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Five elements (Japanese philosophy)

 
Five Elements (Japanese Philosophy)

 
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Five elements (Japanese philosophy)
 
 
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Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
's concepts of the five elements are heavily influenced by Buddhism
Buddhism

Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices considered by most to be a religionand is based on the teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as "The Buddha" , who was born in what is today Nepal....
. The Chinese five elements
Five elements (Chinese philosophy)

In many traditional Chinese theory field, matters and its developmental movement stage can be classified into the Wu Xing , or the Five Movements, Five Phases or Five Steps/Stages, traditionally translated as Five Elements....
 are called gogyo, and the Indian five elements
Tattva

Tattva is a Sanskrit word meaning 'thatness', 'principle', 'reality' or 'truth'. According to various Indian schools of philosophy, a tattva is an element or aspect of reality conceived as an aspect of deity....
 are called godai. The following article explains the latter.

The godai, lit. "five great", of Japanese tradition is perhaps best known in the West for their use in Miyamoto Musashi
Miyamoto Musashi

, also known as Shinmen Takezo, Miyamoto Bennosuke, or by his Buddhist name Niten Doraku, was a Japanese people swordsman famed for his duels and distinctive style....
's famous text Gorin-no-sho (The Book of Five Rings
The Book of Five Rings

is a text on kenjutsu and the martial arts in general, written by the samurai warrior Miyamoto Musashi circa 1645. It is considered a classic treatise on military strategy, much like Sun Tzu's The Art of War and Chanakya's Arthashastra....
), in which he explains different aspects of swordsmanship by assigning each aspect to an element.

The Elements
The five elements are, in ascending order of power, ? ( chi or tsuchi) Earth, ? (sui or mizu) Water, ? (ho, ka or hi) Fire, ? (fu or kaze) Wind, and ? (ku).






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Japan
Japan

Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south....
's concepts of the five elements are heavily influenced by Buddhism
Buddhism

Buddhism is a family of beliefs and practices considered by most to be a religionand is based on the teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as "The Buddha" , who was born in what is today Nepal....
. The Chinese five elements
Five elements (Chinese philosophy)

In many traditional Chinese theory field, matters and its developmental movement stage can be classified into the Wu Xing , or the Five Movements, Five Phases or Five Steps/Stages, traditionally translated as Five Elements....
 are called gogyo, and the Indian five elements
Tattva

Tattva is a Sanskrit word meaning 'thatness', 'principle', 'reality' or 'truth'. According to various Indian schools of philosophy, a tattva is an element or aspect of reality conceived as an aspect of deity....
 are called godai. The following article explains the latter.

The godai, lit. "five great", of Japanese tradition is perhaps best known in the West for their use in Miyamoto Musashi
Miyamoto Musashi

, also known as Shinmen Takezo, Miyamoto Bennosuke, or by his Buddhist name Niten Doraku, was a Japanese people swordsman famed for his duels and distinctive style....
's famous text Gorin-no-sho (The Book of Five Rings
The Book of Five Rings

is a text on kenjutsu and the martial arts in general, written by the samurai warrior Miyamoto Musashi circa 1645. It is considered a classic treatise on military strategy, much like Sun Tzu's The Art of War and Chanakya's Arthashastra....
), in which he explains different aspects of swordsmanship by assigning each aspect to an element.

The Elements


The five elements are, in ascending order of power, ? ( chi or tsuchi) Earth, ? (sui or mizu) Water, ? (ho, ka or hi) Fire, ? (fu or kaze) Wind, and ? (ku). This last is usually translated as "void" when referring to the elements, but refers to "sky" in most other contexts, and is therefore sometimes translated as "Heaven". Sometimes a sixth element is added, representing Consciousness, or ? (shiki).

Chi


? Chi (sometimes ji) or tsuchi, meaning "Earth
Earth (classical element)

Earth, home and origin of humanity, has often been worshipped in its own right with its own unique spiritual tradition....
", represents the hard, solid objects of the world. The most basic example of chi is in a stone. Stones are highly resistant to movement or change, as is anything heavily influenced by chi. In people, the bones, muscles and tissues are represented by chi. Emotionally, chi is predominantly associated with stubbornness, stability, physicality, and gravity. In the mind, it is confidence; and emotionally it is a desire to have things remain as they are; a resistance to change. When under the influence of this chi mode or "mood", we are aware of our own physicality and sureness of action. (Note: This is a separate concept from the energy-force
Qi

In traditional Chinese culture, qi is an active principle forming part of any living thing.It is frequently translated as "energy flow," and is often compared to Western notions of energeia or ?lan vital as well as the Yoga Pranayama of prana....
, pronounced in Chinese as qì (or di) and in Japanese as ki, and written alternatively as ?, ?, or ?.)

