, efforts have been made to place both works in the large context of
2
Ye Dehui, Shuangmeijing’an congshu, 26 juans (Changsha: Yeshi xiyuan, 1914), 4:1–9.
3
For a full translation of Merrymaking, see Howard S. Levy, China’s First Novelette: The
Dwelling of Playful Goddess by Chang Wen-ch’eng (ca. 657–730) (Tokyo: Dai Nippon Insatus,
1965), 10–63. Levy also provides a detailed bibliography of Chinese and Japanese scholar-
ship on the novelette published before 1965. For a study of various editions of Merrymaking
published in Japan, see Ma Xingguo, “You xianku zai Riben de liuchuan ji yingxiang,” Riben
yanjiu, no. 4 (1987): 67–73; Li Shiren and Zhan Xuzuo, “You xianku de Riben guchaoben
he gukanben,” Shanghai shifan daxue xuebao 35, no. 3 (2006): 47–53; and Li Shiren and
Yang Bin, “Zhongguo gudai xiaoshuo zai Riben de chuanbo yu yingxiang,” Fudan daxue
xuebao, no. 3 (2006): 121–30. Ma’s 1987 study points to four Japanese literature genres
that are influenced by Merrymaking: folklore, waka (poem), monogatari (story or tale), and
novel; Li and Yang’s study assesses the overall influence Chinese novelettes and novels had
on Japanese literature and largely echoes Ma’s arguments in its discussion of Merrymaking.
4
For details of the reintroduction of the text, see Lin Chen, “You xianku de guilai yu
chuanbu,” Qunyan, no. 7 (1989): 47–48. The text was annotated by Zhang Tingqian
(1901–81) and prefaced by Lu Xun (1881–1936).
5
In addition to Levy’s (1965), Lin Chen’s (1989), and Li Shiren and Zhan Xuzuo’s
(2006) research, other important philological studies of the text include Guo Zaiyi, “You
xianku shi ci,” Hangzhou daxue xuebao 11, no. 4 (1981): 36–41; Zhang Meilan, “You
xianku shi ci bu,” Nanjing daxue xuebao, no. 1 (1994): 126–27; Pan Xiaoqi, “You xianku
bu shi ci si ze,” Pingyuan daxue xuebao 25, no. 2 (2008): 69–70; Li Pengfei, “You xianku de
chuangzuo beijing ji wenti chengyin xintan,” Shanxi shida xuebao 28, no. 1 (2001): 42–48;
and Zou Zuyao, “You xianku Zhongguo xiaoshuo de kaishan zhi zuo,” Wanxi xueyuan
xuebao 21, no. 4 (2005): 112–13. Important philological research on “Great Bliss” includes
Sumiyo Umekawa, “Tiandi yinyang jiaohuang dalefu and the Art of the Bedchamber,”
in Medieval Chinese Medicine: The Dunhuang Medical Manuscripts, ed. Vivienne Lo and
Christopher Cullen (London: Routledge Curzon, 2005), 252–77; Fu Junlian, “Tiandi
yinyang jiaohuan dale fu jiaobu,” Guhanyu yanjiu 25, no. 4 (1994): 71–74; and Fu Junlian,
“Tiandi yinyang jiaohuan dale fu chutan,” Guizhou daxue xuebao 21, no. 4 (2003): 78–83.
 Historicizing Great Bliss 209

the writings about sex and romantic love. For example, scholars have explored
the connection between them and the tradition of fangzhongshu (arts of the
bedchamber) in Daoist texts. Zhuo Yimou, for example, suggested that, just
like Sun Simiao’s (581–682) Fangnei buyi (Benefits within the Chamber)6 and
Zhang Ding’s Yufang mijue (Secret Instructions of the Jade Bedchamber),7
“Great Bliss” was representative of Tang sexual ideology.8 Meanwhile,
Sumiyo Umekawa’s study of Merrymaking finds direct borrowings of Daoist
sexological terms.9 Literary scholars, in contrast, have investigated the theme
of romantic love and the fairy tale style of Merrymaking, but many have
dismissed the labeling of both texts as works of erotica. Howard S. Levy, for
example, has adamantly argued that in Merrymaking the sexual insinuations
were intended merely to serve the theme of love, which was prominent not
only in Merrymaking but also in other Tang chuanqi (vernacular literature).10
Similarly, recent research in the Chinese language has categorized the texts,
especially Merrymaking, as romantic literature. Some argue that the story
reflects Tang perceptions of ideal love, which includes not only physical at-
traction but also equal social status, talent, and refined dispositions;11 others
stress that the text affirms a common theme in Chinese literature, yingxiong
chuanqi (scholar-beauty romance),12 with an emphasis on physical desire13
and yanyu (romantic adventure).14
The only study that focuses on Tang perceptions of sexuality and gender
is that of the eminent feminist scholar Du Fangqin. In her 2002 article, Du
analyzes lust and gender relations among Tang elites as seen in these two
texts as well as in Sun Simiao’s Qianjin yaofang (Important Recipes Worth
One Thousand Gold Pieces). Du’s arguments center on how Merrymaking
6
For a summary and discussion of Sun Simiao’s Fangnei buyi, see R. H. van Gulik, Sexual
Life in Ancient China: A Preliminary Survey of Chinese Sex and Society from ca. 1500 B.C. till
1644 A.D. (Leiden: Brill, 1961; repr., 2003), 93–197. A complete translation of the text can
be found in Douglas Wile, Art of the Bedchamber: The Chinese Sexual Yoga Classics Including
Women’s Solo Meditation Texts (Albany: State University of New York Press, 1992), 114–19.
7
For a study of Secret Instructions of the Jade Bedchamber, see Paul Goldin, “The Cultural
and Religious Background of Sexual Vampirism in Ancient China,” Theology and Sexuality
12, no. 3 (2006): 285–307.
8
See Zhuo Yimou, “Tangdai yi pian zhengui de xingxue wenxian lun Bai Xingjian de
Tiandi yinyang jiaohuan dale fu,” Xingxue 8, no. 4 (1999): 24–25. See also van Gulik, who
includes a description of the text in his Sexual Life, 203–8.
9
Umekawa, “Tiandi yinyang,” 259–68.
10
Levy, China’s First Novelette, ii–iii.
11
Bao Zhenpei and Yu Yanhua, “Xiehou fengliu Tangdai xiaoshuo You xianku de shisu
hua tezheng,” Tianjin daxue xuebao 7, no. 2 (2005): 122–26; Hu Yong, “Cong zunchong
mendanghudui dao yinfeng nangcainümao jiedu You xianku zhong Tangdai aiqing hunyin
guannian de zhuanbian,” Mudanjiang shifan xueyuan xuebao 142, no. 6 (2007): 20–22.
12
Wang Zengbin, “Jiase gongming liang buxiu shiren yixing tuo fengqin Youxianku de
wenxuetezhi yu meixue jiazhi,” Taiyuan shifan xueyuan xuebao, no. 2 (2003): 60–64.
13
Liu Shucheng, “Zhongguo gudai xiaoshuo qingyu miaoxie yanyan de san ge jieduan,”
Xibei shida xuebao 37, no. 1 (2000): 24–29.
14
Cai Zhihua, “You xianku: chuanqi de yishu tushi,” Yuwen xuekan, no. 1 (2010): 1–4.
210 Ping Yao

