Yin, Yang and the Eroticism of Wu Wei
Everyone’s talking about how that Yin Yang scene between Wu Suo Wei and Chi Cheng wasn’t just unfeasibly hot but shows exactly how erotic meaningful, enthusiastic consent looks and feels.
I agree; but that’s not all. Let’s talk about the concept of Taoism being invoked here. For the first time I thought this looks like a deeper meaning is being communicated and my brain hasn’t even caught up with all of it.
According to Taoist philosophy we all have Yin and Yang in our individual essence but roughly tend to exhibit one more than the other. Yin is what makes us want to receive sexual energy from another person and Yang is what drives us to initiate sex with our partner, so this balance lines up well with the idea of Shou and Gong; opposite yet complimentary forces existing separately but when they come together in balance with nature, indicate a state of harmony. This scene is more powerful when you know the coming storm that will disrupt this harmonious calm.
But it also suddenly struck me how the symbolism in that scene is also loudly invoking the two historic visions of ideal maleness in China, Wen ….. and wait for it - Wu.
Together they represent the unsubtle, militaristic man of action and the cultured and cultivated man of learning and thought. When Wei Wei keep pondering if Wang Shuo was onto the reason for his name change, I wondered if that’s the reason Wei is chosen by the writer Chai Jidan as the new name for Wei Wei.
This ideal, associated with the Wen (literary/civil) and Wu (martial/military) dichotomy, emphasizes the complementary nature of these two aspects of desirable Chinese masculinity. It suggests that a truly ideal man should possess both scholarly refinement and martial ability. When harmony is achieved this is the state of Wu Wei.
Now I notice that Cheng-Wei’s business seems to be called WuWei, which in a business sense is not just reflective of the best of them together, but also related to the Taoist principle of effortless action, emphasising alignment with the natural flow of life and the universe, rather than forcing outcomes.
Anyhoo, after the devastation of Ep 18, it’s uplifting to think about the way that the process of how these ideal male states meld together in a romantic relationship is the basis of all the great Chinese Danmei we inevitably love:
Nirvana In Fire
Killer And Healer
Til Death Tear Us Apart
Addicted
The Untamed
Still trying to form coherent thoughts on these connections; please forgive me but Revenged Love Ep 18 has truly friend my brain. Will come back to it after an oxytocin bath sometime soon.
