When did Yin-Yang and Five Elements appear, develop and mature?
The concept of Yin and Yang originated in Xia Dynasty, based on the book Lianshan written by Xia Dynasty. There has been an insidious "?" In Lianshan. And Yang Yao "-". "Shan Hai Jing" said: "Fuxi has a river map, so Xia people call it' Lianshan'; The Yellow Emperor got a river map, so merchants called it "returning to Tibet", and Shanshi Lie got a river map, which Zhou people called "Zhouyi". "
Yang Yang's theory divides everything in the universe into two categories: Yin and Yang, and holds that the formation, development and change of everything lies in the movement and transformation of Yin and Yang. The concept of yin and yang first came from the back of the sun. The sunny side of an object is called Yang, and the shady side is called Yin. Then it is extended continuously to further explain all phenomena in nature and society. The concept of Yin and Yang became the theory of Yin and Yang after the Zhou Dynasty, especially the Book of Changes, which comprehensively summarized Yin and Yang and became a systematic and complete theory of Yin and Yang.
1) yin and yang properties Everything in the world can be divided into two opposite aspects, namely yin and yang. Yin and Yang phenomena are everywhere. The division of yin and yang is as follows: everything similar to Ming, Shang, Wai, heat, movement, quickness, masculinity, strength and strangeness belongs to Yang; Everything is similar: dark, down, inside, cold, quiet, slow, female, weak, even numbers belong to yin.
2) The law of Yin and Yang is the root of each other, which means that the two opposite aspects of things or phenomena are interdependent and mutually utilized, and they are in a unity. Each side of yin and yang takes the other side as the premise of their existence, that is, without yin, yang cannot exist; Without Yang, Yin would not exist. "Su Wen's Theory of Yin and Yang should be like images" says: "Yin is inside, Yang keeps it, Yang is outside, and Yin makes it." Yin-yang opposition means that everything in nature is universal, and there are two opposite attributes in it, namely, there are two aspects of Yin-yang opposition. For example, electricity has positive and negative poles, magnetic field has positive and negative poles (north and south poles), atoms are composed of "positive" electron nuclei and "negative" electrons, buildings have positive and negative sides, Shannan is positive, Shuinan is negative and so on. Yin-yang transformation refers to the two properties of things or phenomena, which are in dynamic balance, changing with each other, advancing and retreating, and transforming to their opposites under certain conditions. I ching? Quotations: "When the sun goes to the moon, it will come. When the moon passes, the sun and the moon push each other. It is summer when it is cold, summer when it is cold, and summer when it is cold. " Commonly known as "feng shui turns", it is the result of the transformation of yin and yang.
China people's exposition on the dependence, opposition and transformation of Yin and Yang has the world outlook and epistemology of modern materialist dialectics. Yin and Yang are always in dynamic balance. If this change is abnormal, it is an abnormal reaction of the rise and fall of yin and yang. I ching? The copula says, "Yin and Yang combine virtue, but there is rigidity and softness." Geomantic omen in China is a specific science and technology for human beings to seek the balance between yin and yang in residential site selection, planning and architectural activities.
theory of the five elements
The emergence of the five elements theory is still controversial in academic circles.
Historians believe: "The founder of the Five Elements Theory is Mencius. Mencius is the founder of the Five Elements Theory. Mencius said that there must be a king in five hundred years, from Yao and Shun to Tang for more than five hundred years ... from King Wen to Confucius for more than five hundred years ... and so on. Zou Yan, who was later than Mencius, expanded the theory of five elements and became a master of yin and yang and five elements. " Philosophers think: "The plain text of the five elements can be found in Shangshu? Hong Fan (according to legend, it was written in the early years of the Western Zhou Dynasty, and it may have been written in the Warring States period according to research). Five elements, water, fire, wood, gold and earth; Moisturizing, fire inflammation, straight wood, golden leather, soil tillage. Yi scholars believe that: "the theory of five images is synchronized with the theory of yin and yang." . "
1) Han Dong's Zhongshu in Shangshu? Hongchou abstracted the five elements into five material attributes, not just five substances. The five elements theory holds that the objective world consists of five basic elements: gold, wood, water, fire and earth. The development and changes of various things and phenomena in nature (including people) are the result of the continuous movement and interaction of these five elements. The mutual opposition, interdependence and mutual transformation among gold, wood, water, fire and earth are the laws and reasons for the birth, illness and death of all things in the universe. This concept is simple and dual materialism, which is very similar to the laws of "periodic table of elements" and "immortality of matter" in modern science.
Five elements characteristics: wood-has the characteristics of hair growth and development;
Fire-has the characteristics of fiery upward;
Soil-has the characteristics of long-term cultivation and chemical education;
Gold-has the characteristics of purity and killing;
Water-has the characteristics of cold and white.
Classification of five elements
Five elements of water, wood, fire and earth gold
Five internal organs, kidney, liver, heart, stomach, spleen and lung
Five orifices, ears, eyes, tongue, mouth and nose
Pentagonal muscle skin with tendons
Five aspirations: fear of anger, joy and worry
Wu yuyinjiao Gong Zheng Shang
Black, blue, red, yellow and white.
Salty, sour, bitter and bitter.
Five qi blocking wind, summer heat dampness and dryness.
Seasons, winter, spring, summer, long summer and autumn.
Orientation north, southeast, south, middle and west
2) The Five Elements Theory holds that the Five Elements have the law of mutual generation and mutual resistance.
Common growth: it means nurturing, promoting and encouraging each other. In the reciprocal relationship, there are two aspects: it gives birth to it, and it gives birth to it, that is, obedience. Inverse life, also known as Kang Cheng, is the five elements of Kang Cheng.
Xiangke: It means mutual restriction, restraint and inhibition. Similarly, in the relationship of mutual respect, there are two aspects: other aspects and other aspects, that is, positive aspects and negative aspects. Inverse gram, also known as back breaking, is the back breaking of five elements. According to its arrangement, the law is "sequential generation, phase separation." In ancient times, there was a saying that "compare and win each other". Clockwise is shun sheng and shun ke; Counterclockwise is the opposite of life and gram. Namely: Shui Mu fire, earth and gold, in turn similar, aquatic wood, wood fire, and so on; The five are separated by a mutual gram, such as water, fire, wood and earth, until Jin Kemu ... it has been going on. This relationship between birth and punishment is fixed. "If you go against it, it will be chaotic, and if you follow it, it will be ruled."
Why are the five elements "produced in turn"? The ancients thought that water could moisten trees; Wood can burn to produce fire; Fire can turn burnt things into dust; Metals and minerals can be found in soil; The cold metal surface is wet and can produce dew. Only five forms of metal become liquid after being heated and melted-thus forming a promotion cycle.
Why are the five elements "separated"? The ancients believed that water could put out fires; Fire can melt metal; Metal products can cut down trees; The roots of trees can penetrate the soil; Soil can absorb water and make it disappear-this starts a cycle of inhibition.
The five elements interact to form a circular chain, which goes round and round. The periodic law of elements discovered by modern science proves the rationality of the periodic changes of the five elements in ancient China. The combination of five elements and yin and yang produced the theory of yin and yang and five elements. The theory of Yin-Yang and Five Elements is the geomantic omen of China, and even the natural science and social science of ancient China. Such as: general principles of traditional Chinese medicine, astronomy, geography, military affairs, politics, economy and other disciplines. With the balance and coordination of yin and yang and five elements, all normal growth, development, change and extinction can be promoted and maintained.