The Wu-xing is also known as the Five Elements, Five Agents, Five Movements, Five Phases, Five Planets, Five Processes, Five Stages, Five Steps, or Five Ways, the five types of chi dominating at different times. It is a fivefold conceptual scheme that many traditional Chinese fields used to explain a wide range of knowledge they had gathered, from cosmic cycles to the interaction between internal organs, and from the succession of political regimes to the properties of medicinal drugs. Including other fields such as feng shui, astrology, traditional Chinese medicine, music, warrior strategies, and martial arts.
Here is the cycle and the elements explained:
-Wood / Spring / Growth and Vitality
= Wood fuels Fire
-Fire / Summer / Swelling
= Fire forms Earth (Volcanoes, Ash, etc…)
-Earth / in-between transitional seasonal periods / Levelling and Moderation
= Earth bears Metal
-Metal / Autumn / Harvesting and Collecting
= Metal collects Water (Buckets, Pipes, etc…)
-Water / Winter / Retreat and Stillness
= Water feeds Wood (Trees, Plants, etc…)
Comments