Page 261 - A Dictionary of Chinese Symbols BIG Book
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A Dictionary of Chinese Symbols 254
North/South
nan-bei
The people of North China are said to be quiet and level-headed, unlike the Cantonese in
the South, who are turbulent, revolutionary and less reliable. But no one seems to have
come up with a plausible reason why this should be so.
The Old Man of the North Pole with snake and tortoise
Ancient Chinese cosmology recognised two antipodes – the ‘God of the Northern
Dipper’ and the ‘God of the Southern Dipper’ ( longevity).
‘South Wind’ (nan feng) is a term for ‘homosexuality’, since it is phonetically
identical with nan-feng = ‘male custom’ (i.e. sodomy).