and “Great Bliss” reflected ideal femininity and masculinity as projected

by elite males and thus served the purpose of glorifying elite males and
advancing their interests. Overall, Du perceives the texts as testimony of a
male-dominated power system in Tang China.15
While all these studies are important in their own right, overall they do not
completely answer the questions on the nature and genre of these texts, the
unique aspects and concepts described in them, and, most importantly, their
historical significance. Yet it is crucial to examine Merrymaking and “Great
Bliss” through these perspectives. To begin with, I believe it is important to
distinguish both texts from the scholar-beauty (chuanqi) genre. That they
belong to the genre of erotica can be affirmed, because both texts depict
sexual love in a graphic, sensuous, or voluptuous manner that is unseen in any
chuanqi writings. This erotic nature is probably the main cause for the later
disappearance of these texts when discourse about sex took a conservative turn,
whereas scholar-beauty romance continued to be very popular throughout
Chinese imperial history. I also argue that there are some significant differ-
ences between writings of fangzhongshu, on the one hand, and Merrymaking
and “Great Bliss” on the other, as the former stresses techniques and health
benefits, while the latter focuses on pleasure and refinement.
The single most important historical factor at the center of our un-
derstanding of the two texts was the Tang civil examination elite and the
culture its participants created. Tang erotica reflected a reconfiguration
of the Tang political power system, namely, the ascendancy of the literate
elite and their increasing influence on public discourse, especially on norms
of Tang sexuality and perception of gender roles. Both Merrymaking and
“Great Bliss” involved literary ability, aesthetics, and manners, all of which
the Tang examination elite highly prized. When such literary skills were
deliberately applied to the imagination of sexual acts, they reflected the idea
that sex is natural and pleasurable. In addition, “Great Bliss,” which describes
various sexual acts between two people with “marvelous delight,” speaks
to the idea that sexual satisfaction is central to many aspects of human life
such as physical well-being, gender harmony, social and cultural standing,
emotional fulfillment, and spiritual enlightenment. In short, while these
two texts might not be representative of Tang elite views about sexuality
and gender, they do reflect new dimensions in the Tang ideals of sexuality,
femininity and masculinity, and gender relations, all of which were brought
by the new elite. The emphasis on erudition, refinement, passion, and intu-
ition, as well as on marital happiness, the mutual feelings between men and
women, and their equal partnership in bed, was very much unprecedented
in Chinese literary tradition prior to the Tang dynasty.
15
See Du Fangqin, “Xinshi, yixue he qingyu zhong de shehui xingbie cong Dale fu
Qianjinfang he You xianku kan Tangdai shangcen nanxing de xingguannian yu xingtaidu
ji xingshi qingyu zhong de xingbie guanxi,” in Du Fangqin, Funüxue he funüshi de bentu
tansuo (Tianjin: Tianjin renmin chubanshe, 2002), 129–50.
 Historicizing Great Bliss 211

Tang Erotica: The Cases of Merrymaking and “Great Bliss”

Zhang Zhuo, the author of Merrymaking, was born in 660. He rose to
fame during the reigns of Emperor Gaozong (ruled 649–83) and Empress
Wu (ruled 690–705), a period when the civil service examination was
reformed and more official positions were filled by its graduates. Zhang
passed the literary examination (jinshi) in 679 and afterward took eight
special examinations, passing every one of them with the highest grades.
Such successes guaranteed him an entrance into the administration as well
as permanent status as a literatus. It was Zhang Zhuo’s writings, however,
that made him a renowned figure. Jiu Tang shu (The Old History of the
Tang), completed in 945 and mostly based on Tang written records, re-
counted that “everyone recognized his name, and even the lowly people
all recited his works” (tianxia zhiming, wuxian buxiao, jie jisong qiwen).
It was said that every time the royal courts of Silla (modern Korea) or
Japan sent ambassadors to Tang China, they would lavish their gold on
buying Zhang’s essays.16 Zhang did not specify the titles of his work
but described his writings as “quite humorous” (po huixie). Historians
of a later era, however, had a different take on his works. Xin Tang shu
(The New History of the Tang), completed in 1060, rendered his writing
“flashy” (fuyan), “derisive” (diqiao), and “salacious” (wuwei).17 Zhang
Zhuo himself never declared his purpose of writing Merrymaking, nor
have any of his contemporaries’ commentaries on Merrymaking survived
to this day. The popularity of his “humorous” writing nevertheless denotes
a demand for such literature during his times. Zhang Zhuo was known
for his two other works, Chaoye qianzai (Records of the Miscellaneous),18
and Longjin fengsui pan (Collection of Essential Judgments).19 The former
is a collection of stories and anecdotes; the latter is an anthology of legal
cases and verdicts. Records of the Miscellaneous might be characterized as
“humorous” work, but neither work was close to “flashy.” Most likely, the
widely recited work referred to in The Old History of the Tang is Zhang
Zhuo’s delicious narrative of a sexual adventure, the Merrymaking.
The story of Merrymaking is set in the Jishi Mountains in present-day
Gansu Province in China. The first-person male narrator is a government
official traveling through a remote area to take up a position at Heyuan,
located in modern Jishishan County. He meets a young woman washing
clothes by a stream and asks if she knows where he can rest. Reluctantly,
she agrees to lead the official to the residence of Lady Cui of Boling. The
16
See “Zhang Jian zhuan,” in Jiu Tang shu, ed. Liu Xu (887–946) et al. (repr., Beijing:
Zhonghua shuju, 1975), juan 149. Zhang Jian was a grandson of Zhang Zhuo.
17
See “Zhang Jian zhuan,” in Xin Tang shu, ed. Ouyang Xiu (1007–73) and Song Qi
(998–1061) et al. (repr., Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1975), juan 161.
18
See Zhao Shouyan, ed., Chaoye qianzai (Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1979).
19
See Tian Tao and Guo Chengwei, eds., Longjin fengsui pan jiaozhu (Beijing:
Zhongguo Zhengfa daxue chubanshe, 1996).
212 Ping Yao

