Visions of Happiness: Daoist Utopias and Grotto Paradises in Early and Medieval Chinese Tales (Essay‪)‬

Abstract This study traces the respective evolutions of two separate motifs--Daoist utopia and grotto heavens (dongtian)--in early and medieval Chinese literature, and discusses the significance of their convergence in the influential literary classic "Peach Blossom Spring" ("Taohuayuanji") by Tao Qian (aka Tao Yuanming, 365-427). "l-he purposes of this article are twofold: first, to enhance our understanding of the ideological and textual connections between "Peach Blossom Spring" and Confucianism and Daoism; second, to offer new insights into the unique characteristics of Chinese utopianism, where political vision and mythical imagination frequently were intertwined.