🌻The Secret of The Five Elements
🌻The Five Elements
💧 Water 🌳 Wood 🔥 Fire 🌏 Earth 🪓 Metal
🌻The Five Stages Existence
🌳As mentioned before, the Tao exists between Yin and Yang. All existence has a beginning and an end. The Tao is the path that lies between the beginning and the end. It is where existence progresses.
🌳If this path is divided into five stages, it would represent the five stages of existence: Birth, Growth, Maturity, Deterioration, and Death. In general, the five elements are used as references to the five stages of existence. Water represents birth, Wood represents growth, Fire represents maturity, Earth represents deterioration, and Metal represents death.
| Birth | Growth | Mature | Deteriorate | Death |
| 💧 Water | 🌳 Wood | 🔥 Fire | 🌏 Earth | 🪓 Metal |
🌻Creation and Destruction or the Five Elements
Nature has two forces, the force of creation and the force of destruction.
🌻Creation Cycle of the Five Elements
- 🌿 Water gave birth to Wood.
- 🌿 Wood gave birth to Fire.
- 🌿 Fire gave birth to Earth. (When wood is burned, it turns into ashes.)
- 🌿 Earth gave birth to Metal (Metals came from the Earth.)
- 🌿 Metal gave birth to Water. (When solid melts, it becomes liquid.)
Water gives birth to Wood. In Chinese, this is called "Water sheng (生) Wood." The Chinese character "sheng (生)" can be interpreted as both creation and nourishment. In other words, Water first creates Wood, and then nourishes it. Creation is a force that generates and sustains its descendant element, keeping it alive and healthy. Wood cannot exist without Water; therefore, Water is auspicious and beneficial to Wood.
🌻Destruction Cycle of the Five Elements
Just as there are forces of creation, there are also forces of destruction; otherwise, life would exist forever.
- 💧 Water afflicts Fire (water puts out fire).
- 🔥 Fire afflicts Metal (fire melts metal).
- 🪓 Metal afflicts Wood (as an ax chops down a tree).
- 🌳 Wood afflicts Earth (The roots of a tree hold soil in place and absorb the nutrients from the earth)
- 🌍 Earth afflicts Water (When earth is thrown into a puddle, water is absorbed).
In Chinese, the idea that water afflicts fire is expressed as "water ke (剋) fire." The Chinese character ke (剋) means "hostile to" or "to destroy". Water can weaken and destroy fire; therefore, water is considered hostile to fire.
🌻The Relationships Between the Self and The Force of Creation, and The Force of Destruction
Human beings possess two forces: the force of creation and the force of destruction.
🌻The Self I
The self is "I". I am myself. I can think, and I can see. I have feelings. I am an "existence". Because I exist, I have relationships with others. I can create, and I can destroy.
🌻Active and Passive Forces, Creation and Destruction
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- 🌿 Active Creation: I actively create or help others. I am active. My activities benefit others. I am the one who gives.
- 🌿 Passive Creation: I was created and nurtured by my parents. I am passive. Sometimes, when I am in need, I am helped by the activities of others. I am the one who receives.
- 🔥 Active Destruction: I cut down a tree and use the logs for firewood. I am active. Because of my action, a tree ceases to exist. I am the one who afflicts.
- 🔥 Passive Destruction: Someone smashed my car window. I am passive. My property was destroyed by someone else. I am the one who has been afflicted.
| ☯ Yin Yang | Active (Yang) | Passive (Yin) |
| ☀️ Positive (Yang) | To Create | Created By |
| 🌙 Negative (Yin) | To Destroy | Destroyed By |
🌻The Four Relationships and I, and the Five Elements
The four relationships are:
🧓🏻👵🏼 Parent 👨👩👧👦 Children 👮🏻♀️Authority 💎Wealth
Have you ever wondered why there are only five elements, not four or six? The self is "I" (wo 我). Because I exist, relationships are formed between me (I) and others. If I were the element of 🔥fire, I would have been created by 🌳wood, because wood gives birth to fire. Wood nourished me, and I grew. Wood is my Parent. My creation is 🌍earth. Earth is my Child. Earth deprives me. 💧Water afflicts me because water extinguishes fire and hinders my growth. To me, water is my Authority and has power over me. I exist as 'fire.' Being what I am, I have a natural tendency to afflict metal. Fire melts metal. Metal is my Wealth.
| 🧓🏻👵🏼 Parents | 👨👩👧👦 Children | 👮🏻♀️Authority | 💎Wealth |
| Created Me | I created | Afflicts Me | I Afflicts |
| I am Passive | I am Active | I am Passive | I am Active |
The four relationships and I form the five elements.
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