What Are the Roots of Excess Yin and Deficient Yang?
Poem of the Fall of the State
The king raises the surrender flag atop the city,
How could I, a concubine, know in the deep palace?
140,000 men lay down their arms,
Not a single one is a man!
In the second year of the Qian De era of the Northern Song Dynasty (964 AD), Emperor Taizu of Song launched an attack on the Later Shu. In January of the following year (965 AD), Meng Chang, the ruler of Shu, surrendered to the Song Dynasty. This poem was written by Lady Hua Rui, a concubine of Meng Chang. The boldness displayed by this weak woman surpasses that of many men.
In today’s society, the trend of excess Yin and deficient Yang has become increasingly apparent, with women growing stronger while men are declining. From 2004 to 2023, under the influence of the celestial cycle, the younger male demographic has been ignited, with ‘little fresh meat’ becoming a hot topic. Some say this is due to the influence of Japanese and Korean cultures, leading boys to become more effeminate while girls are becoming more masculine. In comedies and skits, jokes about men being afraid of their wives are often used to elicit laughter, indicating a decline in masculine vigor, resulting in an imbalance of Yin and Yang, where femininity must compensate for the lack of masculinity.
From 2024 to 2043, the celestial cycle will enter the lower period of the ninth cycle, which will likely further enhance the energy of middle-aged women, exacerbating the state of Yin and Yang imbalance. The transformation of Yin into Yang and Yang into Yin raises the question: will both genders increasingly trend towards neutrality? With declining marriage and birth rates, and an aging population, if the development of artificial intelligence further alters human reproduction and childbirth, will future society see a diminishing of gender differences, leading to a state where men are not men, women are not women, or where genders converge?
The reality behind this phenomenon is certainly not singular, but I believe one of the most important reasons is that the nation has enjoyed peace and prosperity for too long, leading to the erosion of the masculine vigor that the male population should possess. In nature, social mammals at the top of the food chain typically have a leader, usually the strongest male, responsible for leading and protecting the group. For instance, in a pride of lions on the African savanna, the primary role of female lions is reproduction and hunting, while male lions are tasked with safeguarding the pride and driving away intruders. The division of labor in human society is quite similar; men need to take on the responsibilities of protecting the home and expanding territories. Only through battle can the masculine spirit be fully awakened, allowing the vigor of Yang to be preserved, developed, and strengthened. If a comfortable and peaceful life continues for too long, the masculine spirit will gradually diminish. Without the baptism of war, masculinity will become increasingly weak. Consider the battlefield of Russia and Ukraine, where the so-called fighting nation has long lost its former courage. And can the current generation of ‘little fresh meat’ replicate the heroic spirit of our ancestors in the Korean War, which we have proudly remembered for decades?
The way of Yin and Yang values balance and harmony; the concept of one Yin and one Yang is the essence of the Dao, which is not merely a comparison of quantity. Excess Yin leads to deficient Yang, and deficient Yang also results in excess Yin. In contemporary Chinese society, it is precisely the decline of Yang that has led to the excess of Yin. The way of heaven is to diminish the surplus and supplement the insufficient; the way of humanity is to diminish the insufficient and honor the surplus. To change this abnormal trend of excess Yin and deficient Yang, it is urgent to invigorate Yang and replenish its deficiencies. How to invigorate Yang is a matter for the wise to ponder.