Along with the famed peach blossom that attracts romance luck, a lesser known plant that’s as effective goes about it’s business fairly quietly without much fanfare.
That is the peony flower and goes by the mandarin name mu dan hua (牡丹花).
Such is the apex stature of the flowering plant for it’s beauty that it is widely considered as the Queen of all flowers in China. It’s even a plant that represents the third month of the lunar calendar, and the spring season.
Being a species with a variety of colors, it signifies youth, romance and even lust.
But among all it’s beautiful colors, the pinkish red flower is most revered for it’s ability to incite passion and desire.
It’s no coincidence that the legendary concubine beauty that is Yang Gui Fei (杨玉环) is likened to a peony flower. Stories of her also depict her using the luscious display of mountain peony in her room to keep the emperor fixated on her.
Even the white peony is often used as a herb supplement for those wanting to improve their fertility.
In Chinese culture, parents were known to display peony flower paintings in the living room for it’s mystical powers in bringing eligible suitors for their daughter’s hand in marriage.
While the more prominent stories of the use of peonies to attract love concerns women attracting love. Men can also benefit from it in love and romance as well.
When paired with mandarin ducks, it means a good healthy marriage.
The peony plant is one of those things that has dual symbolism like the fox and owl.
From a cultural perspective, this bold flower is also highly regarded as a symbol of prosperity, honor and rank, and often depicted in auspicious paintings.
When painted with a rooster, it means scholastic achievements and prosperity amidst a simple life.
It also carries deep connotations with prosperity when depicted with fishes, crabapples or egret. With crabapples and magnolias in particular, it is a combination known as yu tang fu gui (玉堂富贵) which means a house of jade and wealth, signifying honor and prosperity.
When pictured in a vase accompanied by bamboo, it represents peace and prosperity.
Paired with the lotus, it represents glory, wealth and power.
Depicted with peaches, it means wealth, recognition and longevity.
A crane surrounded by peonies signify prestigious wealth with high official rank.
When the phoenix is illustrated with the flower, it doubles down on the celestial bird’s fame and honor.
With either the peacock or lion, or with both of them, it has connotations with nobility and social status.
Coupled with cats, it symbolizes prosperity and honor at an elderly age. When butterflies are added to this duo, it means perfection.
With just the butterfly, it indicates conjugal fidelity.
If the Chinese unicorn is illustrated with peony, it carries the meaning of children that would go n to become great success in adulthood.
A powerful symbolic group that is often depicted in artwork to represent divine longevity consist of the tree peony, peach tree, bamboo, lingzhi, and narcissus. This is a play on the phrase xian zhi shou (仙祝寿) which translates to blessings of longevity from the deities.
There’s also a folklore about the peony’s run-in with Empress Wu ZeTian (武则天) which led to the flower being banished to the mountains of Luo Yang… where it flourished. This led to the common saying that peonies in Luo Yang are the finest in the world.
Sometimes alternative flowering plants are used as substitute for peonies but meant to convey the same symbolism… but with more subtlety. These include, gardenia, begonia, and hibiscus, etc.
Peonies and feng shui
Some feng shui academics actually determine that women who use them attract men in quantity, while men would attract women of quality.
That is of course, up to debate.
If you intend to use this feng shui flower for yourself or your children, do note that it has a high potency for inducing “passionate” behavior when overdosed.
For this reason, as soon as you or your daughters are attached, it is best to remove the picture displays and monuments with red peonies.
Otherwise, you will just be encouraging suitors to knock on your own door, potentially sending your relationship into a tailspin.
This also implies that married couples should refrain from hanging paintings of red peony flowers in the house, especially the bedroom.
This can potentially drive the desires of the husband wild and cause him to seek relief from other women.
For parents who are trying to play a part in helping their daughters of marriageable age find a life partner sooner, placement of peony flowers should be in the living room.
Having them as art on porcelain ware would be good too.
If you are using it for yourself, then decide for yourself whether it’s appropriate to place them in the bed room.
Just be mindful of the warnings mentioned earlier.
If you don’t want to display them in the house because it just doesn’t blend in with the interior design, you can consider carrying them with you in the form of key chains, pendants, amulets, or earrings.
If you choose to go this route, remember that red is the color to go with for effectiveness.
It is a popular item used for triggering peach blossom luck.
If you are into flying star feng shui, then peonies can be used to stimulate the romance star 4. This can be most potent when it’s the resident mountain star.
In 8 mansions feng shui, the yen nien sector is where you should place it.
If your youngest daughter is the subject, then the Tui trigram at the southeast is best place to locate it.
You might be amazed at how potent this symbol of romance is. Just be careful with what you ask for.
