LOTUS FEET: HISTORY, BANDAGING PROCESS, CONSEQUENCES - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The practice of the lotus feet or foot binding was a Chinese tradition that began to take place in the 10th century during the period of the Five Dynasties and the Ten Kingdoms, and it was increasing in popularity during the later times. It consisted of tying the feet of women from their childhood with the aim of changing their shape, until they reached one that was considered more aesthetic.

The fact that a woman had "lotus feet" was traditionally considered a symbol of status and beauty among all classes of Chinese society, although this practice was carried out mainly among social elites. However, the process was very painful and severely limited the mobility of the women, to the point that the result could be considered a disability.

X-ray of bandaged feet

Foot binding was practiced until the beginning of the 20th century, although it was repeatedly banned. Historians believe that in the 19th century about half of Chinese women had undergone this practice, and almost 100% of those of the highest class had experienced it. However, the percentage also varied depending on the part of the country.

In the second half of the 19th century, some Chinese reformers tried to confront the practice, but it did not begin to decline until the early 20th century, mainly due to the bad publicity it had acquired. Already in the 19th century, there are only a handful of very old women who suffered this practice as children.

History

Woman with Bandaged Feet, 1870

It is not known exactly how the practice of foot binding came about in the first place. However, there are some theories that can help shed light on the matter. One of the best known is the one that has to do with the Emperor of South Tang, Li Yu. This leader built a statue of a golden lotus decorated with precious stones and pearls, almost two meters high.

Li Yu asked his concubine Yao Niang to tie her feet in the shape of a crescent moon, using white silk. Afterwards, she had to dance on the lotus using only the tips of her fingers. It is said that Yao Niang's dance was so beautiful that other women began to imitate her, especially the upper class.

Even so, the first written references to the practice of binding the feet to give them a concrete form appeared at the beginning of the 12th century, in the form of a series of poems that seemed to speak on this subject. Later, the scholar Zhang Bangji wrote directly about the process in 1148, describing it as "a recent invention."

From the beginning of this practice, the first criticisms emerged. For example, the scholar Che Ruoshui mentioned in his writings that he did not understand why it was necessary for little girls, as young as four or five years old, to have to undergo the immense pain that the process entailed in order for their feet to have a certain shape.

The lotus feet in later centuries

Chinese shoe for lotus foot, 18th century. Musées du château des Rohan, Musée Louise Weiss, Saverne, France. Vassil

The practice of foot binding continued to spread throughout China during the following centuries, to the point that several Western explorers spoke of it or mentioned it in their writings.

For example, the Italian missionary Odorico de Pordenone or the famous Marco Polo were some of those who realized this tradition. However, it appears that it was not yet widespread.

Between the fourteenth and seventeenth centuries, foot binding began to spread much more rapidly, mainly due to the unconditional support of the Mongol invaders. During this time, the ideal size for a woman's foot was approximately four inches long.

Furthermore, throughout these centuries the practice ceased to be exclusive to the nobility and higher classes, and began to be carried out even among commoners. Mind you, it still looked like a status mark.

Attempted ban

Some 17th century rulers tried to ban what they saw as abuse of women and girls. For example, the leader Hong Taiji, creator of the Qing dynasty, created an edict condemning the practice in 1636; and the same thing happened twice more in the following decades, in 1638 and 1664. However, very few inhabitants of the country heeded the new law, and the attempt ended in failure.

The lotus feet reached their maximum popularity in the 19th century, when almost half of the country's female population had suffered from this practice. Having small feet was a requirement for a woman to be able to marry someone from the upper class, and many poor families sold their daughters in an attempt to improve their economic position.

Both the women who had suffered this practice and their families showed great pride related to this fact. This occurred even despite the negative consequences of having lotus feet, the most important of which was the difficulty of walking without the help of specially designed shoes.

Abandonment of practice

Opposition to bandages to create lotus feet had continued to grow in the 18th and 19th centuries, although it was not yet widespread. However, more and more politicians, writers, activists and members of the upper classes began to disagree with what they considered an attack on fundamental human rights.

For example, in 1883 Kang Youwei founded the Anti - Foot Bandage Society near Canton to combat the custom. Many more of these associations appeared during the time, and it is estimated that some of them had more than 300,000 members.

