Taoism emphasizes the beauty in this balance of accepting both as the way of life. The opposite of success is failure, but Americans do not value failure nearly as much as its opposite. Yinyang (Yin-yang) Yinyang (yin-yang) is one of the dominant concepts shared by different schools throughout the history of Chinese philosophy.Just as with many other Chinese philosophical notions, the influences of yinyang are easy to observe, but its conceptual meanings are hard to define. However, the teachings of Taoism emphasize the importance of balance and not focusing too heavily on one thing. With the importance of success in the American culture today, it is difficult to find usefulness in emptiness and avoid extraneous activity. ), which is often called yin and yang, is used to describe how seemingly opposite or contrary forces are interconnected and interdependent in the natural. The yin, the dark swirl, is associated with shadows. The pot’s use comes from emptiness….Having leads to profit, Not having leads to use.”Ģ4: “According to Tao, Excessive food, Extraneous Activity Inspire Disgust.” The ubiquitous yin-yang symbol holds its roots in Taoism/Daoism, a Chinese religion and philosophy. There were several lines from “Tao Te Ching” that emphasize the importance of balance even with a value like success:ġ1: “Clay is fired to make a pot. Americans are focused on being incredibly busy with achieving, regardless of the form of that achievement. One of these values, success, stood out to me greatly. During class discussion, several American culture values were brainstormed by the group. While the yin-yang symbol emphasizes balance and the importance of having both sides of what the symbol represents, American culture is far from embracing the symbolic representation or any deeper meaning that the yin-yang symbol represents. John Bellaimey breaks down the yin-yang symbol and its meaning into simple metaphorical examples and clarifies the meaning and history behind the symbol, which is commonly misunderstood by those not educated in the Chinese culture. The simplified characters clearly show the moon. The second character / (yng) means: positive electrical charge sun. John Bellaimey explains why we all contain the spirit of yin and of yang and. The yin, the dark swirl, is associated with shadows, femininity, and the trough of a wave the yang, the light swirl, represents brightness, passion and growth. The first character / (yn) means: overcast weather feminine moon cloudy negative electrical charge shady. The ubiquitous yin - yang symbol holds its roots in Taoism / Daoism, a Chinese religion and philosophy. The yang is the lighter side that represents brightness, passion, and growth. The Chinese characters for Yin Yang are / and they are pronounced yn yng. It is a purely relativist system any one thing is. The dark side is associated with femininity and shadows. In Confucian philosophy, the system of Yin and Yang was conceived as a way of explaining the universe. In the short clip attached, John Bellaimey explains why we all contain the spirit of yin and yang and what each side of the symbol represents. The yin-yang symbol holds its roots in Daoism/Taoism, which is a Chinese religion/philosophy.