Yin And Yang: The Principle Of The Duality Of Existence
The yin and yang belong to a concept from Chinese philosophy, specifically Taoism.
The latter is one of the pillars of Chinese philosophy founded by Lao Tse, a figure whose true existence has not yet been proven. The only certainty concerns the time of appearance of these concepts. They date more or less from the 6th century BC.
Lao Tse’s philosophy has been totally brought together in a book called Tao Te King , which means “path to virtue”. In this book, the concept of yin and yang was mentioned for the first time. The translation was “dark and bright”.
Lao Tse presents yin and yang as a duality that is found in everything that exists. Day and night, man and woman, life and death, etc. These are two opposing states which are not in contradiction but which are complementary and depend on each other. No state is imposed on the other, it coexists in harmony with the other.
The duality in yin and yang
For Taoism, everything rests in a natural and constant change. Winter follows fall and so on, without our taking action to make it happen. The same thing happens with human realities. The path of virtue consists in not altering these changes, neither in nature, nor in life.
Personal desires and goals are what cause individuals to alter this natural order. “No action”, on the other hand, allows things to develop and happen as they should, without external changes.
Yin and yang represent this continuous change. Harmony consists in keeping in balance the duality evoked by this concept. Disharmony is associated with the excessive predominance of one of these two aspects.
The yin corresponds to all that is feminine, soft, moist, earthy, passive, absorbing and obscure. The yang, meanwhile, refers to everything that is masculine, rough, dry air, active, penetrating light. Each of the elements and characteristics are found in everything that exists.
The principles that flow from yin and yang
According to Taoism, the concept of yin and yang is based on a series of principles of its own. These principles define the dynamic that exists between the two factors and serve as an approach to apply them in concrete situations.
The principles are as follows:
- The yin and yang are opposites: However, one does not exclude the other. In reality, you can find both yin and yang, and vice versa. For example, we can admire the luminosity of the Moon in the middle of the darkness of the night
- They are interdependent: the yin can not exist without the yang and vice versa. There is no life without death and no death without life.
- They maintain a dynamic balance: when yin increases, yang decreases and vice versa. When one of the two grows excessively, it forces the other to concentrate in order to generate a transformation. Excess heat leads to melting ice, which causes flooding
- When one disappears, the other changes: the yin and yang are not a separate reality, they coexist. For this, one disappears relatively to make room for the other. It is the case of day and night
- There is always a part of yang in yin and vice versa
Practical applications
It is important to emphasize that the concept of yin and yang is part of a philosophy and not a scientific theory. And this, even if quantum physics has developed theses which coincide with this concept. This idea of the duality inherent in everything has various practical applications.
The concept of yin and yang applies directly to the practice of martial arts. Ideas such as defense and offense or focus and relaxation come directly from this concept. Chinese medicine is therefore based on duality and complementarity both to diagnose and to treat diseases. This contrast is expressed with the following principle: “ sedate what is excessive and invigorate what is deficient ”.
Likewise, the concept of yin and yang applies to daily life to achieve internal harmony. These opposites call for detachment and acceptance. Let yourself go. May the nights of your life follow the days, may joy follow sorrow, and so on. Don’t think that everything has to be positive or idyllic. Admit the fact that duality exists.
Our thoughts The Yin and Yang theory tells us that everything is built around two opposing forces that are unified in harmony to promote the movement …
