whelp I definitely underwrote for my last post, I undershot that by a mile lol. This week however brought a lot of different research into the deep history of Yin and Yang along with the Qi that both are a part of.
YINYANG Article- The article summarizes the many aspects of Yin and Yang throughout Chinese history with its earliest discovery dating back to the same era when oracle bones were used, giving a connection to Divination in the Shang Dynasty for both originating in the same era. Yin/Yang is the ultimate balance of all things to cosmic levels and to the systems of the human body like heart is yin and stomach is yang or how the sun is yang and the moon is yin. Two schools studied their approach to Yin/Yang both known as Yili focusing on the meanings of Yin/Yang for their own beliefs while Xiangshu put the illustration and numerical expression which leads to the modern knowledge of Yin/Yang.
The Five Phases chapter- Qi is known as the substance that makes up the universe that goes through the cycle of water, wood, fire, earth, and metal giving the 5 phases name while also being translated as the 5 colors, 5 tastes, and the 5 notes. Emperors would go by the will of the Qi through constructing their time of rule through the element that prevailed at the time heaven assigned it. In Qi, the many phases it cycles through are always in check from another element to keep a balance of all, similar to Yin and Yang because Yin and Yang is also considered a part of Qi.
Chapters 3-4 of The Classic of Mountains and Seas– The chapter is similar to that of a journal, written with quick description of a journey along a stretch of mountains. The mountain named Corpsehalberd at the start and ends on mountain Nobog having 9 mountain’s in total over 17,000 leagues with chapter 4 adding 1,720 more with Mt.Northcall and Mt.Grand as the beginning and end of 8 mountains. Many had unique creatures and environments and others had barren wastelands of sand containing no life.
Personal Interest’s- The most interesting aspect of the research for me was the Yin Yang article in the explanation of the history behind Yin Yang along with its near indefinite connections to the balancing act of the universe. In the end of the article though I would have liked a more in depth look at what the Yiji School’s most popular beliefs supported by Yin and Yang but we only got details on Xiangshu which didn’t interest me as much. All things considered I did very much like learning about how Yin and Yang relate to something as small as us in our bodies to the cosmic movements of planets and the stars.
