At left is a typical depiction of Penglai 蓬萊, the mysterious mountainous island gathering place of the immortals off of the coast of Shandong Peninsula. Today, there is a resort town named Penglai near the place where the island supposedly existed, and it was recently in the news owing to #claims of miraculous sightings.#

Does the shape of this island remind you of anything? Here's a hint in the form of language trivia. This island is called Hôrai in Japanese. About two generations ago in Japan, the word "hôrai" was often used as a slang term for the female genitalia. That usage was no random accident, nor is the image at left. The Daoist immortals had access to the fundamental mysteries of the universe, and it is hardly surprising, therefore, that Penglai would often be represented as the entrance to the "womb" of the world. (And recall the famous 1866 painting by Gustave Courbet, L'Origine du Monde [The origin of the world] as a European example of the same general way of thinking. Warning: blatant sexual nudity--don't click the link if you can't deal with such things.)

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