Doc Stier wrote:I consider the comment above to be erroneous. The classical Five Elements Phases are traditionally viewed as having both a generative and creative cycle, represented by a pentagon, and a transformative control cycle, represented by a pentagram, as depicted in most graphic diagrams.
Well, I’ll just have to disagree then.
In the most texts, regardless they are about TCM, IMA or older Chinese practice, the pentagram is mostly referred to as “destructive” or degeneration. Water puts out fire etc. The degeneration is natural, not unnatural and it's certainly not about "evil" as the Satanist symbol. But still, evil and the devil in christianity is about destruction and chaos.
From an energetic perspective, therefore, element phase energy is never destroyed or annihilated, but is rather only controlled and transformed in order to return the generative or creative cycle manifestations to a normal balance of fluctuating energy flow according to the 12 Terrestrial Branches Timetable.
Well sir, you can look at it as a whole symbol or you can isolate different elements or parts and interpret them separately. Just as any kind of Chinese symbol, the Wu Xing is complex and varies in meaning. However, what I believe you are talking about is an ideal, what wewant to achieve through Taoist practice and internal alchemy. Cycling and turning degeneration into a continuous cycle and return to the creative cycle is what Taoist practice is all about. We live and die because of that or normal the normal cycle is degenerative.
The Five elements represents both the generation and destruction. It has done so long before Neidan was invented. it does not only represent the Taoist ideal .
The Wu Xing is from much older philosophical thought. It has probably had something to do with agriculture, just as the 12 heavenly branches and the ten earthly branches which were used to count the old calender and divide time into periods of 60 years. The 12 heavenly branches, represented by the 12 animals. And the ten earthly branches were represented by the five elements. If you look at the seasons, they go from winter to summer and then to winter again. The cycle of generation and degeneration is inherited in the seasons. And the seasons were in fact represented by the wu xing.
The 8 Trigrams and 64 Hexagrams, however, are definitely employed in traditional Taoist Magic and Internal Alchemy practices as visual talismans to assist in attracting and harnessing the energetic images and qualities which they are believed to represent.
Tai Yi —> Yin/Yang —> Si Xiang —> Five elements —> Bagua —> 64 Hexagram.
Again, the Five Elements and its basic idea of is inherited in the 8 diagrams and the 64 diagrams.
The two cycles of generation and destruction are connected to “Pre” and “post” mortal, or pre and post heavenly principle. Remember that the Bagua has two constellations or arrangements, one pre-heavenly, one post heavenly. One represents creation, one degeneration.
After Heaven, or the degeneration/destruction is represented by the hexagram 63, After Completion. The picture of the hexagram consists of Fire over Water. It means separation. Water flows down and away. Fire goes up and disappears.
Before Heaven, primordial, creation is represented by hexagram 64 "Before Completion", here the hexagram is represented by a picture where Fire is below Water. This creates steam or "Qi" = which means circulation. This is the taoist neidan ideal. The "heart flame" by stillness in practice sinks down to the lower dantian, which traditionally symbolized by a picture of a stove. The fire sinks below the water, creating steam.
5 elements, bagua, 64 hexagram, they are all linked together.
Posted: Sun Jun 13, 2021 7:13 am
