Showing posts with label taoism. Show all posts
Showing posts with label taoism. Show all posts

Tuesday, September 17, 2013

A Little Yin In Your Yang?

A Yin & Yang pendant I recently made for Anita Gayle


In Taoist philosophy, Yin (negative) and Yang (positive) represent the two complementary forces that make up all aspects of life.
Yin and Yang, never static but in a constantly changing balance so that nothing is totally Yin nor totally Yang, are interdependent but cannot exist without each other.

Yin is a symbol of earth, darkness, passivity, absorption, slowness, softness, and thus, yielding, diffused, cold, wet, and passive, epitomized by even numbers, streams and valleys, and represented by the color orange. Yang is thought of as heavenly, light, active, fast, hard, solid, and thus focused, hot, dry, aggressive and penetrating, illustrated by odd numbers, mountains, and represented by the dragon, and the color blue.
Yin and Yang symbols typically have a small dot of each opposite color contained within the other's larger colored area to symbolize that there is a bit of yin within yang and visa versa. This is meant to be a reminder that all of existence is constantly evolving and changing. And, that each side always contains the potential of the other, as night turns into day and day into night.


Friday, August 30, 2013

Improving the World

29

Do you want to improve the world?
I don't think it can be done.

The world is sacred.
It can't be improved.
If you tamper with it, you'll ruin it.
If you treat it like an object, you'll lose it.

There is a time for being ahead,
a time for being behind;
a time for being in motion,
a time for being at rest;
a time for being vigorous,
a time for being exhausted;
a time for being safe,
a time for being in danger.

The Master sees things as they are,
without trying to control them.
She lets them go their own way,
and resides at the center of the circle.


From Tao Te Ching

by Lao-tzu
From a translation by S. Mitchell