The Lincoln Year Book: Axioms and Aphorisms From the Great Emancipator

Yin And Yang In Chinese philosophy, the rhythm of life, which pulsates through the universe, is the action of complementary principles Yin and Yang. The T’ai-chi T’u diagram (above) illustrates this principle. The symmetrical disposition of the dark Yin and the light Yang suggests cyclical changes. Yin is the quiet, female, intuitive, receiving force that is associated with earth. The earth is the source of life; it provides us with what we need to survive. Yang is the strong, male, creative, giving force that is associated with heaven. The heaven above us is always in motion and brings about change. When Yin reaches its climax, it recedes in favour of Yang, then after Yang reaches its climax it recedes in favour of Yin. This is the eternal cycle. The dots inside the white and black halves indicate that within each is the seed of the Other. Yin cannot exist without Yang and vice versa. The ideal state of things in the physical universe, as well as in the world of humans, is a state of harmony represented by the balance of Yin and Yang in body and mind