Sexual vampire
A sexual vampire practiced esoteric Daoist sexual techniques where one partner purportedly strengthened their own body by absorbing the other partner's and without emitting any of one's own. Practitioners believed that sexual vampirism could enable them to maintain eternal youth and become a Daoist . However, an unwitting victim repeatedly subjected to sexual vampirism would supposedly weaken and die.
Myths about Chinese gods and immortals recount sexual vampires who allegedly became transcendents. For instance, after having sexual intercourse with 1,200 young women, the legendary Yellow Emperor achieved spiritual transcendence and ascended into heaven.
In Chinese erotic literature and sex manuals, intercourse is often metaphorically referred to as a "battle" or "war" of the sexes. This metaphor emphasizes the idea of one partner "defeating" the "enemy" through a c=採戰. These texts are predominantly written for a male audience, guiding men to defeat their female enemy in a "sexual battle" by mastering Daoist ejaculation control. The goal is to excite the female partner until she reaches orgasm and sheds her essence, which the male then absorbs.
Two Chinese mythological creatures are comparable to sex vampires. A kills people to absorb their . A or shapeshifts into a beautiful woman who seduces men to absorb their . In both Chinese mythology and popular literature, the themes of vampires and "other monsters avid for sperm abound".
A Chinese sexual vampire is analogous to English terms like psychic vampire, energy vampire, succubus, or incubus. These mythical beings feed on human vital forces, similar to traditional vampires who purportedly feed on blood.
Theoretical background
The ancient Chinese belief in achieving immortality through predatory intercourse might appear outlandish to contemporary readers, but it is deeply rooted in traditional Chinese theories of. is considered the fundamental substance that animates all living beings and forms the basis of the universe. Within the human body, manifests through various aspects, including and, prevalent in women and men, respectively. At the moment of orgasm, people release a highly concentrated form of known as. In men, is equated with semen, while in women, it is associated with vaginal lubrication or menstrual fluid.and are part of the Three Treasures in traditional Chinese medicine, along with. In practices, these Three Treasures can be transmuted sequentially. Using the concept of, Daoist sexual techniques posited that by absorbing a partner's genital fluids without releasing one's own, one could increase one's store of at the expense of the partner, who could waste away and die if the technique was overused.
Chinese bedchamber manuals aimed to teach methods of inducing orgasms in sexual partners while preventing the leakage of one's vital liquids. In heterosexual intercourse, each partner would exchange their abundant aspect of with the other's, creating a healthy balance of and. However, in homosexual intercourse, partners would absorb the same aspect of they secreted, resulting in no net benefit to either.
The theory of vampiric intercourse involved "sucking in" a partner's secretions without emitting any, either by suppressing orgasm or through injaculation, to extend one's lifespan. Techniques such as coitus interruptus, coitus saxonicus, and coitus reservatus were employed to achieve this goal.
Paul R. Goldin, a professor of Chinese Thought at the University of Pennsylvania, explains that two fundamental aspects of Chinese culture made belief in sexual vampirism possible. First, early Chinese views on sin did not consider sex sinful. Unless legally or religiously forbidden, partners were free to engage in any sexual activities they desired. This laissez-faire attitude allowed the consumption of sexual partners for nutritive purposes to be seen as no different from consuming food or medicine. Second, the "materialistic cosmology" of Chinese culture viewed people as containers of that a knowledgeable person could manipulate and consume for their benefit.
Ultimately, sexual vampires, along with the underlying Chinese concepts of life force and sexual energy, are pseudoscientific. "Why should one speak of ‘sexual vampirism’, even though the topic is largely neglected by our technical texts? Is this silence not precisely what reveals the outright imaginary character of the nourishing transfer? Texts on sexual body techniques are thus being silent, where literary, fictional texts fill in the blank space with the figure of dangerous fox ghosts that seduce men in human female appearance".
Battle of the sexes
Some Daoist texts on sexual alchemy consider intercourse mainly as a means for attaining transcendence, and figuratively refer to it as a "battle". This metaphor is also common in Western literature, for example, Robin Baker's Sperm Wars. Distinctly Chinese is, however, the notion that the "victory" belongs to the sex partner who "succeeds in obtaining the other's vital essence thereby increasing one's supply of vital force".The arcane term, first recorded in the Song dynasty, describes the practice of sexual vampirism in which one partner tries to obtain energies at the loss of the other. This word combines, translatable as "pick, pluck, gather; cull, select, choose, adopt; extract, exploit; collect, cluster; bunch up, assemble"; and, "battle, combat; fight with weapons; clash of arms; war; struggle, contend for". The unabridged monolingual , which is lexicographically comparable to the Oxford English Dictionary, defines as, which in turn is defined as.