Cui of Boling, of course, was an eminent clan of the Tang dynasty, much
sought after by examination graduates for marital ties.
Hearing zither music being played inside the house, the official is eager
to meet Lady Cui, whose given name is Shiniang (Tenth Daughter). He
composes two poems to comfort his own heart and asks Lady Cui’s maid
Guixin to deliver another two to her that express his desire to meet her.
His request goes unanswered. Late in the night, he remains melancholic
and sleepless. He sends a long letter to Lady Cui, seeking another op-
portunity to present a poem to persuade her to enjoy the present. Upon
reading his poems and fine letter, Lady Cui is persuaded and agrees to meet
him. After exchanging information about their prestigious lineages, the
two become increasingly attracted to each other. Soon, another woman,
Lady Cui’s sister-in-law Wusao (Fifth Sister-in-Law), joins the conversa-
tion. Recognizing the feelings between the two, Wusao promptly steers
the conversation in a tantalizing, if not lustful, direction. The hosts and
the guest entertain themselves with drinking games, chess, musical instru-
ments, songs, and dancing accompanied by music performed by the house
orchestra. In between these activities, delicacies are served, all displayed
on exquisite bowls and plates made of fine jade, gold, and silver. The key
to this exciting encounter, however, is the composition of poems on the
various objects and foods around them. All the poems allude to either
sexual acts or private parts; the insinuations become increasingly obscene
as Lady Cui and the official become more engrossed in each other. The
two eventually retire to Lady Cui’s bedchamber and spend a long and
passionate night together.
The authorship of “Great Bliss” has long been questioned because
no trace of the work can be found in any author’s personal collection or
elsewhere in Tang records. Most scholars now agree that it is indeed the
work of Bai Xingjian, the younger brother of the renowned poet Bai Juyi
(772–846).20 Bai Xingjian passed the literary examination in 805, more
than a century after Zhang Zhuo received the same jinshi degree. By this
time, the examination graduates had long established their dominance in
court politics. Bai Xingjian excelled in both his official career and his literary
reputation: he died in 826 as the director of a bureaucratic office and the
author of an eleven-volume collected works.21 Among Bai Xingjian’s writ-
ings, “Li Wa zhuan” (“The Tale of Li Wa”) is the best known because of
its eloquent depiction and dramatic storyline of a scholar-beauty romance.
It is often cited as a classic of Tang chuanqi.22
20
For detailed discussions of the authorship, see Umekawa, “Tiandi yinyang,” 255–57; Fu
Junlian, “Tiandi yinyang jiaohuan dale fu chutan,” 78. For a detailed study of Bai Xingjian’s
life, see Huang Dahong, “Bai Xingjian xingnian shiji jiqi shiwen zuonian kao,” Wenxue
yichan, no. 4 (2003): 40–49.
21
See Liu Xu, Jiu Tang shu, juan 166.
22
For a study of “Li Wa zhuan,” see Glen Dudbridge, The Tale of Li Wa: Study and Critical
Edition of a Chinese Story from the Ninth Century (London: Ithaca, 1983); S. C. Kevin Tsai,
 Historicizing Great Bliss 213

In writing “Great Bliss,” Bai Xingjian appears to have intended it to be

a work about sexual pleasure. He stated in the introduction that he aspired
“to provide amusement to the reader of the present time” (yingxiao yu yishi)
by depicting various sexual encounters.23 In contrast to Merrymaking, which
was written in prose, “Great Bliss” is a poetic essay consisting of more than
240 lines.24 It depicts fourteen settings of sexual intercourse: the wedding
night; husband and wife on a moonlit night in a storied pavilion; husband
and wife by the library windows; husband and wife during the spring, sum-
mer, autumn, and winter; married couples in their later years; husband and
concubine in daylight; emperor and consorts; single men’s and travelers’
sexual encounters; lewd men’s sexual affairs; men with their maids; ugly
women’s sexual experiences; Buddhist nuns’ affairs with Chinese and Indian
monks; gay sex; and sexual relations among peasants and country people.25
Compared to those in Merrymaking, the depictions of various types
of sexual acts in “Great Bliss” are much more detailed and explicit. This
is probably the main reason modern scholars questioned the authenticity
of the text and its authorship. For them, it seemed unthinkable that Bai
Xingjian, a Confucian literatus and high-ranking official who should have
been the guardian of social morality, would have written such a sordid text.
These scholars, however, might be judging a Tang case using a conventional
viewpoint that only developed in later periods. Scholars have pointed out
how writings about sex that had once been romantic and elegant during
the Qin through the Tang eras had changed to become more “vulgar”
during the Song and Ming dynasties.26 Even though much remains to be
researched about the perception of sexuality of the Tang elite, there ap-
pears to be a historical shift in the post-Tang era in elite attitudes toward
sexual behavior. No known erotica from the Song dynasty has survived, and
during the late Ming, a period that saw the rise of new forms of erotica,
the literati were very ambivalent about celebrating sexual desire.27 While
Ming erotic literature may have been produced by prominent members of
this literati, it was often published anonymously. The best-known example
of Chinese erotic literature, Jin Ping Mei (The Golden Lotus), for example,

“Ritual and Gender in the Tale of Li Wa,” Chinese Literature: Essays, Articles, Reviews, no.
26 (2004): 99–127.
23
Contemporary scholars who wrote about “Great Bliss” rarely discussed Bai’s intention
of writing this work, save for those who argue the piece was a work of fangzhongshu (Zhuo,
“Tangdai”; van Gulik, Sexual Life).
24
The existing version, consisting of 239 lines, is clearly incomplete. It abruptly ends in
the midst of a sex act between two peasants.
25
There is as yet no English translation of the text. In his Sexual Life, van Gulik provides
a detailed summary of the text (203–8) and loosely translates a key component of the text: a
long and graphic account of the sex acts of a newly married couple (204–5).
26
See Liu Shucheng, “Zhongguo gudai.”
27
See Martin W. Huang, Desire and Fictional Narrative in Late Imperial China (Cam-
bridge, MA: Harvard University Asia Center, 2001), 5–22.
214 Ping Yao

was authored by someone calling himself “Scoffing Scholar from Lanling”

(Lanling Xiaoxiao Sheng), clearly a pseudonym. Scholars have long disputed
the true identity of the author but have yet to reach a consensus. Such a
shift in the literary elite’s attitude toward sexual norms and expressions
was probably the main reason for some historians’ hesitation to accept Bai
Xingjian as the author of “Great Bliss.”
There are certain connections between Merrymaking and “Great Bliss”
and the Chinese tradition of fangzhongshu.28 Pre-Tang fangzhongshu writ-
ings certainly set the stage for the proliferation of Tang erotica; however, the
theme and purpose are fundamentally different from those of Merrymaking
and “Great Bliss.” Early writings of fangzhongshu, as van Gulik pointed out,
served a more didactic purpose, emphasizing sex techniques and their benefits
for health. Most of these texts, no matter how well written, were not intended
to entertain the reader.29 Merrymaking and “Great Bliss,” in contrast, focus
on “the marvelous delight” of sexual acts and were written to, as Bai Xingjian
stated, “provide amusement to the reader of the present time.”
Most importantly, Merrymaking and “Great Bliss” represent an erotic
discourse that bears unique characteristics of the Tang examination elite:
a sophisticated writing style and the exploration of the themes of pleasure,
aesthetics, love, and spiritual intuition.30 In the following two sections, the
role of the literate elite in the shaping of such discourse as well as Tang
perceptions of gender and sexuality will become clear.

