TERMBASES
This refers to the concept of the five basic
elements, each in turn giving rise to the next. The five basic elements are:
wood, fire, earth, metal, and water. All things in the world are composed of
these five elements or possess their properties. According to this concept,
wood produces fire; fire produces earth; earth produces metal; metal produces
water; and water produces wood. Similarly, things with the properties of these
five elements also have similar relations between themselves.
The five elements are comparable to five official positions. Adjacent things emerge in a certain sequence. If things do not emerge in order, each will check the next. This principle also applies to the governance of a state and all social affairs. Chaos grows if the order of the five elements is disrupted; peace prevails if the five elements are in good order.
There are three meanings to the term. 1) The five fundamental things or elements that make up all things. The Book of History was the first to define the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and ea…
This refers to the concept of the fiveelements sequentially overpowering each other, which is also described as “the fiveelements, each in turn checking the next”. The term “five elements” refers t…
The cycle of five elements that repeatedly follow each other in fixed succession is a belief that interpreted the rise and fall of dynasties and political changes. It was propounded by Zou Yan (305?-…