Sui


? Sui or mizu, meaning "Water
Water (classical element)

Water has been important to all peoples of the earth, and it is rich in spiritual tradition....
", represents the fluid, flowing, formless things in the world. Outside of the obvious example of rivers and the like, plants are also categorized under sui, as they adapt to their environment, growing and changing according to the direction of the sun and the changing seasons. Blood and other bodily fluids are represented by sui, as are mental or emotional tendencies towards adaptation and change. sui can be associated with emotion, defensiveness, adaptability, flexibility, suppleness, and magnetism.

Ka


? Ka or hi, meaning "Fire
Fire (classical element)

Fire has been an important part of many cultures and religions, from pre-history to modern day, and was vital to the development of civilization....
", represents the energetic, forceful, moving things in the world. Animals, particularly predators, capable of movement and full of forceful energy, are primary examples of ka objects. Bodily, ka represents our metabolism and body heat, and in the mental and emotional realms, it represents drive and passion. ka can be associated with motivation, desire, intention, and an outgoing spirit. Besides the obvious examples of heat and flame, lightning can also be thought of as an extension of Ka.

Fu


? Fu or kaze, meaning "Wind
Air (classical element)

In traditional cultures, air is often seen as a universal power or pure substance. Its fundamental importance to life can be seen in words such as aspire, conspire, inspire, perspire, and spirit, all derived from the Latin spirare ....
", represents things that grow, expand, and enjoy freedom of movement. Aside from air, smoke, and the like, fu can in some ways be best represented by the human mind. As we grow physically, we learn and expand mentally as well, in terms of our knowledge, our experiences, and our personalities. Fu represents breathing, and the internal processes associated with Mentally and emotionally, it represents an "open-minded" attitude and carefree feeling. It can be associated with will, elusiveness, evasiveness, benevolence, compassion, and wisdom

Ku


? Ku or sora, most often translated as "Void", but also meaning "sky" or "Heaven", represents those things beyond our everyday experience, particularly those things composed of pure energy. Bodily, ku represents spirit, thought, and creative energy. It represents our ability to think and to communicate, as well as our creativity. It can also be associated with power, creativity, spontaneity, and inventiveness.

Ku is of particular importance as the highest of the elements. In martial arts, particularly in fictional tales where the fighting discipline is blended with magic or the occult, one often invokes the power of the Void to connect to the quintessential creative energy of the world. A warrior properly attuned to the Void can sense his surrounding and act without thinking, and without using his physical senses.

Representations of the Godai


Goju No To (five Story Pagoda) Horyuji
The most common representations today of the five elements, outside of martial arts and fictional references (such as in anime), are found in Buddhist architecture
Buddhist architecture

Buddhist religious architecture developed in the South Asia in the third century BC.Three types of structures are associated with the religious architecture of early Buddhism: monasteries , stupas, and temples ....
. Many pagoda
Pagoda

A pagoda is the general term in the English language for a tiered tower with multiple eaves common in China, Japan, Korea, Vietnam, and other parts of Asia....
s (?? butto) in Japan are of the Goju-no-To style, meaning they have five tiers or levels. Each tier, naturally, represents one of the elements, beginning with chi ("earth") at the bottom, and ending with ku ("void" or "sky") at the top. Often, the spire at the top is also divided into five sections.

Japanese stone lanterns as seen in Zen gardens and Buddhist temples also represent the five elements. The bottom-most piece, touching the ground, represents chi; the next section, often shaped to look like a lotus flower, represents sui; ka is represented by the section encasing the lantern's light or flame, while fu and ku are represented by the last two sections, top-most and pointing towards the sky.

Another common symbol of the five elements is the gorinto
Gorinto

is the Japanese name of a type of Buddhist pagoda found in East Asia. In Japan it's used for memorial or funerary purposes and is therefore common in Buddhist temples and cemeteries....
, a stone tower of modest size used mainly in Buddhist temples and cemeteries. It's composed from top to bottom of a cube, a sphere, a triangle, a crescent and something resembling a lotus flower, shapes that also have the meaning described above.

See also


  • Wu Xing
  • Feng shui
    Feng shui

    Feng shui is an ancient Chinese system of aesthetics believed to utilize the Laws of both heaven and Earth to help one improve life by receiving positive Qi....
  • Onmyodo
    Onmyodo

    is a traditional Japanese esoteric cosmology, a mixture of natural science and occultism. It is based on the Chinese philosophies of Wu Xing and Yin and yang, introduced into Japan at the turn of the 6th century, and accepted as a practical system of divination....
  • Gorin no Sho