Pleasure as Status: The New Elite

Culture and the Mode of Enjoyment
Imperial China’s widely acclaimed civil examination system, through which
imperial bureaucrats were selected, flourished in the Tang period. Early in
the dynasty, in order to weaken the political and social dominance of aristo-
cratic clans, the court adopted a civil service examination system to recruit
talents from across the empire to serve in government positions. Over the
28
The earliest extant texts specifically addressing fangzhongshu are mostly from the
Han dynasty (206 BCE–220 CE). The most important texts are undoubtedly the so-called
Mawangdui medical manuscripts (Mawangdui yishu), the fifteen medical texts discovered
at the Mawangdui Han tomb. Among them, “Ten Questions” (“Shiwen”), “Discourse
on the Culminant Way under Heaven” (“Tianxia zhidao tian”), and “Conjoining Yin and
Yang” (“He yinyang”) are explicit texts about sexual practices. The fangzhongshu tradition,
combining the ideas of both nurturing life and uniting yin and yang through intercourse,
continued to thrive throughout Chinese history. For more discussion on fangzhongshu in
Chinese history, see Paul Goldin, The Culture of Sex in Ancient China (Honolulu: University
of Hawai’i Press, 2002).
29
Van Gulik, Sexual Life, 202.
30
Recent Chinese scholarship on erotic culture has generally agreed that the Tang dy-
nasty was a turning point in the history of the arts of the bedchamber, marking the begin-
ning of an erotic literary culture. See Liu Lindao and Hu Hongxia, Zhongguo xingwenhua shi
(Shanghai: Dongfang chubanshe, 2007), 301.
 Historicizing Great Bliss 215

course of the dynasty, examination graduates took an increasingly influential

place in the power structure and public sphere of the empire. At the begin-
ning of the Tang dynasty, for example, the position of grand councilor was
mostly conferred on the founding generals and members of the great clans.
However, by Empress Wu’s reign, more than half of the councilors were
degree holders. During the last century of the dynasty, the majority of the
grand councilors were literary examination graduates: between Emperor
Xianzong’s reign (806–20) and Emperor Yizong’s reign (860–73), 104
out of 133 (78 percent) of grand councilors were jinshi degree holders.31
Granted, a majority of these civil service examination graduates came from
eminent families, so the examination system did not end their dominance
entirely, but many also rose from lower-ranking official families.
As the eminent Chinese historian Chen Yinke has pointed out, the ex-
amination graduates eagerly boasted of their indulgence in pleasure in an
effort to distinguish themselves from the old elite.32 One example may be
seen in their extravagant banquets with courtesans in the imperial capital
at Changan; these banquets often lasted for days and were accompanied by
music, dancing, poetry compositions, and crowds of spectators.33 In fact,
the indulgence in pleasure became part of the passage to the graduates’
new status. Before taking the civil service examinations, the candidates
often lived in the Chongren Ward of the capital, near the Pingkang Ward
(the renowned courtesan quarter) as well as the Bureau of Appointments,
where they would receive their official positions.34 The preparation for the
examination often lasted for about six months to a year. After passing the
examination, candidates would continue to live in Changan waiting for an
appointment. During their stay there, younger candidates often sought
entertainment with courtesans and held parties in the Pingkang Ward.
The candidates were also delighted to have their poems sung by courtesans
during banquets, a promising venue in which to showcase their literary
talent and to break into prominent literary circles.35 The close connection
with the pleasure quarter as well as the public display of enjoyment were
apparently widespread among the examination graduates, including those
31
For a detailed study of the Tang civil service examination and the increasing influence
of the new elite, see Wu Zonggu, Tangdai keju zhidu yanjiu (Shenyang: Liaoning daxue
chubanshe, 1992). Han Sheng’s article “Nan Bei chao Sui Tang shizu xiang chengshi de
qianxi yu shehui bianqian,” Lishi yanjiu, no. 4 (2003): 49–67, also traces the increasing
influence of the civil service examination graduates throughout the Tang dynasty.
32
Chen Yinke, Yuan Bai shijian zhenggao (Shanghai: Shanghai guji chubanshe, 1980), 52.
33
For a study of the Tang literate elite’s relations with courtesans and their public display
of pleasure, see Ping Yao, “The Status of Pleasure: Courtesan and Literati Connections in
T’ang China (618–907),” Journal of Women’s History 14, no. 2 (2002): 26–53; Linda Rui
Feng, “Unmasking Fengliu in Urban Chang’an: Rereading Beili zhi (Anecdotes from the
Northern Ward),” Chinese Literature: Essays, Articles, Reviews, no. 32 (2010): 1–21.
34
See Victor Xiong, Sui-Tang Chang’an: A Study in the Urban History of Medieval China
(Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2000), 109–13, 217–20.
35
Yao, “The Status of Pleasure,” 37–43.
216 Ping Yao

from the eminent clans. As Han Sheng has convincingly demonstrated,

even degree holders with prominent family names were more than willing
to identify themselves with the new examination culture than with their old
elite roots.36 It is within such a unique sociocultural milieu that Chinese
erotica found its receptive and fertile ground.
Tang erotica bears the unique characteristics of the examination culture.
The most distinctive sign of the examination culture’s influence in Merry-
making and “Great Bliss” is in their use of poetry. The literary examination,
the most prestigious component of the exam system, mainly tested the
candidates’ knowledge of and ability to write poetry.37 Appropriately, poetry
served as a very important feature of both texts. In Merrymaking, poems
comprise 30 percent of the total number of characters of the novelette, while
“Great Bliss” is entirely in verse. Another point worth noting is the texts’
intended readership: both seem to be targeted at a very literary audience.
In Merrymaking, for example, the wine game requires each player to use
verses from the Shijing (Book of Songs) to pass to the next round of the game.
The analogies and double meanings of the poems in the text also speak to
a highly sophisticated aesthetic sense. “Great Bliss,” though it claims to use
phrases from slang and popular usage, is nevertheless scattered with allusions
to the Chinese literary tradition.38
Both texts also set out to reveal certain modes of enjoyment (amplifying
sexual pleasure by aesthetic sensibility, refined manners, and spiritual intu-
ition), all the while portraying the literate elite as the embodiment of such
sophisticated enjoyment.39 In Merrymaking, the official’s self-introduction
as well as his first encounter with Lady Cui are carried out through extensive
and courteous poem exchanges. In addition, music, chess, and fine foods
are featured prominently throughout the story. During the drinking games
between the official and his hosts, they composed poems to eulogize various
objects around the mansion.
Poetry is similarly employed in Merrymaking to describe the protagonists’
sexual desire and anticipated excitement. The first item to be eulogized in
the wine-poetry game is a zither. The poem is composed by Wusao, who
conveys Lady Cui’s intention of “detaining the guest” (liuke). The tremolo
produced by the instrument, Wusao notes, signifies Lady Cui’s aroused

36
Han Sheng, “Nan Bei chao,” 58–60.
37
See Fu Xuancong, Tangdai keju yu wenxue (Xi’an: Shanxi renmin chubanshe, 2007),
esp. chaps. 7 and 14.
38
For example, in describing the growing happiness of the young couple, Bai wrote:
“This is the four seasons’ joy of a couple, just like forming the path of appreciating peaches
and plums” (see n. 2 for source). In the Chinese literary tradition, forming a path of peaches
and plums is an allusion to “attractiveness”; that is, peaches and plums are so attractive that
the world beats a path to them.
39
My discussion of modes of enjoyment is very much inspired by Keith McMahon’s
analysis of the qing aesthetic at the end of the imperial era. See Keith McMahon, Polygamy
and Sublime Passion: Sexuality in China on the Verge of Modernity (Honolulu: University of
Hawai’i Press, 2009), 143–49.
 Historicizing Great Bliss 217

