Guest Author - Michelle Lee
Some historians believe that the knowledge of Yin Yang was extracted from ancient schools of alchemy in China, while others claim that Yin Yang is rooted in astronomy and astrology. Nevertheless, the documented use of the idea of Yin Yang first appeared in the “I-Ching”, also known as the “Book of Changes” in the West.
For centuries since the emergence of the Book of Changes, many different interpretations of the concept of Yin Yang have been explored. However, the time-honoured version, or Yin Yang as we understand it today, emerged only at the end of the ‘Warring States’ period (475 to 221 B.C.E).
The scholars of that era harmonized the theory of Yin Yang with “Wu Xing”, the ‘Five Elements’ (also translated as ‘Five Aspects’ or ‘Five Phases’). This fusion gave rise to a new school of thought, known as the school of “Yin Yang Wu Xing”. While this school inevitably diminished as an independent body, its central teachings was integrated into other school of thoughts.
Briefly, the central teachings of Yin Yang Wu Xing is as follows:
1. Yin and Yang is ever alternating, like night and day.
2. Wu Xing (the five elements) flow ceaselessly from one to another in a never-ending cycle.
3. From the Yin Yang Wu Xing we understand that all phenomena in the universe are impermanent. All manifested forms have a life cycle that consists of different phases (and elements). At the end of the cycle, the manifested form returns to the realm beyond manifestation, waiting for its next cycle.
Just as in ancient Greece, philosophies and spirituality in ancient China bounced into the political arena through great thinkers of the time, from whom the rulers sought counsel. The Yin Yang Wu Xing school of thought reached its height and became the guiding principle of the political system in China during the Han Dynasty (206 to 220 B.C.E.).
By the Tang Dynasty (618 to 907 A.D.), the essence of Yin Yang Wu Xing embellished all aspects of the Chinese culture through the diaspora of Taoism. The understanding of Yin Yang Wu Xing became one of the tenets of Taoism, Buddhism, Chinese Medicine, cosmology, science and arts in China.
However, the comprehension of Yin Yang is by no means archaic. It is as relevant now as it has always been, and it still constitutes the corner stone of the world of the modern Chinese.
Author’s note: This article is not meant to be an exposition of the profound conception of Yin Yang. It is a very brief sketch of the origin of Yin Yang. If there is enough interest on the part of the readers, the theory of Yin Yang itself may be explored in later articles.
