Yin is the dark half of the yin and yang symbol. It means the shady place, and it is cold, wet, yielding, passive, slow, and feminine. Metal and water traits are assigned to yin. Yang is the light half of the symbol and it means the sunny place. It is hot, dry, active, focused, and masculine. Gender in Chinese Philosophy. The concept of gender is foundational to the general approach of Chinese thinkers. Yin and yang, core elements of Chinese cosmogony, involve correlative aspects of “dark and light,” “female and male,” and “soft and hard.”. These notions, with their deeply-rooted gender connotations, recognize the.
The ideas behind Yin and Yang developed by observing the physical world. It was observed that nature appears to group into pairs mutually dependent opposites. For example, the concept of night has no meaning without the concept of day.
In understanding the concept of Yin and Yang, the emphasis is on process rather than structure. The Chinese characters for Yin and Yang represent this. The character for Yin translates as “the dark side of the mountain” and represents qualities such as cold, stillness, passiveness, darkness, and within. The character for Yang translates as “the bright side of the mountain” and represents warmth, activity, light, outside, expression.
According to the Chinese, everything has physical existence because everything manifests both Yin and Yang qualities. In observing the organs of the body, for example, the Liver is considered principally to be a Yin organ since it is solid, but it also has the function of promoting the flow of energy, which is a Yang quality. The aspects of Yin and Yang are interdependent of each other.
There are many ways in which Yin and Yang can be out of balance.
Types of Imbalance Between Yin and Yang
Too much Yin–characterized by Cold symptoms
Too much Yang–characterized by Heat symptoms
Too little Yin–characterized by Internal Heat symptoms
Too little Yang–characterized by general coldness
Chinese medicine views the body in terms of Yin and Yang aspects. A dynamic balance between these aspects is characterized by health, and an unhealthy state is an indication of some imbalance between the Yin and Yang of the body.
Ancient China Yin And Yang
Change manifests itself as Yin transforming into Yang and vice versa. When this transformation process is blocked an imbalance occurs. Essentially, all disharmonies can be reduced to an imbalance of Yin and Yang. Balance is vital within the body as it is in the universe. This involves constantly readjusting.
By observing the cycle of the Sun, we can use a pole, post at right angles to the ground, and record the lengths of the shadow about every 15 days for a year. The shortest shadow is found on the day of Summer Solstice in China. The longest shadow is found on the day of Winter Solstice. The day of Winter Solstice has the least sunshine in the year. After Winter Solstice, the day will gain more sunshine each day till Summer Solstice. We can say Yang begins right after Winter Solstice and Yin begins right after Summer Solstice in the northern hemisphere.
China Ying And Yang
After recording 24 shadow lines, we move the lines into the diagram of six concentric circles with 24 sectors beginning from Winter Solstice to Summer Solstice. The length of each line will subtract the portion of the length of the Summer Solstice shadow line because we want to give Summer Solstice maximum Yang.
If the shadow of the pole is observed at the equator, then the length of the shadow on Summer Solstice should be near 0. China is in the northern hemisphere. The shadow of the pole always shows there on Summer Solstice in any city of China. To adjust the shadow to zero length on Summer Solstice is to adjust latitude to the equator.
From Winter Solstice to Summer Solstice, the shadow lines are drawn from the center of the circle to the boundary. From Summer Solstice to Winter Solstice, the shadow lines are drawn from circle boundary to the center, because ancient Chinese believed that Chi Energy goes different directions right after Summer Solstice and Winter Solstice.
Next, we can connect all the lines and dim the shadow lines (Yin) part, the Ying Yang symbol appears. .
How to Draw Yin Yang Symbol
Finding Direction with No Compass
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Yin Yang Symbol Related Discussion
Back to the Original Yin Yang Page - Where does the Chinese Yin Yang symbol come from? Revised Version in Chinese at www.worldofmastermind.com
Dr. Stefan Jaeger presented a mathematical description of the Yin-Yang symbol based on the daily sunshine hours throughout the year in the A Geomedical Approach to Chinese Medicine: The Origin of the Yin-Yang Symbol in 2011. To watch Dr. Stefan Jaeger's Yin-Yang Symbol: Mathematical Daylight Model and Video
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