Abstract:
Yin and Yang is one of the dominant concepts shared by different schools throughout the history of Chinese philosophy. The first written record of using these two characters together appears in a verse from the Shijing (Book of Songs). The most enduring interpretation of yinyang in Chinese thought is related to the concept of qi (ch’i, vital energy). Yinyang also has been understood as some concrete substance (xingzhi), according to which yixing and yangxing define everything in the universe. They are either on the opposite ends of a cycle but this opposition is relative, and can only be spoken of in relationships. Finally, yinyang also plays a pivotal role in traditional Chinese thought about health and the human body. Yin and yang do not exist in isolation but are in a dynamic state in which they interact and fashion the complicated and intricate system of the human body.