Tu'er Shen, the Rabbit god

Tu'er Shen is the Rabbit God of Chinese mythology, but not to be confused with the Rabbit God of the moon Tu'er Ye. Tu'er Shen is the Rabbit God of homosexuality. Hu Tianbao was a soldier who was in love with a government official. He was caught spying on his love interest and was executed, but because he was spying out of love, he returns as a young rabbit and the village builds a shrine to him. Gay relationships were not uncommon in Imperial China. Emperors had male concubines along with their female concubines. Also, in a fashion similar to the older male/younger male relationships of Ancient Greece there was a system of male marriages in the Fujian province of China. These relationships were usually between an older male (older brother "qixiong") and a younger male (qidi). Li Yu (1610-1680), Chinese novelist writes "They do not skip the three cups of tea or the six wedding rituals- it is just like a proper marriage with a formal wedding." The qidi would live with the qixong and be treated as a son-in-law by the qixong's parents, and they may raise adoptive children together. The longevity of these marriages was about 20 years, until each male was married off to a woman in order to have children.

map showing the Fujian province

Scupham-Bilton, T. (2012, November 29). Cult of the Rabbit God [Web log post]. Retrieved July 30, 2016, from http://queerstoryfiles.blogspot.com/2012/11/cult-of-rabbit-god.html

Neill, J. (2008). The origins and role of same-sex relations in human societies. McFarland.