Tai Chi Tu
BASICS OF “YIN” and “YANG”
SEE
• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yin_and_yang
The nature of yin–yang
• Yin is characterized as slow, soft, yielding,
diffuse, cold, wet, and receptive; and is
associated with water, earth, the moon,
female and nighttime.
• Yang is fast, hard, solid, focused, hot, dry,
and aggressive; and is associated with fire, sky,
the sun, male and daytime.
The nature of yin–yang
• an initial quiescence or emptiness sometimes
symbolized by an empty circle
• dropping a stone in a calm pool of water will
simultaneously raise waves and lower troughs
between them, and this alternation of high
and low points in the water will radiate
outward until the movement dissipates and
the pool is calm once more.
The nature of yin–yang
• Yin and yang thus are always opposite and
equal qualities. Further, whenever one quality
reaches its peak, it will naturally begin to
transform into the opposite quality: for
example, grain that reaches its full height in
summer (fully yang) will produce seeds and
die back in winter (fully yin) in an endless
cycle.
The nature of yin–yang
• It is impossible to talk about yin
or yang without referring to the
opposite
• yin and yang are bound together as
parts of a mutual whole (i.e. you
cannot have the back of a hand
without the front)
The nature of yin–yang
• Imagine a race with only men or only women;
this race would disappear in a single
generation.
• Men and women together allow the race they
mutually create (and mutually come from) to
survive.
• A seed will sprout from the earth
and grow upwards towards the
sky – an intrinsically yang
movement. Then, when it
reaches its full potential height,
It falls to the ground
"Yang" and "Yin" in place names
• Many places in China, such as Luoyang,
contain the word "Yang", and such as Huayin,
the word "yin".
• a very old way to assign place names.
"Yang" and "Yin" in place names
• "Yang" means that a place is on the south
slope of a mountain or on the north bank of a
river – for example, Luoyang is on the north
bank of the Luo River.
• "Yin" means that a place is on the north slope
of a mountain or on the south bank of a river
– for example, Huayin is on the north slope of
Mount Hua.
"Yang" and "Yin" in place names
• The interaction of the two gives birth to
things. Yin and yang transform each other: like
an undertow in the ocean, every advance is
complemented by a retreat, and every rise
transforms into a fall. (Iconic)
• Newton:
“For every action there is an equal and
opposite reaction.” (Mathematika)