Bai Mudan (白牡丹; literally White Peony), also romanized as Pai Mu-tan, is a character from Chinese mythology. She is described as the most beautiful

courtesan Courtesan, in modern usage, is a euphemism for a "kept" mistress (lover), mistress or prostitute, particularly one with wealthy, powerful, or influential clients. The term historically referred to a courtier, a person who attended the Royal cour ...

in the city of

Luoyang Luoyang is a city located in the confluence area of Luo River (Henan), Luo River and Yellow River in the west of Henan province. Governed as a prefecture-level city, it borders the provincial capital of Zhengzhou to the east, Pingdingshan to the ...

and a reincarnation of the Peony fairy.

Legends

One of White Peony's legends comes from the novel ''Journey to the East''. It is said that one day, the immortal

Lü Dongbin Lü Dongbin (796 CE – 1016 CE) is a legendary Chinese scholar and poet said to have lived during the Tang Dynasty. Whether he actually lived the two hundred and twenty years cannot be determined. Elevated to the status of an immortal in the C ...

took a walk in

spotted White Peony, and was attracted to her beauty. Lü Dongbin then transformed himself into a handsome scholar and slept with her many times. However, in accordance with Taoist alchemy, he never ejaculated, in order to preserve his Yang essence. Unfortunately, Lu's immortal colleague

Iron-Crutch Li Li Tieguai ( Mandarin: ; lit. "Iron Crutch Li") is a Chinese mythological figure and one of the Eight Immortals in the Taoist pantheon. He is sometimes described as irascible and ill-tempered, but also benevolent to the poor, sick and the needy, ...

and

He Xiangu He Xiangu, birth name He Qiong, is a Chinese mythology, Chinese mythological figure and one of the Eight Immortals in the Taoism, Taoist pantheon. She is often seen as the only female among the Eight Immortals (though the sex of Lan Caihe, another ...

taught Mudan how to make him ejaculate by tickling his groin. Finally, White Peony successfully made Lü Dongbin ejaculate and absorbed his Yang essence. Later she cultivated herself and became immortal as well. Feijianji, another novel from the Ming Dynasty had a slightly different version of this legend. According to Feijianji, Bai Mudan was a common girl (not a courtesan) who was seduced by Lü Dongbin. Later she became very weak since Lu practiced "cai yin bu yang" on her. Meaning he absorbed her yin (female) essence, without losing his own yang (male) essence. When her mother consulted with Buddhist Monk Huanglong (Yellow Dragon), he taught her how to make Lü Dongbin ejaculate and thus restore her yin essence. This event enraged Lü Dongbin, he tried to decapitate Huanglong using his flying sword but failed. In the end Lu admitted his mistakes and acknowledged Huanglong as his teacher. In another story White Peony was ordered by the minister

Su Shi Su Shi (; 8 January 1037 – 24 August 1101), courtesy name Zizhan (), art name Dongpo (), was a Chinese calligrapher, essayist, gastronomer, pharmacologist, poet, politician, and travel writer during the Song dynasty. A major personality of ...

(Su Dongpo), to tempt his friend, monk Fo Yin. Some legends described Bai Mudan as a haughty courtesan who like to humiliate her clients. She even asked the greedy merchant Chen Hua to kiss her buttocks, licked her anus and farted into his mouth, an allusion for Chen Hua's constant flattery. The Chinese idiom for flattery is duo tun peng pi 掇臀捧屁 (hug the butt and praise the fart)

As goddess

Bai Mudan was deified as a goddess who tempts men or more specifically an ascetic due to her reputation as a seducer.

In popular culture

* White Peony appeared in classic novels such as Journey to the East (東遊記), Ba Xian Dedao (八仙得道), Fei Jian Ji, and Han Xiangzi Quanzhuan-The Story of Han Xiangzi: The Alchemical Adventures of a Daoist Immortal (韓湘子全傳). * She is also a protagonist in the opera ''Lü Dongbin san xi Bai Mudan'' (Lü Dongbin three trick on White Peony). However, in some opera versions White Peony is depicted as an apothecary's daughter instead of courtesan. * Movies have been based on the opera. * White Peony appeared in many television series such as ''Dong You Ji'' (portrayed by

Phyllis Quek Phyllis Quek (; born 23 August 1972) is a Malaysian model, actress, and singer. She was prominently a full-time Mediacorp artist from 1995 to 2001, and was ranked by local media as the 'Fourth Ah Jie' for being the fourth most prominent actre ...

), ''Eight Avatar'' (portrayed by

Sonija Kwok Sonija Kwok Sin-nei (, born 22 July 1974) is a Hong Kong actress who worked with TVB from 1999 to 2015. Since 2015, she has been managed by GAIA Entertainment. Early life Kwok was born in Hong Kong and is of mixed three quarters Cantonese an ...

), ''Baxian Guohai'' (ATV-1985) portrayed by

Ban Ban Betty Lai Siu-man (born 23 June 1953), also known by her stage name Ban Ban and previously as Bun Bun, is a retired Hong Kong actress and singer. Background Lai was born in British Hong Kong, Hong Kong in 23 June 1953. she is of Meixian Distric ...

, and ''Ghost Catcher Legend of Beauties'' (portrayed by

Liu Yihan / ( or ) is an East Asian surname. pinyin: in Mandarin Chinese, in Cantonese. It is the family name of the Han dynasty emperors. The character originally meant 'kill', but is now used only as a surname. It is listed 252nd in the classic text ...

). She also appeared in the 1971 movie ''Eight Immortals'', portrayed by

Chang Chi-Yu Chang may refer to: People Surname * Chang (surname), the romanization of several separate Chinese surnames * Chang or Jang (Korean name), romanizations of the Korean surname Given name * Chang Bunker () (1811–1874), one of the original ...

References

External links

Encyclopedia of Chinese Gods and Goddesses
p. 6
Unruly Gods: Divinity and Society in China
A Summary of Bai Mudan (White Peony) misadventure with Lü Dongbin story
Wu Yuantai. Dongyouji (Journey to the East), chapter 27-28

Peter Lovrik & Wang-Ngai Siu. Chinese Opera: Images and Stories
a synopsis for Chinese "Lü Dongbin san xi Bai Mudan" (Lü Dongbin three trick on White Peony)
Anning Jing. The Water God's Temple of the Guangsheng Monastery
{{Prostitution in China Chinese goddesses Chinese courtesans