desire and her hesitance. Lady Cui then presents a poem about a flute, thus
expressing her willingness to be kissed. Soon the three play a game called
double-six on a gaming board, with the official chanting a poem:
Her eyes, like stars initially revolving;
Her eyebrows, like a moon about to vanish.
You must first press her legs in back;
Only then can you seize her waist in front.
Lady Cui responds:
To seize my waist, be clever and quick;
To press my legs, be passionate and merry.
If you can only make me close my slit-like eyes,
I’ll automatically have lost the game.40
The two then trade lines portraying eyes, dates, pears, and apricots to ex-
press the intensity of their feelings and their desire for physical intimacy.41
Then a poem exchange about a knife and sheath starts the description
of sex organs and sexual acts. The official laments the fact that “the sharp
pointed object remains in its wrapping,” while Lady Cui urges: “Press down
with your wrapping, often and slowly; gradually quicken your turnings as
you polish.”42 Lady Cui then uses a poem about a copper flatiron to ask, “Is
anyone willing to rub it back to life?,” while the official praises brush and
ink-stone: “Press down on the hairs, letting the writing brush point wherever
it pleases.”43 By now, Lady Cui and the official have all but revealed to each
other their intent to enjoy unrestrained sexual intercourse. With that, the
two quickly turn the exploration toward each other’s tastes, the task craftily
accomplished by composing poems about a bow. Lady Cui demands:
I have always liked a bow to be drawn to the full,
And when you draw it back, I lower my head.
Having heard that you shoot arrows very quickly,
I request that you fire your bow three to five times.44
The official promises:
My shrunken trunk cannot make the penetration,
But when I raise my head, it becomes tremendously large.

40
Levy, China’s First Novelette, 30 (I have slightly modified the translation).
41
As Levy pointed out (ibid., 61n65), the Chinese character for date is zao, which had
the same sound in Chinese as the word zao, meaning “early.” The word “date” thus has a
double entendre, signifying Lady Cui’s quick willingness to become the protagonist’s lover.
The word for “pear” (li) has the same sound as the word li, meaning “to separate.” See also
ibid., 61n66. The word for “apricot” (xing) has the same sound as the word xing, meaning
“fortune” or “fortunate.”
42
Ibid., 35.
43
Ibid., 40–41.
44
Ibid., 45 (I have slightly modified the translation).
218 Ping Yao

If I allow it to enter below the navel,

I can fire a hundred arrows time and again.
In its use of forthright exchanges embedded in elegantly composed verses,
Merrymaking presents the reader with a foreplay that can be enjoyed only
by two highly learned partners, and their ability to double-play the words
and the images seems only to embolden their sexual quest.
As with Merrymaking, “Great Bliss” also pursues a sense of physical plea-
sure. It stresses manner, however, and sensual and linguistic aesthetics, and
it places more emphasis on the emotional responses between the two parties
engaged in sex. The highlights of “Great Bliss” are, in fact, its depictions of
a husband and wife’s excitement on their wedding night and their intimate
feelings toward each other as they grow more physically content. The text
lavishly portrays the couple’s experience of various sensations along with
the beauty of seasonal change.
In the spring, the weather becomes pleasant and warm,
The inner chambers are adorned with brocaded doors and red drapes.
Orioles sing in the forest in pairs,
Swallows unite with each other under their wings.
In the morning, silk curtains are raised,
In the evening, fragrant incense is added into censers.
She pretends to be shy, reluctant, and somewhat annoyed,
Once in bed, they kiss each other passionately,
Red lips in his mouth, making zeze noise.
They stroke among the flowers, he holds her delicate hand tenderly.45
In this passage, Bai Xingjian paired physical pleasure with the voluptuous-
ness of color, texture, sound, scent, and feelings: the color red celebrates the
couple’s new marital life; the brocade and silk make clear their social status and
luxurious taste; fragrant incenses and flowers intensify the sensual aura. The
bride is shy yet playful, and the groom is appreciatively tender. More subtly,
Bai Xingjian ingeniously employed literary analogies of orioles singing and
swallows flying to connote the warmth and joy of the spring season as well as
to enhance the sound and visual effect of the young couple’s lovemaking:46
During summer, in an inner chamber of an expansive house,
With red curtains and green net,
Sunlight casts shadows on the windows,
Reflecting flowery patterns on the bamboo mat.
Lush water-willows stir the green reflection in the lily pond,

45
Unless noted otherwise, all passages of “Great Bliss” are translated by the author (see
n. 2 for full source).
46
In Chinese literary tradition, the oriole and the swallow have been consistently used
as representations of the spring season, joyful news, and love. More specifically, the oriole’s
singing is often used to imply a young woman’s voice and laughter, and swallows flying to-
gether are a symbol of love and affection.
 Historicizing Great Bliss 219

Graceful sunflowers next to the pavilion are illuminated on the painted

screen.
All these make them abundantly content.
The wife is more charming and graceful than ever,
They move their bodies lovingly, freely, without restraint.
Lightly made-up, thinly clothed, they greet everything with smiles
and delight.
They swing a silk fan together, and tease each other with plucked
flower branches.
Their steps leave the stone stairs with a fragrant scent;
Once they enter a banquet, the music begins.
Bathing together, they resemble the mandarin ducks in a pond.
Sharing a daybed, they are just like Luan and phoenix in the
embroidered room.47
This passage highlights varied sensations: the colors (both red and
green), textures (from bamboo mat to thin fabric and silk), light, and
scents are woven into artistic imageries (flowery patterns, reflections on
the lily pond and on the painted screen), and music and banquet enter the
scene, all aiding the couple’s contentment and their passion for each other.
The extended sensations and feelings are probably intended to convey the
couple’s expanded repertoire of sexual pleasure. Moreover, while oriole and
swallow in the spring season foretell the new couple’s joy and happiness,
by summer the husband and wife are compared to mandarin ducks and to
the mythical Luan and phoenix, inseparable from each other:
In the season of autumn, the cool mats are still extended, red quilts
newly perfumed. . . .48
In the pond of the courtyard, lotus leaves are luxuriant, flowers
resplendent.
Putting away the round fans, the sun is fading,
Lower the fragrant net, clouds flowing.
String instruments play harmonious music,
Silk robes are adorned with mandarin duck patterns.
Bright moonlight shines through drapes,
An aromatic whiff of pleasant mist diffuses.
At this moment, the husband cherishes, the wife adores,
Their affection exceeds that of Fengqian and Wenjun.
This section on autumn adds the couple’s sense of oneness to their
mode of enjoyment. Along with the resplendence of color, texture, sound,
and scent are the harmonious music and mutual affection that exceeds the
legendary Fengqian and Wenjun. Fengqian was the courtesy name of Xun

47
The luan is a male phoenix. In the Chinese literary tradition, “Luan and phoenix”
(luanfeng) indicates a husband and wife.
48
There are seven unreadable characters.
220 Ping Yao

