| Yin Yang (the two opposing principles in nature, the former feminine and nagative and the latter masculine and positive) and Wit Xing (five elements of metal, wood, water, fire and earth) are the law of thought for Chinese and the framework of the Chinese culture. As the essential components of the Chinese culture, their impact on the Chinese history and culture is extremely deep and great, and, therefore, it is obviously of very theoretical significance and value to make a research on them.Based on the research findings and the historical and unearthed materials on the subject, this book gives an overall historical review of the development of Yin Yang and Wuxing and a comprehensive analysis of the relationship between them and those famous scholars of thoughts in the pre-Qin times. In essence, this is a review and summarization of the various academic thoughts of the pre-Qin times in Chinese history from a new point of view.The book consists of 6 chapters. Their contents and order of narration are as in the following:Chapter One is the introduction. It mainly defines the scope and the period of time for the research of this book, explains the significance and the value of the research, lists the materials and the approaches available and gives a historical review and a summarization of the research concerned. A clear point made by the author in this chapter is that Kw Yang and Wu Xing, formed in ancient China, have in fact become the resource of common thoughts.Chapter Two, "The Origin of Yin Yang", and Chapter Three, "The Origin of Wu Yang", explore the origin of Yin Yang and Wu Xing, including their linguistic connotations, the possible places, the period and the starting point of historical times of their origin.The author holds in this chapter that Yin Yang and Wu Xing originated in China, rather than from any foreign lands. The notion of Yin and Yang came from human observations of nature, and were two opposing concepts from the very start. Dichotomy and comparison are the original meaning of the notion, but it did not have the abstract metaphysical connotation though these terms already appeared in the language during Shang and West Zhou Dynasties in Chinese history.As for Wu Xing, researches have shown that in the middle and late Shang Dynasty people did not have the conception of Wu Xing although some ideas were implied in the inscriptions on bones or tortoise shells of that time. It is clear, therefore, that the notion of Wu Xing was formally raised during the ending years of Shang Dynasty.Chapter Four, titled as "Yin Yang and Wu Xing before Pre-Qin Times", gives a review of the respective developments of Yin Yang and Wu Xing before late Spring and Autumn Period of Chinese history, using such historical books and records as "Guo Yu", "Zuo Zhuan", "Zhan Guo Ce", "Shi Ji", "Yue Jue Shu" and "Wu Yue Chun Qiu" for reference.Since West Zhou Dynasty, the idea of Yin Yang further developed into aconception until a complete domain of the notion was established. During the Spring and Autumn Period, Yin and Yang were connected with the conception of "Qi" (æ°”) . People at that time had already realized that Yin and Yang could restrict or check each other, but they could also be transformed into a harmonious relationship. So it is during this time that the idea of transformation between Yin and Yang was raised. Later, Yin and Yang were highly abstracted by Laozi and Confucius into a pair of metaphysical domain of philosophy. In the 500 years from Spring and Autumn to the Warring States Period, Wu Xing enjoyed a golden age of development. In theory, people got a increasingly deeper insight into the relationship between the five elements, and, as a result, different ideas were put forward during this time to describe the possible relationships between these elements. In the structure of the five elements, things are arranged in a way from the simple to the complicated, from the natural to the social, until all the things in the universe are encompassed into the structure.Chapter Five and Chapter Si... |
