The Deep Meaning Of Yin & Yang

All information whatsoever can be translated into terms of yang and yin. Alan Watts.

The concept of Yin & Yang lies at the basis of Taoist philosophy. It makes a lot of appearances in popular and consumer culture, representing things like balance and inner peace. But the profundity of yin and yang goes way beyond that. When we really get this mysterious philosophy, it may change our view on the universe forever. This video is an attempt to explain the deep meaning of yin & yang.

The idea behind yin and yang is kind of paradoxical. The black and white stand for two opposing forces that are also complementary. This constant mutual attraction and repulsion causes constant change, that manifests in what we call the universe. Phenomena like life and death, winter and summer, matter and emptiness are all physical manifestations of yin and yang.

Yin and yang can be translated as dark-light or negative-positive and is often referred to as masculine versus feminine. Especially in the ancient masterpiece written by Lao Tzu called the Tao Te Ching, we can see that he talks about the feminine, or the great mother, being the mysterious, receptive, and passive force represented by the black part of the yin yang symbol, and the masculine, being the active force that is basically most visible and prominent, represented by the white part.

Now, this isn’t meant to be sexist. The word feminine is a way to describe the characteristics of one opposite, while the masculine describes the other. Men and women both possess yin and yang characteristics, which was also observed by Swiss psychologist Carl Jung, who spoke about the unconscious masculine side of the woman - the animus - and unconscious feminine side of the man - the anima.

Moreover, when we look at the yin and yang symbol, we see a black dot in the white area and a white dot in the black area, representing the idea that both feminine and masculine carry the seed of one another.

So, what are the differences between yin and yang? And what can be considered yin and what can be considered yang? Before I’m able to explain this, it’s important to note that there are no absolutes. What’s yin or yang really depends on the situation. Here’s what Lao Tzu wrote in chapter 2 of the Tao Te Ching:

"Being and non-being produce each other. Difficult and easy complement each other. Long and short define each other. High and low oppose each other. Fore and aft follow each other." End quote.

Each example given has a yin and yang element in it. Both yin and yang complement each other. Yin represents a series of characteristics that are - generally - passive, empty, low, cold, and dark in nature. Things like passivity and emptiness seem of little value, but they actually harbor an immense power, which I’ll talk about in a minute.

We can describe yang as the active and masculine element, that is - generally - found in things like light, warmth, height, fullness, aggression, and speed. So, if we look at the verses from the Tao Te Ching, we can say that long is considered yang, while short is considered yin. Being is considered yang, while non-being is considered yin. One cannot exist without the other, and whether one is yin or yang depends on the relationship between the two.

Now, while the functionality of yang seems obvious, the value of yin is often overlooked, yet it contains great power. A good example to show this power is the functionality of a mug. The yang aspects of the mug are the material that it’s made of, which is most likely hard and dry material.

So, what makes the mug really useful? The answer is: its emptiness. Without emptiness, a mug can’t hold any liquids. If we look at emptiness in this way, we’ll see that it’s a vital part of everything we do. Without the emptiness of the space around us, we can’t punch or shoot a soccer ball. Without emptiness in sound, we can’t speak, because we need pauses to separate the tones. We can’t enter a room that isn’t empty and without the vast empty space in the universe, our solar system wouldn’t function.

Another aspect of yin...