Page 123 - A Dictionary of Chinese Symbols BIG Book

A Dictionary of Chinese Symbols 116
There is much reference to fairy palaces on the moon. According to a legend
about the heavenly journey of the Emperor Xuan-zong (who ruled from 713 to 751), ‘the
Emperor could not stop thinking about the moon fairies, and how they danced flying in
the wind, with their sleeves and draperies fluttering. So he began to compose a tune to the
words “Cloud-garment and Feather-cloak”.’
Buddhist paradises knew nothing of such pleasures, nor did Buddhists ever imagine
anything like this happening on the moon. Perhaps it is precisely because of the
absence of Buddhist colouring that the Chinese fairy-stories are so full of erotic elements
and a subtle beauty. On the other hand, there is no disguising the fact that many
Chinese fairytales, both on the literary level and still more so on the popular level, are
very largely kitsch.

Fan

shan zi

Round fans and palm-leaf fans were well known in China in the first millennium BC.
The folding fan appears to have been invented in Korea, and does not appear in China till
the 10th century AD. It seems to have been first used by servants, as it could be so easily
folded up and laid aside. In early times, round fans were very frequently made from
birds’ feathers; later, paper or silk was used. Folding fans for men and women differed in
the number of sections; those for men had usually 16, 20 or at most 24 sections, while
women’s fans had never less than 30.

Three kinds of fan