Can of the Three Kingdoms period. He was said to have been very hand-
some and loving. When his wife had a fever during a cold winter, he froze
himself in the courtyard so he could then press his body onto his wife’s to
cool her off. Wenjun (Zhuo Wenjun) was a beautiful young widow who,
according to one of the most widely known stories of romance in Chinese
history, was seduced by and eloped with the talented poet Sima Xiangru.
The images of Fengqian and Wenjun again reflect the importance of mutual
affection to the Tang literati and their ideals of masculinity and femininity,
a point that I will return to below.
During the winter season, the rooms and chambers are warmed up
and fully perfumed,
Husband and wife enjoy their time together.
Inside a kingfisher feather–adorned net, under the mandarin duck–
patterned blanket,
Lying on coral-decorated pillows, glass-shining mirror on the bedside.
Spread the woolen blanket, the snow retreats,
Extend the embroidered quilts, the flowers are humbled.
Sandalwood sculptures are used for incense burning,
A carved red rhinoceros-horn comb embellishes her hair.
Phoenix streamers flow around the flowery skirt,
Snowy combs are ornamented by green color.
Sharing fine wine, their faces brighten with a youthful glow,
With a red warmer on their knees, they do not feel the winter’s chill.
Her face displays a half smile, her eyebrows melancholy.
Tender mouth opens charmingly, gleaming eyes lower flirtatiously.
Such a moment of sentimental feeling humbles the pairing swallows.
Under the heavy bedding they feel so inseparable, resenting the
crowing cock.
The depiction of the sex scene in winter again stresses that physical
pleasure might be amplified by one’s ability to appreciate various sensa-
tions. Added into the scene are a shining mirror and fine wine, signifying
unrestrained, fervent passion and sexual power. It is worth noting that in
depicting the heightened enjoyment of this young couple, Bai Xingjian
might have intended to affirm the idea that sexual intercourse is as pleasur-
able within the marital relationship as it is in other relations (for example,
the relation between a literatus and a courtesan), if not more.
Here, a comparison with a masterpiece in Indian literature, the Kamasutra,
is useful. The elaborate descriptions of color, sound, scent, image, food,
and natural elements, as well as the stress on the development of intimate
feelings in “Great Bliss,” are all reminiscent of the content of this greatest
erotic work of India. As scholars have pointed out, the production of the
Kamasutra was also related to a literate elite role in presenting and inter-
preting pleasure. In the Kamasutra, sexual intercourse is about aesthetics,
 Historicizing Great Bliss 221

manners, and feelings, and it is part of what constitutes a learned man.49 It

is not surprising that the attributed author of the Kamasutra, Mallanaga
V ātsy āyana, was reputed to have been a philosopher of the Gupta Empire
(ca. 320–550 CE), during which the literati enjoyed social prestige and
political power. We have no idea if Bai Xingjian had any knowledge of this
work. Such a similarity clearly demands a fuller study than is possible here,
but it nonetheless suggests that perception, presentation, and reinforcement
of pleasure were very much related to the historical moment and location.
“Great Bliss” and the Kamasutra, as well as the norms of sexual pleasure
presented in these two erotica, are very much the product of a society with
a flourishing literati, abundant material wealth, and a metropolitan culture.
Merrymaking and “Great Bliss” also reflect another new dimension of
Tang perception of sexual pleasure: spiritual intuition. Though neither
could be considered a religious text, both embodied a sexual culture
that developed against the backdrop of the intermingling of Daoism and
Buddhism, and especially the popularity of Vajrayana Buddhism, within
which sexuality was considered as a source of spiritual energy.50 Scholars
have pointed out that the Tang literati were very familiar with the Daoist
arts of the bedchamber and that there was a direct link between Tang
erotic texts and Daoist writings on sexuality.51 Donald Harper, for example,
has specifically investigated the syntactical lineage between a number of

49
Ludo Rocher, for example, suggests that the Kamasutra reflected the norms and per-
ception of sexual pleasure of the nagarakas, that is, of refined and educated gentlemen. See
Rocher, “The Kāmasūtra: V ātsyāyana’s Attitude toward Dharma and Dharmaś  āstra,” Journal
of the American Oriental Society 105, no. 3 (1985): 521–29. Kumkum Roy points out that
the Kamasutra reflects the expression of power of upper-class men (especially brahmanas
well versed in Sanskrit) through the legitimation of a particular form of desire. See Roy,
“Unraveling the Kamasutra,” in A Question of Silence? The Sexual Economies of Modern
India, ed. Mary E. John and Janaki Nair (New York: Zed Books, 1998), 52–76. This
argument was reaffirmed in James McConnachie’s fascinating book on the history of the
Kamasutra. See McConnachie, The Book of Love: The Story of the Kamasutra (New York:
Metropolitan Books, 2007), 14.
50
Vajrayana Buddhism, also known as Tantric Buddhism, or Mizong, was introduced to
China in the seventh century CE and became extremely popular by the ninth century. While
most schools of Mahayana Buddhism advocate refraining from human desires, sexuality was
central to the teachings of Tantric Buddhism. On the introduction of Vajrayana Buddhism
to China, see Zhuo Yiliang, “Tantrism in China” (PhD diss., Harvard University, 1944). It
is worth noting that quite a few scholars believed that Tantric Buddhism was influenced by
Daoism. In his “Indian and Chinese Sexual Mysticism” (app. 1 in Sexual Life), for example,
van Gulik argues that “it may be stated that ancient Chinese Taoist sexual mysticism, having
stimulated the rise of Vajrayana in India, was thereafter re-imported into China in its Indian-
ized version at two different times at least” (256). Shi Haijun, “Daojiao yu mizong—Jianji
Yindu wenhua he wenxue zhong de yanyu zhuyi,” Waiguo wenxue yanjiu, no. 6 (2003):
5–11, also suggests Daoist influence on Indian Tantrism.
51
Xia Guangxing, for example, speculates that Merrymaking and “Great Bliss” were in-
fluenced by Tantric ideas and practices of sexual power. See Xia, Mizong chuanchi yu Tangdai
shehui (Shanghai: Shanghai renmin chubanshe, 2008), 292. A master’s thesis by Tang Shang
222 Ping Yao

Daoist texts and “Great Bliss.”52 In her study of “Great Bliss,” Sumiyo
Umekawa also finds borrowings of Daoist sexological terms by Tang
literati.53 I would venture further to surmise that Bai Xingjian named his
poetic essay using the Tantric term for “great bliss” to lend an aura of
sanctity to his appreciation of sexual pleasure and sexual power and to
indicate the significance of spiritual intuition to sexual life. This Tantric
connection is further substantiated by the fact that the text was discov-
ered among the Dunhuang manuscripts, the most concentrated extant
collection of Tantric texts.54

Love Bearing: Perception of Sexuality and Gender Relations

In Merrymaking and “Great Bliss,” affection between man and woman,
especially loving feelings between a husband and a wife, are celebrated and
cherished by both parties. Such affection is clearly tied to sexual pleasure, so
that sexual pleasure is central to the union between men and women. Accord-
ingly, both texts reveal some Tang ideas about femininity and masculinity.
In Merrymaking, qing (feeling, affection, love) weaves the text together.
The author employs Wusao not only to enable but also to observe the affec-
tion between the official and Lady Cui. In guiding them toward a passionate
sexual encounter, Wusao declares that the two are indeed madly drawn to
each other: Lady Cui’s facial expression is transformed to “love-bearing”
(guanqing), and the two constantly exchange “love-communicating”
(qing xiang jiaotong) glances. The official constantly expresses his desire to

