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The Yin & Yang

By Howard Gibbon

Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 10Feb2012 Word count: 1093 Viewed: 46 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site

Long ago in ancient China the early Taoists carefully studied the natural world and saw how everything had two influences, which regulate, complement, or oppose. They named them Yin & Yang and depicted them with the now famous symbol.

They noticed how everything had an opposite but because it was an opposite didn't necessarily mean it would oppose, it could also compliment. Nothing is totally Yin or totally Yang. These two opposing yet complimentary forces are the underlying factors behind Chinese thought. They are inherent in Chinese philosophy, medicine, and are depicted by many works of art; indeed they are at the root of Chinese culture. Let us take a few examples and try to see how these two fundamental principles not only oppose, but also compliment each other.

Yin being: moon, night, darkness, water, cold, female, contraction. Yang being: sun, day, light, fire, heat, male, expansion. Firstly we must understand that nothing is totally yin or yang, each has a little of the other present in varying degrees. This can be seen by examining the above yin and yang characteristics. The moon appears at night when it is dark. Night, dark and moon are yin, but the moon which waxes and wanes depending on the time of the month, gives us and the rest of the animal kingdom a little light with which to see by, which is yang. The sun which is yang gives us warmth and light without which plants would not grow and there would be no food to sustain life. When the sun is at its peak animals seek the shade, which is yin and we humans, if we venture out at this time, need to drink more fluids, which are yin, to keep our body temperature normal.

If the sun shone continuously all plant life would shrivel up and die, the rivers and sea would eventually dry up and all life would cease, for all life needs water to survive. Permanent yang is not good. If Earth were perpetually in darkness, plants would not grow and there would be no food to feed the animal kingdom. Permanent yin is not good. So whilst it is true that yin and yang are opposites, they also harmonize for without either life, as we know it, could not exist on our planet. Without either male or female human life could not continue. Whilst man and women have since the beginning of life on earth had difficulty understanding one another, they must co-operate and harmonize with each other to continue the species.

Too much pleasure will turn to pain. If you have a night out on the town over-indulging in food and drink, you will surely suffer for it the following day. And if you continue to do this on a regular basis your health will inevitably deteriorate. Balance is essential to our well being, but we are all individuals and what suits one does not necessarily suit another. It is just like learning to ride a bicycle, people can show you how to turn the pedals to provide motion, move the handlebars to change direction and apply the brakes to stop. The only thing they cannot teach you is how to keep your balance on the bike, you just have to get on and keep falling off until you master it. You must do it for yourself.

Striking a balance in all things, the food we eat, work and rest, spending time with others and finding time for yourself etc. is the way to enjoy life whilst keeping your good health, and sometimes, in the face of seemingly insurmountable hardship, to keep your sanity!

A little story may help to illustrate this point. A man lived with his wife on a small farm in the hills from which they barely managed to grow enough food with which to feed themselves. The man's wife became pregnant and the people from neighbouring farms came to congratulate them, saying, "It is good that you will have a child."He said, "Why do you say it is good?"When the child was born it was a boy, but sadly the woman died giving birth. The neighbours came round to pay their respects when he buried his wife. They said how sad for him to have lost his wife and to have the added burden of bringing up the child by himself.

"It is just too bad," they said. He said, "Why do you say it is bad?"

One day a big black stallion wandered on to his farm. The man caught it and used it to help him till the fields. His neighbours said of his good fortune. "It is good that you have a horse to help you till the fields." He said, "Why do you say it is good?"

One night the stallion jumped the fence and ran off. The neighbours said, "What a shame, it is too bad". The man said, "Why do you say it is bad?"

A short while later the stallion returned with a herd of horses. His neighbours said, "How fortunate, that's good. "The man said, "Why do you say it is good?"

The boy was out riding the stallion one day when he fell off and broke his leg. It set badly and he walked with a limp.

His neighbours said, "It is just too bad. "He said, "Why do you say it is bad?"

War broke out in the country and all the young men were called to arms. But because of his limp the man's son did not have to go.

His neighbours said, "It is good your son does not have to go to war perhaps getting killed and leaving you all alone." The man said, "Why do you say it is good?"

The following winter the son caught a chest infection and died. He had not been very strong since his accident and suffered many minor ills. The neighbours came to pay their respects when the man buried his son.

They said, "It's too bad you are now an old man and all alone. The man said, "Why do you say it is bad?"

What is, is.

The awareness of Yin and Yang teaches us that whatever we experience has another side, and it is only by being open to the whole, without judgment, will we be able to appreciate the true nature and overwhelming richness of life.

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