Editing Peach (section)

=== China ===
[[File:桃と月季花（長春花）に鶴図-Cranes, Peach Tree, and Chinese Roses MET DP277568.jpg|thumb|Cranes, Peach Tree, and Chinese Roses - hanging scroll, artist [[Shen Quan]]]]
Peach blossoms are highly prized in Chinese culture. The ancient Chinese believed the peach to possess more vitality than any other tree because their blossoms appear before leaves sprout. When early rulers of China visited their territories, they were preceded by sorcerers armed with peach rods to protect them from spectral evils. On New Year's Eve, local magistrates would cut peach wood branches and place them over their doors to protect against evil influences.{{sfn|Doré|Kennelly|1914|pp=504–505}} Peach wood was also used for the earliest known [[door god]]s during the [[Han dynasty|Han]]. Another author writes:

{{Blockquote|The Chinese also considered peach wood (''t'ao-fu'')({{lang-zh|c=桃符|p=Táofú
}})
 protective against evil spirits, who held the peach in awe. In ancient China, peach-wood bows were used to shoot arrows in every direction in an effort to dispel evil. Peach-wood slips or carved pits served as amulets to protect a person's life, safety, and health.{{sfn|Simoons|1991|p=218}}}}

Peachwood seals or figurines guarded gates and doors, and, as one Han account recites, "the buildings in the capital are made tranquil and pure; everywhere a good state of affairs prevails".{{sfn|Simoons|1991|p=218}} Writes the author, further:

{{Blockquote|Another aid in fighting evil spirits were peach-wood wands. The Li-chi (Han period) reported that the emperor went to the funeral of a minister escorted by a sorcerer carrying a peachwood wand to keep bad influences away. Since that time, peachwood wands have remained an important means of exorcism in China.{{sfn|Simoons|1991|p=218}}}}

Similarly, peach trees would often be planted near the front door of a house to bring good fortune.{{sfn|Thacker|1985|p=57}}

Peach kernels, tao ren ({{lang-zh|c=桃仁|p=Táorén}}), are a common ingredient used in [[traditional Chinese medicine]] to dispel blood stasis and unblock bowels.{{sfn|Bensky|Gamble|Kaptchuk|1992|pp=278–279}}

In an orchard of flowering peach trees, [[Liu Bei]], [[Guan Yu]], and [[Zhang Fei]] took [[Oath of the Peach Garden|an oath of brotherhood]] in the opening chapter of the classic Chinese novel ''[[Romance of the Three Kingdoms]]''. Another peach orchard, in "[[The Peach Blossom Spring]]" by poet [[Tao Yuanming]], is the setting of the favourite Chinese fable and a metaphor for utopias. A peach tree growing on a precipice was where the Taoist master [[Zhang Daoling]] tested his disciples.{{sfn|Eskildsen|1998|p=26}}

The deity [[Shòu Xīng]] ({{lang-zh|s=寿星}}), a god of longevity, is usually depicted with a very large forehead and holding a staff in his left hand and a large peach in his right hand due its associations with a long life.{{sfn|Valder|1999|pp=110–111}} A long-standing traditional birthday food for seniors is a symbolic [[longevity peach]] (shòutáo bao - 寿桃包), a type of lotus seed bun shaped like a peach, frequent in Taiwan and Cantonese culture.{{sfn|Liu|2009|p=148}}{{sfn|Gong|2005|p=174}}

The term fēntáo ({{lang-zh|c=分桃}}), which is variously translated as "[[Homosexuality in China#Terminology|half-eaten peach]]", "divided peach", or "sharing a peach", was first used by [[Han Fei]], a [[Legalism (Chinese philosophy)|Legalist philosopher]], in his work ''Han Feizi''. From this story it became a byword for homosexuality.{{sfn|Kang|2009|pp=22, 103}}{{sfn|Hinsch|1990|pp=20, 73, 89}} The book records the incident when courtier [[Mizi Xia]] bit into an especially delicious peach and gave the remainder to his lover, [[Duke Ling of Wei]], as a gift so that he could taste it, as well.{{sfn|Hinsch|1990|p=20}}