attributes the open attitude toward sexuality in the Tang dynasty to both Daoism and Tantric
Buddhism. See Tang, “Tangdai kaifang zhi xingguannian yanjiu” (MA thesis, Xibei Uni-
versity, China, 2006). In fact, some scholars argue that the idea of sexual intercourse as a
means to reaching great bliss was introduced to China much earlier. See Yukei Matsunaga,
“A History of Tantric Buddhism in India with Reference to Chinese Translations,” in Bud-
dhist Thought and Asian Civilization: Essays in Honor of Herbert V. Guenther on His Sixtieth
Birthday, ed. Leslie S. Kawamura and Keith Scott (Emeryville, CA: Dharma, 1977), 167–81.
See also Lü Jianfu, Zhongguo mijao shi (Beijing: Zhongguo shehui kexue chubanshe, 1995).
The Lankavatara Sutra (Lengqiejing), translated by the monk Bodhiruci (whose Chinese
name was Putiliuzhi) in the Northern Wei dynasty (386–534), for example, states that
“intercourse between a man and a woman produces everything, and this is called Nirvana.”
See the Lankavatara Sutra, in Dazangjing, ed. Takakusu Junjirō, Watanabe Kaigyoku, and
Ono Gemyo (Tokyo: Taishō Issaikyō Kankō kai, 1934), 32:157c.
52
Donald Harper, “The Sexual Arts of Ancient China as Described in a Manuscript of the
Second Century B.C.,” Harvard Journal of Asiastic Studies 47, no. 2 (1987): 580.
53
Umekawa, “Tiandi yinyang,” 259–68.
54
These texts have been collected in Lin Shitian and Shen Guomei, eds., Dunhuang
Mizong wenxian jicheng (Beijing: Zhonghua quanguo tushuguan wenxian weisu fuzhi
zhongxin, 2000); and Lin and Shen, eds., Dunhuang Mizong wenxian jicheng xubian
(Beijing: Zhongghua quanguo tushuguan wenxian weisu fuzhi zhongxin, 2000). For a
comprehensive study of Tantric texts from Dunhuang, see Li Xiaorong, Dunhuang Mijiao
wenxian lungao (Beijing: Renmin wenxue chubanshe, 2003).
 Historicizing Great Bliss 223

liuqing (leave his affection) with Lady Cui and highly praises her caiqing
(talent and passion). Wusao, acting as go-between, sets the rules for a wine
game that required the two to recite classic poems with a qing theme.
The qing feelings between the two were described as so urgent and filled
with passion (qingji yimi) that they move forward irrepressibly (qing lai
bu zijin).55 However, it is noteworthy that even though Merrymaking
celebrates love and affection, the author intended the story to be about
a sexual encounter and to rouse the reader’s imagination of the sexual
pleasure. It is in this sense that Merrymaking should be considered erotica
rather than romance literature.
“Great Bliss” extols sexual love in marriage, depicting sex acts of the
husband and wife as the most satisfying aspect of marriage. In fact, the
majority of the text is devoted to the sexual pleasure enjoyed by the young
couple and their transformation from newlyweds to genuine oneness.
After describing their passionate lovemaking, Bai Xingjian comments that
“the pleasure of this moment is truly unforgettable, until the end of their
lives when they will be jointly buried” (dang cishi zhi kexi, shi tongxue
zhi nanwang).56 Furthermore, unlike most erotica that worships youth
and beauty, “Great Bliss” includes a section on the sexual life of an old
couple and comments that in old age they “still seek to please the heart”
(shang you zongkuai yu xin) and that they “have finally realized that the
most marvelous thing in the world is truly skill in the bedchamber” (xin
fangzhong zhi zhijing, shi renjian zhi haomiao). Indeed, in “Great Bliss”
the description of sex between a husband and a wife totals 1,285 char-
acters, more than 40 percent of the text.57 This remarkable testament to
the power of marital love stands in strong contrast to texts predating the
Tang, in which the health benefits of or instructional techniques for sex
are stressed, while marital sexual harmony was marginalized. Similarly, it
is certainly distinct from the erotica of the Song dynasty and later eras, in
which sexual pleasure was primarily equated with physical gratification but

55
For an analysis of the theme of qing in Tang literature, see Ping Yao, “The Fascination
with Qing in Mid-Tang China (763–835): A Study of the Writings of Bo Juyi (772–846),”
Chinese Historians, no. 10 (2000): 93–121.
56
In Chinese tradition, joint burial took place in a two-room tomb shared by a married
couple. When a married person died, the family buried him or her in one of the rooms of
a selected tomb. The other room was prepared for the spouse. When the second spouse
died, the tomb would be reopened, and this spouse would be buried in the second room.
Although examples of this belief of afterlife reunion occurred as early as the Neolithic period
in China, the Tang dynasty witnessed a dramatic increase in the number of joint burials. See
Zhao Chao, “You muzhi kan Tangdai de hunyin zhuangkuang,” Zhonghua wenshi luncong,
no. 1 (1987): 192–208.
57
The total number of characters in the text is 2,972. It is worth noting that the text is
incomplete, but considering Bai has already described various relationships and they are all
extremely brief when compared to the descriptions of husband-wife relations, we can still
comfortably claim that percentage as accurate.
224 Ping Yao

with little of the sense of “seeking to please the heart” that Bai Xingjian
and Zhang Zhuo so elegantly convey in their Tang era erotica.58
The representations of femininity and masculinity in Merrymaking and
“Great Bliss” are largely rooted in earlier Chinese literary tradition, but they
embraced new elements that are indicative of Tang examination culture:
sexual appeal and learned sophistication. In describing the physical beauty
of Lady Cui and Wusao in Merrymaking and the young wife in “Great
Bliss,” both Zhang Zhuo and Bai Xingjian used conventional analogies
that appeared in the Book of Songs, the earliest anthology of Chinese poems
dated between the tenth and the sixth century BCE, and Yutai xin yong
(New Songs from a Jade Terrace), an anthology of poems from the third
century BCE to the sixth century CE.59 For example, in describing female
beauty, poems from both anthologies stressed alluring eyes, white teeth,
red lips, and jade-like fingers; poems in New Songs from a Jade Terrace also
noted the fragrance of a woman’s body and dress and her slender waist.
Such analogies are commonplace in both Merrymaking and “Great Bliss.”
What make Lady Cui, Wusao, and the young wife different from earlier
beauties, however, is the fact that they are not only much more learned but
also highly aware of themselves as sexual beings and that their intellect is
the impetus in their pursuit and realization of sexual pleasure.
In Merrymaking, Lady Cui and Wusao interact with the official through
a poetic exchange that readily borrows terms and allusions from the Chi-
nese classics. “Great Bliss” depicts a scene of the young wife reading a
book with her husband. Such pairing of literary ability with physical beauty
can also be found in Tang chuanqi literature. In “The Tale of Yingying”
(“Yingying zhuan”) by Yuan Zhen (779–831), for example, Yingying not
only is extraordinarily beautiful in appearance but also “excels in writing”
(shan shu wen). She would “often ponder over verses” (wangwang chenyin
zhangju).60 In “The Tale of Nanke Governor” (“Nanke taishou zhuan”)
by Li Gongzuo (ca. 770–850), the protagonist, Chunyu Fen, meets a
group of women who are “bewitchingly pretty” (fengtai yaoli) and “speak
eloquently” (yanci qiaojue).61 Another example is Shen Yazhi’s (781–832)
“Xing Feng,” in which Beauty, the female protagonist, is described as
“walking in a composed and leisurely manner, holding books and reciting

