Images of the transformation of the "feminine" in the cultural code of China: nü dan and chan zu.

The subject of the study is Chinese traditional culture within the system of national "codes," while the object is the ritual practices of women's gender identity. The aim of the research is to identify the symbolic architecture of the cultural code in the socio-religious practices of gender image transformation using the example of Taoist teachings on "female alchemy" and the foot-binding tradition. The authors see the tasks of the study as: defining the "cultural code" in the system of traditional Chinese rituals and ceremonies, identifying symbols of gender differences in "female alchemy" and in the tradition of "golden lotuses," describing the sacred significance of the state of "xianei" in women; representations of gender and cultural identity in the foot-binding tradition; and the symbolic reconstruction of the ideal image of the "lotus woman." The authors sequentially reveal the content of the scientific discussion on key issues of the topic, explaining the symbolic significance of "female alchemy" as a Taoist ritual practice, they also justify the connection between the ritual of "decapitating the Red Dragon" and ancient archetypes of "Hero" and "Victim"; they consider the socio-cultural norm of foot-binding as a marker of gender identity, revealing the archetypical nature of "chan zu" in the image of the sacred rebirth of a girl and the symbolism of her "dying." The methodological basis of the research consists of the principles of semiotic analysis of cultural phenomena in the context of the Jungian concept of archetypes, which dictated the use of methods of cultural-analytical theory to identify unique cultural "codes" responsible for normative regulation, gender behavior ethics, adherence to accepted ideals and values. As a result of the research, the authors have produced new scientific positions and evidence that two practices of gender institutionalization – "nuy dan" and "chan zu" – simultaneously exist in Chinese traditional culture as types of ritual transformation of the female nature. The cultural interpretation of the foot-binding tradition as a practice of symbolic sacrifice during the initiation of a girl and preparation for her gender roles as "wife" and "mother" is new. The connection of the ritual complex of "female alchemy" with the "revivification" in the collective memory of ancient archetypes of the "Dragon," "Victim," "Hero," and the sacred symbolization of "blood" as the life energy of being has been substantiated in a new way. For the first time, through the method of amplification, an interpretation of the hidden psychodynamic processes of transformation of the symbolism of the female gender and "blood" has been conducted by referring to the practices of "dying," "punishment," and "guilt."

Chinese traditional culture, cultural code, archetypes, gender, identity, Taoism, xian, female alchemy, foot bandaging, Chinese Dragon