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The elements of the 8 trigrams (八卦bāguà)

Thunder was given its name by dividing the hexagram of same name 震zhèn, shock, thunder, earthquake, in the half, and is named 震zhèn the thunder. The trigram 火huǒ fire was given by the attributes of light, fire, of the hexagram 離 lí, that also means separate, a net. The hexagram 兑duì is generally translated as 悦yuè happiness, was given the symbol of 澤zé marsh, translated in the west as a tranquil lake, because a marsh is where the Chinese grow rice, and a lot of food means happiness. 乾qián, creating, powerful, was given the element of 天tiān the heaven because of its highness and power. The trigram 巽xùn gentleness, penetrating, was given the symbol of 风fēng wind because of its softness, also the penetrating soft sprouts of a plant of wood 木mù. The trigram 水shuǐ water, was given its name because doubling it you obtain the hexagram 坎kǎn pit, abyss, because these places accumulate water, and water means danger like in these places, because of the fear of the sea the Chinese had, also the floods and storms, and crossing a river (like seem in the Yi jing text). The 艮gèn stopping hexagram gives name to the 山shān mountain, because of its solidness, Sun Tzu in the art of war wrote “have the immovability of a mountain”. The 坤kūn field, earth hexagram names the 土tǔ earth, that even has its character as a component of the hexagram name, because the acceptance and softness of earth that embrace everything.

Do not learn moves, Learn with moves

A weiqi (go) saying, referring to the studies of joseki(patterns that are common in the game) that is indeed very useful in go, but should be applied to war too. In martial arts, don’t learn moves or forms and simply repeat them, learn WITH then; Sun Tzu said “do not repeat tactics that give you victory”. And this all should be applied to all Chinese philosophies. Do not learn the forms of太极拳太極拳Taijiquan(taichichuan) as if the fight would require them in the exact order you train, or they would exhaust all the possibilities of the art, Sun Tzu said that the tactics would be never exhausted; don’t simply know a judgment or line reading of the 易经(經)Yi jing (I ching) if when they say good fortune or misfortune is all you need to know; don’t learn by heart the 八卦bagua water in times of drought could mean a good thing not danger; don’t learn the text of the art of war and think it will make you a master of war, Sun Tzu said that the plans should be modified according to the circumstances; in feng shui don’t put an object in a direction that should give you luck in front of the door.

Learning architecture to translate the Yi jing

The Yi jing is so complex that while I’m translating the hexagram 28 preponderance of the great (the one that the ridge pole sags), I have to study architecture and construction to understand the text. And that’s not the only case where I had to learn about seemingly  simple things and had to learn through a new perspective to understand the texts.

The greatest lesson from Confucius

The greatest lesson from Confucius is Learn by yourself, not what he taught. O maior ensinamento de Confucio foi aprender por si mesmo, não aprender o que ele ensinava. 最重孔夫子教 是自学不是学其教.

welcome

created this blog about china and its culture and philosophy, specially war, martial arts(specially Taijiquan(Taichichuan), Baguazhang, and internal martial arts), and the Sun Tzu’s art of war; the Yi jing(I ching), yin and yang, the bagua; Confucianism; Daoism(Taoism), etc.