58
The changing attitude toward sexual pleasure was also observed by Beverly Bossler
in her study of official literati relations with courtesans. See Bossler, “Shifting Identities:
Courtesans and Concubines in Song China,” Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 62, no. 1
(2002): 5–37.
59
See Yutai xin yong jianzhu, compiled by Xu Ling (507–83) and annotated by Wu Zhaoyi
(fl. 1672) (repr., Beijing: Zhonghua shuju, 1999). It has been translated into English: see
Anne Birrell, ed. and trans., The New Songs from a Jade Terrace: An Anthology of Early
Chinese Love Poetry (Boston: Allen & Unwin, 1982).
60
Li Fang (925–96), comp., Taiping guangji, 4 vols. (repr., Shanghai: Shanghai guji
chubanshe, 1994), 4:556.
61
Ibid., 4:483.
 Historicizing Great Bliss 225

poems” (huanbu congrong, zhijuan qie yin), and identifies herself as a poetry
lover (qie hao shi).62 The depiction of bookish beauty as a trait of idealized
femininity is very much in parallel with the rise of the literate elite. As the
men themselves were refined in the high culture of poetry, they conjectured
partners in bed who were equally sophisticated.
In the depictions of both Merrymaking and “Great Bliss,” these learned
women are not only sensual objects being gazed on or acted on but also
sexual beings who enjoy the pleasure of sexual union as much as men do.
As the poetry game enhanced foreplay in Merrymaking, in “Great Bliss” the
young wife read a text called The Scripture of the Plain Woman (du Sunü zhi
jing) with her husband, ensuring a happy sex life between the two. Earlier
Chinese literature, such as the poems in New Songs from a Jade Terrace, does
depict women’s sexual encounters, but the descriptions are mostly indirect
and metaphorical, and the women are projected as enchanting yet elusive.63
A poem written by Mei Cheng (died 149 BCE), for example, laments that
“the beauty is in the clouds; the path the sky is forever blocked” (meiren
zai yunduan, tianlu ge wuqi).64 In Merrymaking and “Great Bliss,” Lady
Cui, Wusao, and the young wife all appear to be efficacious agents of sexual
enjoyment, Wusao as a facilitator, Lady Cui as a seductress, and the young
wife as an ardent participant.
In terms of ideal manhood, while both Merrymaking and “Great Bliss”
boast of the protagonists’ skills in bed, the most important qualities that
make them great sexual partners or lovers are their literate status, that is, their
literary knowledge, learned etiquette, and sophisticated tastes, as well as their
masterfulness in communicating their feelings and desires. In Merrymaking,
Lady Cui at first perceives the official to be an average suitor and nearly burns
his poem without reading it. It is only when he promptly composes a clever
and exquisite poem titled “Burning Poem” (“Ranshi”) and sings it to her
that she falls for him. In “Great Bliss,” Bai Xingjian characterizes the sex
encounters of travelers as halfhearted, of monks as hypocrisy, of peasants as
lacking physical finesse, and even of an emperor as causing discord among
consorts, all serving to contrast the fine traits of the literate husband and
the extraordinary pleasures he enjoys. Such a new development reflected
the new elite’s effort to define norms of sexuality and gender.

62
Ibid., 3:125.
63
One such example is “Sleek, Sleek Girl,” by Xiao Yan (464–549), which has often
been interpreted as describing a lovemaking scene: “Sleek, sleek girl in a golden house, her
heart like a jade pool lotus. With what to repay her lover’s favor? A promise to roam with
him in the Buddhist paradise.” See Birrell, The New Songs, 285 (I have slightly modified
the translation). The poem seems to use several insinuations to describe a sexual affair. The
“jade pool lotus” (yuchilian) was often used in Chinese literary works as an analogy for
the female sex organ, while “roaming in Buddhist paradise” (you fantian) might imply a
combined great bliss: sexual union and Buddhist heavens. See Fu Junlian, “Tiandi yinyang
jiaohuan dale fu chutan,” 80.
64
Xu Ling, Yutai xin yong, 20.
226 Ping Yao

Merrymaking and “Great Bliss” also purport that men consider women
as equal partners in bed. This is especially the case with Merrymaking, in
which Lady Cui aggressively flirts and negotiates with the official. The young
couple in “Great Bliss” also prove to be in such a partnership, reading a sex
manual and experiencing various excitements together. Furthermore, while
some sexual relations in “Great Bliss” might be between persons of two
different social statuses (such as a master and his concubine or an emperor
with his consort), their acts nevertheless reflected pleasure sought not only
by master or emperor but also by concubines and consorts. Inferior status
did not prevent these women from pursuing sexual satisfaction in their
relationships. Women in both texts are never passive or reserved, nor are
they unpredictable. In Merrymaking, Lady Cui’s seductive intent is more
than transparent, while in “Great Bliss,” Bai Xingjian depicts a scene in
which the young wife initiates an episode of lovemaking: she disrobes and
expresses desire with her “graceful and infatuating” (wanzhuan) sensation
and her “subdued and seductive” (dimi) eyes. In this sense, we might argue
that vampirism, sexual warfare, and the concept of the femme fatale are not
central to Tang erotica; instead, the authors chose to celebrate the seeking
of pleasure by both men and women.65

From this brief discussion of the texts Merrymaking and “Great Bliss”
unique aspects about Tang erotica can be learned. First, both emphasized
propriety, etiquette, erudition, and refinement. Second, both texts reflected
an earnest confidence in the understanding of pleasure, and both came
to the conclusion that great bliss could be amplified by enjoying nature,
music, scent, color, words, and mutual affection. “Great Bliss” went even
further, advocating that sexual satisfaction was central to physical, intel-
lectual, spiritual, emotional, social, and cultural fulfillment in human life.
More importantly, Merrymaking and “Great Bliss” both reflected the
Tang literate elite’s interpretation of sexuality and gender relations. Mas-
culinity as well as femininity were defined by literary knowledge, learned
etiquette, sophisticated tastes, and spiritual intuition. Such qualities
were also described as being indispensable to achieving sexual bliss. To
this end, both texts portrayed men and women as equal partners in their
pursuit of pleasure and emphasized affection between men and women.
While Merrymaking and “Great Bliss” did not necessarily represent the
entirety of the new elite’s views or possibly even the preponderant norms,
nevertheless they shed new light on the dimensions of Tang ideas about

65
For a discussion of sexual vampirism and the battle of the sexes, see Goldin, “The
Cultural and Religious Background,” 285–307. In addition, some scholars argue that Merry-
making and, later, Bai Xingjian’s “Tale of Li Wa” reflected social and sexual anxieties of the
Tang literati. Encounters with courtesans are no different from encounters with the goddess:
mesmerizing, dangerous, and fleeting, with full intention of trapping the male literati. See,
for example, S. C. Kevin Tsai, “Ritual and Gender in the ‘Tale of Li Wa,’” Chinese Literature:
Essays, Articles, Reviews 26 (2004): 99–127.
 Historicizing Great Bliss 227

gender relations and sexual behaviors. The development of these norms

was undoubtedly influenced by the examination culture, with the new
elite’s rise in power and their involvement in Daoist and Buddhist pur-
suits also contributing. With unprecedented material wealth and vibrant
cosmopolitanism, it is no wonder that the Tang dynasty witnessed the
first wave of erotica in Chinese history.

Glossary
228 Ping Yao
Historicizing Great Bliss 229