robin r. wang KUNDAO : A LIVED BODY IN FEMALE DAOISM I. KUNDAO Defined Kundao in China today is a specific and popular way to describe a female Daoist chujiaren (one who has left family). From the Kundao practitioners in temples to the Kundao masters of mountains, this term captures a profound and complex modern Daoist practice. The word kundao is the combination of two important terms from the Book of Changes (Yijing ): kun and dao . Kun refers to Earth as the complement of qian (Heaven). It is the highest concept that denotes being female and all things representing femi- ninity in the Yijing. The xianqi liangmu (virtuous wife and good mother) has been a model for all Chinese women, especially in the Confucian tradition. However, there is another alternative way for women to live, which has its own history quietly passed down. It is the tradition of Kundao. These Kundao make a “leap of faith” through their com- mitment and passion to Daoism. It takes great courage and willpower for the Kundao to defy those well-defined social roles and to pursue her faith, freedom, and self-realization. Entering the temple and eschewing all preordained female functions creates a spiritual and physical space for female construction of their own existence and identity. This article will first focus on a particular Kundao text for female cultivation. Then, it will turn to an analysis of how the religious Daoist theory and practice illustrate the contemporary feminist conception of the lived body. Ultimately this article points toward a possible Daoist contribution to feminist theory and practice. It is worth men- tioning that there is a commonly made distinction between philo- sophical Daoism and religious Daoism. 1 Philosophical Daoism refers mainly to Lao–Zhuang thought in the texts of the Daodejing and Zhuangzi. These texts provide a primary conceptual foundation for all of Daoism. Yet religious Daoism focuses on the specific methods ROBIN R. WANG, Associate Professor, Department of Philosophy; Director of Asian and Pacific Studies, Loyola Marymount University. Specialties: Chinese philosophy, ethics, women and philosophy. E-mail: rwang@lmu.edu © 2009 Journal of Chinese Philosophy