Various English translations of reflect its complexity:
- "plucking in combat"
- "gathering through battle"
- "plucking battle"
- "the battle of gathering"
- "reaping the rewards of battle"
- "battle of stealing essences"
- "battle of absorption"
The 2nd- or 3rd-century contains an early "sexual enemy" reference.
In engaging the enemy a man should regard her as so much tiles or stone and himself as gold or jade. When his is aroused, he should immediately withdraw from her territory. One should mount a woman as if riding a galloping horse with rotten reins or as if fearful of falling into a deep pit lined with knife blades. If you treasure your , your life will have no limit.
The translator Wile notes that this phrase is a military and sexual double entendre for "to resist the enemy" and "to have intercourse".
The 5th- or 6th-century text begins, "A superior general when he engages the enemy will first concentrate on drawing out his opponent, and as it were suck and inhale the enemy's strength. He will adopt a completely detached attitude, resembling a man who closes his eyes in utter indifference." This metaphorical extension from martial to erotic terminology is appropriate because Chinese martial arts and sexual alchemy share two common judo-like principles: begin by yielding to one's opponent to catch them off balance; conserve one's force while utilizing that of the opponent.
''Yufang zhiyao'' and ''Yufang mijue''
Two Han dynasty sex manuals, the and , offer insights into the complex and often sexist Chinese views of sexual vampirism. These texts are part of the broader category of. The, like most Daoist texts predominantly describes male sex vampires, while the uncommonly describes female ones. Both sexological classics, along with several others such as the above, were lost in China by the end of the Tang dynasty in 907, but fortunately, they were preserved in Japan as part of Tambo Yasunori's 984 Chinese medical chrestomathy Ishinpō, and those recovered textual fragments were reconstructed in the early 20th century.The emphasizes male sexual practices, and begins by quoting the mythical Chinese Methuselah Peng Zu,
The Yellow Emperor mounted 1,200 women and thus achieved immortality, whereas the ordinary man cuts down his life with just one. Is there not a great gap between knowledge and ignorance? Those who know the regret only having too few opportunities for mounting. It is not always necessary to have those who are beautiful, but simply those who are young, who have not yet borne children, and who are amply covered with flesh. If one can secure but seven or eight such women, it will be of great benefit.
There is no mystery to the of intercourse. It is simply to be free and unhurried and to value harmony above all. Fondle her and "seek to fill her mouth." Press deeply into her and move ever so slightly to induce her. When the woman feels the influence of there are subtle signs. Her ears become hot as if she had drunk good wine. Her breasts swell and fill the whole hand when held. She moves her neck repeatedly while her feet agitate. Becoming passionate and alluring she suddenly clasps the man's body. At this moment, draw back slightly and penetrate her shallowly. The will then gain at the expense of the.
Kristofer Schipper described this gap between knowledge and ignorance as "a mixed bag of tricks, some rather funny, but in general frankly morbid".
The presents a unique perspective by describing female sexual vampirism for longevity, particularly through the figure of the Queen Mother of the West, who supposedly had intercourse with numerous young boys and consumed their life force, thereby cultivating her sexual energy and becoming a transcendent and famed goddess. Jolan Chang interprets this "somewhat apocryphal" story to indicate that the Queen Mother had all the characteristics of a vampire and conformed with the cross-cultural trope of the femme fatale.
Nevertheless, other passages in this same text follow the tradition of male-centric sexual vampirism. The one directly preceding the Queen Mother passage is an excellent example.
To frequently change female partners brings increased benefit. More than ten partners in one night is especially good. If one constantly has intercourse with the same woman, her will become weak, and this is not only of no great benefit to the man, but will cause her to become thin and emaciated."
The Daoist canonical tradition represents the Queen Mother of the West as the goddess of immortality who resides on mythical Mount Kunlun, where she served the famous Peaches of Immortality to human and divine guests. In stark contrast, the sexually represents her as a woman who "attained eternal youth and transcendency through a combination of sexual techniques designed to suck the vitality from her male partners", which suggests that sexual vampirism will allow any woman who follows its instructions "to achieve transcendency at the cost of the ill-health of any man unfortunate enough to fall into her clutches."
It is not only that can be cultivated, but too. The Queen Mother of the West cultivated her and attained the. As soon as she had intercourse with a man he would immediately take sick, while her complexion would become radiant without the use of rouge or powder. She always ate curds and plucked the "five stringed lute" thereby harmonizing her heart, concentrating her mind, and was without any other desire. The Queen Mother had no husband but was fond of intercourse with young boys. Therefore, this cannot be an orthodox teaching; but can the Queen Mother be alone in this?
When having intercourse with men, you must calm the heart and still the mind. If the man is not yet fully aroused, you must wait for his