Yin-Yang and the Five Phases

China in the third century envisioned the work in terms of two interlocking systems: yin-yang and the five phases, also known less accurately as the five elements.

The duality of yin-yang is one of the constant norms of the universe. Though opposing, are also complementary in that one can never act independently of the other; the waxing of one invariably entails the waning of the other.

The familiar figure representation of yin-yang emphasizes the fluid symbiotic relation. The curvilinear areas of dark and light enfold each other within a perfect circle that knows no beginning or end; the tiny seeds of each are discovered in the swelling contours of its opposite. At the culmination of one, its opposite is born, and so on, in a constant process of advance and retreat, making and unmaking.

The list of the five phases includes water, fire, wood, metal, and Earth. The phases are essentially five different types of processes ergo the corrected term of "phases vs. elements."

Bibliography:
Nylan, Michael and Hsiung, Yang. "The Elemental Changes: The Ancient Chinese Companion to the I Ching." New York Press, 1994.