Yin and yang
concept of dualism and complementarity in Chinese philosophy, cosmology, traditional medicine, fengshui, and protoscience, opposing “yang“ (for solar, masculine, active, warm) with “yin“ (for lunar, feminine, passive, cool)
Originating in ancient Chinese philosophy, yin and yang (traditional Chinese: 陰陽; simplified Chinese: 阴阳; pinyin: yīn yáng, English: , ) or yin-yang is the concept that there exist cosmic principles or forces that are opposite but complementary, which interact, interconnect, support and perpetuate each other. Together they form a dynamic system in which the whole is greater than the interdependent components, and both parts are essential for the cohesion of the whole.
In Chinese mythology, the universe develops out of a primary chaos of primordial qi or material energy, organized into the cycles of yin and yang, force and motion leading to form and matter. "Yin" is retractive, passive, contractive and receptive in nature in a contrasting relationship to "yang", which is repelling, active, expansive and repulsive in principle. This dichotomy in some form is seen in all things in nature and their patterns of change, difference and transformations. For example, biological, psychological and cosmological seasonal cycles, the historical evolution of landscapes over days, weeks, years to eons. The original meaning of yin was depicted as the northerly shaded side of a hill and yang being the bright southerly aspect. When pertaining to traditional human gender, yin is associated with more rounded feminine characteristics and yang as sharp and masculine traits.
Taiji is a Chinese cosmological term for the "Supreme Ultimate" state of undifferentiated absolute and infinite potential, the oneness before duality, from which yin and yang originate. It can be contrasted with the older wuji (無極; 'without pole').
“Yin and yang” enters the record as concept of dualism and complementarity in Chinese philosophy, cosmology, traditional medicine, fengshui, and protoscience, opposing “yang“ (for solar, masculine, active, warm) with “yin“ (for lunar, feminine, passive, cool). Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what yang, concept and dualism can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 16, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q62744. The Library of Congress control number is sh85149161. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 1 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank.
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This entry incorporates text from “Yin and yang” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.