Abstract
The fetus and fetal development were discussed in early imperial Chinese texts of
various genres, which often approached these matters in one or more of the
following terms: (1) the cosmic (human life begins and matures in the same way
as the rest of the universe, following the interplay of
yin
and
yang
); (2) the correlative (the fetus grows according to
the Five Phases, all things corresponding to them going through a cycle of
changes that give rise to and diminish one another); and (3) the Indic-Buddhist
(the fetus comes into being and suffers as a result of karma). These texts do
not always present the perspective of the expectant parents on pregnancy; the
perspective of the fetus on gestation in particular is prominent in the texts
bearing Indic-Buddhist influences. This paper argues that over time the
confluence of concepts and metaphors presented in these texts added up to an
extremely negative attitude widely held toward the fetus and childbirth. This
negativity in turn reinforced, and was reinforced by, the concepts and practices
of filial piety that emerged in the centuries following the collapse of the Han
dynasty, which were different from those that came before. It also profoundly
transformed and enhanced the mother-child bond at the expense of that of the
father and child. In particular, the salvational dimension of the mother-child
relationship, introduced by Buddhism, made possible a women-centered
interpretation of filial piety.