However, the arguments given by these movements to stop bandaging were above all practical, considering that preventing women from moving correctly weakened the country; and that abolishing the custom would greatly improve China's labor force.

Many more movements emerged over the next few years to try to stop the practice; but it wasn't until 1912 that the ROC government formally banned bandaging. By the middle of the 20th century, the custom had almost completely died out, although even today some elderly women have lotus feet.

Bandaging process

Lotus foot status

The traditional bandaging process had to begin before the arches of the girls' feet had fully developed, so it usually began between 4 and 9 years of age. Because the process was very painful, it usually started in the winter months, so that the cold would numb the limbs.

In the first place, the girl's feet were soaked in a preparation of herbs and animal blood. The idea was that this previous process would help soften the skin and muscles, and in this way make bandaging easier. Afterwards, her toenails were cut as short as possible, as the fingers had to press against the sole and stay there.

Once this was done, the fingers curled under the soles, pressing down hard enough to break and squeeze them there. Subsequently, while holding their position, pressure was applied to the leg and the arch of the foot was forcibly broken. Finally, the bandages were placed, which could measure up to three meters long and had been previously soaked in the same herbal preparation.

The bandage was applied in such a way that the girl could not move her toes at all or stretch her foot, so that the limbs would adapt to their new position. To prevent the fabric from loosening, the ends were sewn together. The placement of the bandage also caused the foot to be permanently bent into an arc.

Foot care

Until the process was complete, the girl's feet had to be subjected to all kinds of care, so the bandages had to be removed regularly. Each time bandages were removed, limbs were washed, fingernails were trimmed, and fingers were checked for abnormal wounds.

In addition to that, the fingers were generally also massaged to make them more flexible, and the sole of the foot was struck to prevent the bones from joining together and making them bend more easily.

Immediately after carrying out this process, the fingers were placed under the soles again and the bandages were tied again, with new cloth and tightening each time. The ritual was repeated as often as possible: at least once a day for the richest, and several times a week for the lower class.

Normally, it was the girl's own family that was in charge of carrying out this process. Most of the time it was done by one of the grandmothers, as it was considered that the mother might feel too much compassion for her daughter and not squeeze enough. Sometimes, however, the task was delegated to a professional foot bandage.

Consequences

X-ray of lotus foot and normal

Completing the process to obtain lotus feet could take years, and was often not fully completed until the young woman was past adolescence. However, after a relatively short time, the feet became numb and stopped hurting, although if you tried to return them to their natural form, it was necessary to suffer the same pain again.

Still, even though the pain was only part of the early stages of the process, the lotus foot binding had many negative consequences that ultimately led to its disappearance. Here we will see some of the most important.

Health problems

The most common problems related to lotus feet had to do with the physical health of affected women. The most common of all was infection, which appeared very easily due to the lack of circulation in the extremities caused by the bandage.

Any small wound produced on the feet, even those that appeared if the nails grew longer than normal and dug into the flesh, could become seriously infected and were very difficult to heal. This usually caused the skin to rot, which made the feet smell very bad and could create serious complications.

Sometimes, if the infection reached the bones, this could cause the fingers to fall off; but many families saw it as a good thing, since in this way the bandages could be tightened even more. In fact, some people deliberately caused infections.

On the other hand, during the first years of the bandage, many of the bones in the feet were permanently broken. Even once they had recovered, they still had a tendency to break down again, especially during childhood and adolescence.

Finally, due to lack of balance and difficulties in walking properly, women with lotus feet were more likely to fall, break bones such as the hips, and suffer from all kinds of muscle atrophies.

Social consequences

But not all problems suffered due to lotus feet had to do with health. Although submitting to this practice made women considered more attractive by the society of the time, the truth is that it also greatly limited their lifestyle and made them dependent on other people.

For example, not being able to support their weight on the front of their feet, women who had been subjected to this practice had to walk in a very forced posture, in which they had to continually strain to maintain balance. Some, in fact, could not walk at all without assistance.

In the most severe cases, affected women were unable even to get up from a seat on their own; and they could hardly move without feeling terrible pain.

conclusion

The tradition of the lotus feet lasted hundreds of years in China, but luckily it was eliminated with the arrival of the 20th century and the egalitarian ideas that it brought with it. Today, even within the country's own society, most people regard this tradition as something horrible, and one that cannot be allowed in a civilized territory.