The earth has five directions, humans have five elements, and food has five flavors. The changes in nature can be summarized by the five elements. The organs, tissues, and emotions of the human body can also apply the theory of the five elements. Since the natural world maintains a dynamic balance, the relationships of the … Read more
As a concept in ancient Chinese philosophy, the wǔxíng (Five Elements) theory encompasses all aspects of daily life, from worldview and cosmology to values. The wǔxíng theory posits that the world is composed of five elements: jīn (Metal), mù (Wood), shuǐ (Water), huǒ (Fire), and tǔ (Earth). These five elements influence and depend on each … Read more
The Five Elements, in fact, refer to five categories of substances, which classify the myriad materials in the universe according to their properties. These are: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. Wood represents plants, Fire represents heat energy, Earth represents land, Metal represents metals, and Water represents liquids. There exists a relationship of mutual generation … Read more
The Interactions of the Five Elements: Generating and Overcoming The Five Elements (Wu Xing) exhibit a relationship of mutual generation and overcoming. Without generation, there can be no occurrence and growth of phenomena; without overcoming, the balance and coordination of development and change cannot be maintained. Within any phenomenon and between phenomena, there exist inseparable … Read more
Mutual generation and overcoming are abnormal phenomena arising from the interactions of the Five Elements under certain influencing factors. “Generation” refers to the invasion of the weak by the strong. “Overcoming” refers to the excessive overcoming that surpasses the normal restraining forces, leading to a loss of normal coordination within the Five Elements system. This … Read more
The Five Elements (Wu Xing) is a fundamental concept in ancient Chinese philosophy and metaphysics, referring to the five substances: Metal (Jin), Wood (Mu), Water (Shui), Fire (Huo), and Earth (Tu). These elements are not only the five basic elements of nature but also represent five fundamental attributes of the human body and society. The … Read more
Author: Li Shuang The Aesthetic Beauty of ‘Mutual Generation of Emptiness and Fullness’ The history of Chinese painting is long and profound, and its aesthetic beauty of ‘mutual generation of emptiness and fullness’ holds immeasurable value in aesthetics and artistic form. ‘Mutual generation of emptiness and fullness’ harmonizes the layout of the artwork, using emptiness … Read more
Question 1. What are the concepts of mutual generation and mutual restraint? Answer: Mutual generation (相生, xiāng shēng) is a term from the theory of the Five Elements, referring to the relationships of generation and restraint among metal, wood, water, fire, and earth. Ancient Chinese believed that these five substances have a mutually nurturing and … Read more
1. The Origin of the Five Elements Theory The Five Elements Theory posits that all matter in the world is composed of five fundamental substances characterized by Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. The continuous movement and transformation of these five basic substances constitute the entire material world. Therefore, like the Yin-Yang Theory, the Five … Read more
The “Five Elements” refers to the five categories of substances in nature: “Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water” and their movements. The “Five Elements Theory” describes the movements and changes of these five categories of substances, as well as their interrelationships, using the concepts of mutual generation and mutual overcoming as tools to explain the … Read more