bubble_chart Content

Shen Yaozi on the Beginning of Winter in the year of Wu Zi (戊子)

Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) believes that the interaction of water and fire in the universe gives rise to all things ⁽¹⁾. "Water" generally refers to the liquid on the earth's surface, and "fire" refers to the light and heat of the Sun. According to contemporary scientific understanding, the Sun spreads its light and heat across the earth's surface. Water, heated by this, evaporates into vapor, rises into the sky, condenses into clouds upon cooling, and falls as rain, forming the water cycle on the earth's surface, which becomes the cradle of life.

In Book of Changes, yin and yang are each represented by trigrams, ⚊ for yang and ⚋ for yin. The trigram representing water, "Kan (坎) ☵," consists of two yin lines enclosing a yang line, where the two yin lines represent the essence of water and the yang line its fluidity. The trigram representing fire, "Li (離) ☲," consists of two yang lines enclosing a yin line, where the two yang lines symbolize the light and heat of fire, and the yin line represents the physical entity that fire depends on (such as the wick of a lamp). When the Kan trigram is above and the Li trigram below, they form the composite hexagram "Ji Ji (既濟) ䷾"⁽²⁾, meaning "success, accomplishment," used to symbolize things that succeed when fire is below and water above, such as cooking with fire, which requires fire below and water above. If fire is above and water below (i.e., "Wei Ji (未濟) ䷿"⁽³⁾), cooking is impossible. Similarly, if the light and heat of the Sun do not descend to the earth, and the earth's vapor does not rise, the water cycle on the earth's surface cannot be driven, and life cannot be nourished.

In the human body, the male external genitalia consist of two yang (testicles) enclosing one yin (penis), resembling the "Li ☲" trigram; the female external genitalia consist of two yin (labia) enclosing one yang (vaginal opening and clitoris), resembling the "Kan ☵" trigram. Thus, females are associated with water, yin, and moistening, while males are associated with fire, yang, and the dynamic circulation of qi. During intercourse, the most natural position is with the male above and the female below, where the male's "Li" moves in and out of the female's "Kan," and the female's "Kan" secretes fluid for lubrication. The union of water and fire can then produce another small life, much like the light and heat of the Sun repeatedly interacting with the water on the earth, thus creating the living beings of the universe.

Beyond water and fire, the ancients also discovered that "heaven" and "earth" must interact in some way to produce all things in the universe. For example, the earth's qi rises to form clouds, and the sky's qi descends as rain, with rain spreading across the earth to nourish all living beings⁽⁴⁾. In Book of Changes, another composite hexagram related to the interaction of heaven and earth is "Tai (泰) ䷊"⁽⁵⁾, where the "Kun (坤) ☷" trigram representing earth is above, and the "Qian (乾) ☰" trigram representing heaven is below. This symbolizes heaven descending and earth ascending, with heaven and earth interacting, representing a smooth and prosperous situation. If heaven and earth do not interact, it is the "Pi (否) ䷋"⁽⁶⁾ hexagram, representing obstruction and blockage.

Among all the orifices in the human body, the eyes, ears, and nostrils are each two, resembling three sets of yin lines, forming the "Kun (坤) ☷" trigram; the mouth, external genitalia, and anus are each one, resembling three sets of yang lines, forming the "Qian (乾) ☰" trigram. In the human body, the "Kun" is above, and the "Qian" is below, forming the composite hexagram "Tai (泰) ䷊," symbolizing the interaction of heaven and earth. The nasolabial groove between the nose and the upper lip resembles the communication channel between the "Qian (乾)" and "Kun (坤)" trigrams in the human body. The ancients named the nasolabial groove "Renzhong (人中, man in between)," signifying "the intercourse of heaven and earth, with human life born in between," a profound meaning (refer to "The Indispensable "Holographic Law" of the Human Body"). This is another example of the TCM view of "correspondence between nature and human," and the "Renzhong" is the mark of humans as children of heaven and earth.

There are two eyes, ears, and nostrils, which belong to yin, yet they receive intangible sounds, light, and air, which belong to yang; there is one mouth, external genitalia, and anus, which belong to yang, yet they take in and expel tangible substances, which belong to yin. This is another form of yin-yang interaction. When the eyes cannot see, the ears cannot hear, the nostrils cannot inhale, the mouth cannot eat, and the two yin orifices cannot excrete, it means that yin and yang cannot interact, which is the "Pi Hexagram (否卦) ䷋," and it means death.

bubble_chart Footnote

1. Huangdi Neijing-Yinyang Yingxiang Da Lun: "Water and fire are the signs of yin-yang; yin-yang is the origin of all things."
2. Book of Changes: "Water and Fire Ji Ji䷾ (Completion, 既濟), Kan☵ above and Li☲ below."
3. Book of Changes: "Water and Fire Wei Ji䷿ (Incompletion, 未濟), Li☲ above and Kan☵ below."
4. Huangdi Neijing-Yinyang Yingxiang Da Lun: "Clear yang forms the sky, turbid yin forms the earth; the rising of qi from the earth becomes clouds, the descending of sky qi becomes rain."
5. Book of Changes: "Heaven and Earth Tai䷊ (Peace, 泰), Kun☷ above Qian☰ below."
6. Book of Changes: "Earth and Heaven Pi䷋ (Stagnation, 否), Qian☰ above Kun☷ below."