Category: Dao Duanxiu

Duan-xiu 斷袖 (the "Cut Sleeve")

4/4/2020

lit. the broken sleeve / euphemism for gay (men)

上嘗與晝寢。嘗晝寢，偏藉上袖，上欲起，賢未覺，不欲動賢，乃斷袖而起。其恩愛至此." -- 出自《漢書·佞幸傳》

Dong, Xian and Emperor Ai of Han often shared the same bed. One day, the pair were taking a nap together as usual. When Emperor Ai tried to get up, he realized Xian’s body was resting on the loose sleeve of his hanfu robe. To prevent awakening Xian, Emperor Ai cut off his sleeve. Such shows how intense their love is.
--
Translated excerpt taken from "Ning Xing Zhuan (The Biographies of Ning-Xing)" in “Han Shu (Book of Western Han)” by Ban, Gu (班固)

The chapter titled Ning Xing Zhuan covers the intimate relationship between various (Western) Han dynasty emperors and their male lovers/companions. The original segment centering around Dong, Xian is a lengthy detailed account of the romance between Emperor Ai and Xian, from the time they met when Emperor Ai was still the crown prince, to the emperor’s death and the subsequent suicide of Xian caused by the political turmoil at the end of the Western Han dynasty in early 1st century AD.
- The original text contains many interesting details. For instance, Dong, Xian became the highest-ranking official at a rapid speed and young age, as a result of the emperor’s affection. One time during a revel, the intoxicated emperor jokingly offered his kingship to Xian, which caused quite a stir among the officials attending the gathering.
In other literary texts, the four-character idiom, “duan-xiu fen-tao (斷袖分桃)” or “the cut sleeve and the divided peach”, was used to imply homosexuality. (See Fen-tao 分桃)

Ning Xing Zhuan《漢書·佞幸傳》

9/6/2019

"Ning Xing Zhuan (the Biographies of the Fawning Courtiers)" is a chapter in the Book of Han, composed by Ban, Gu

Ning-xing (佞幸) is a male-identified courtier whom gained his high status in court by winning the favours of the emperor with flattery or affection. The term “ning-xing” is derogatory.

In the text, while the author, Ban, Gu (班固) criticized the influences of the fawning courtiers on policy-making, he wasn’t intimidated by the homo-romantic intimacy between the men, as he wrote in the concluding paragraph: “the qualities of being gentle, affectionate, and flirtatious are not exclusive to women; men with such traits can also be viewed as beauties desired by other men (原文: 柔曼之傾意, 非獨女德, 蓋亦有男色焉)”.

The romance between Dong, Xian and Emperor Ai of Han is not the only homo-romantic story mentioned in the Book of Han, but it is the most explicit and detailed description.
“Ning-xing” is not a sexual orientation. It is not a synonym for a queer person.

Dao 道

9/6/2019

Dao (道), is a hanzi (漢字; Han Chinese character) that has different meanings depending on the context. Meanings of Dao (道) includes:

To speak, to tell, or to talk (when used as a verb)
- 說：常言道
Literal paths and passages, such as roads, waterways, and etc.
- 路：街道、河道
Metaphoric paths; in other words, the methods or process of achieving a goal
- 方向，途徑：志同道合、分道揚鑣
A philosophy relating to the law and order of the natural world and its occurrences, such as the central philosophy of Daoism (Taoism)
- 傳統思想流派與理念：天道、道家、道教
Skill sets that are often technical, artistic, and/or ritualistic, such as xiang-dao (香道; incense ceremony), cha-dao (茶道; tea ceremony)
- 技術或方法：香道、茶道、醫道
Narrow, linear marks and traces
- 線條：鉛筆道兒
A classifier in Chinese
- 用作量詞

Yi-zhu-xiang 一炷香

9/5/2019

lit. a stick of lit incense

pronounce as: yee joo sh'young

A unit used in historic China to measure & indicate the amount of passing time
A synonym for being “momentary”

Guo Yan Yun Yan 過眼雲烟

9/1/2019

Chinese idiom:
The clouds and smoke that have passed by

This standard four-character idiom is used to imply the ephemeral, temporary quality of worldly matters and past experiences, such as memories, feelings, as well as personal or collective history.

Bao-xiang flower 寳相花

6/12/2019

lit. buddha-like flower / treasure flower

pronounced as: bao sh'young flower

The baoxiang flower or "bao-xiang hua" is a type of fictional, hybrid floral design. Each individual design represents a fusion of plants and motifs originated from different cultures, including South Asia (India), Central Asia (Persia/Sogdia), the Mediterranean (Byzantium & Greece), and Chinese domestic arts.

The baoxiang flowers used in "Duan-Xiu" and Fen-Tao" are adapted from the Tang dynasty (618-907) murals in Cave no. 45 and no. 321 of Mogao Caves, Dunhuang. Particularly, Cave no. 45 dates back to the High Tang era (of Tang dynasty), a prime time of cultural and economic exchange in Asia.

Ephemera

6/9/2019

Things that only exists for a short time
Collectibles, especially written and printed materials that were initially designed to be temporarily useful or important, such as tickets, posters, and etc.

The word came from Greek: ephēmeros. Its singular form originally implies a plant that only lasts for one day, or an insect with a very short lifespan.

Tong-zhi 同志

6/8/2019

lit. comrade/queer

pronounced as: tone zhi
(to pronounce zhi, say “jay (j)” without the “ay” sound)

“Tong-zhi” (同志) might originate from the idiom: “zhi tong dao he” (志同道合), or literally, the ones who share the same aspiration and walk the same path.
In the 20th century, ”tong-zhi” became the Chinese equivalent of “comrade” under the influence of socialism/communism.
In the 80s, “tong-zhi” was appropriated (again) by the LGBT+ community from Hong Kong to address fellow queer folks. Today, tong-zhi has become a respectful and popular term to address LGBT+ folks or to self-identify.

Jia-jie 假借

12/21/2018

pronounced as: J'ya J'yeah

Jia-jie (假借) is one of the “liu shu” (lit. six scripts; 六书; pronunciation: lyou shoo) or the six Chinese hanzi character classifications. Jia-jie characters reflect how the Chinese language has evolved to adapt to socio-cultural changes over time.

Historically, when a new concept emerged and it couldn’t be expressed with the current vocabulary, an existing character would be assigned to represent this new idea. As a result, an individual hanzi character often have multiple distinctively different definitions.
Sometimes, the more recent meaning of a certain character can replace its original meaning completely; consequently, a brand new character would be created to represent the abandoned origin meaning.

Duan-xiu 斷袖 (the "Cut Sleeve")

lit. the broken sleeve / euphemism for gay (men)

Ning Xing Zhuan《漢書·佞幸傳》

Dao 道

Yi-zhu-xiang 一炷香

lit. a stick of lit incense

Guo Yan Yun Yan 過眼雲烟

Bao-xiang flower 寳相花

lit. buddha-like flower / treasure flower

Ephemera

Tong-zhi 同志

lit. comrade/queer

Jia-jie 假借

The Glossary

List of Terms

​​lit. the broken sleeve / euphemism for gay (men)

lit. a stick of lit incense

​lit. buddha-like flower / treasure flower

lit. comrade/queer

The Glossary

List of Terms

lit. the broken sleeve / euphemism for gay (men)

lit. buddha-like flower / treasure flower