In a recent story, I used the term “yin-yang.” Some people have asked me what that meant. They weren’t familiar with the term. I wasn’t either until I got involved in the martial arts many years ago. Let me try to explain. The yin-yang philosophy is represented by the Tao symbol that attempts to explain the workings of everything in the universe. It originated in ancient China and stands for the two opposing forces that govern the world.
There are times when my mind wanders in many different directions, seeking answers to why things are the way they are. I always seem to come back to the realization that life is a circle and we, and everything in it, are part of that circle of life. The Tao is a circle with two opposing forces that flow together.
The Native Americans and the people of the Orient are very aware of, and tuned into, the circle of life. I think too many people in the Western world tend to see life as straight lines, with occasional deviations from the path, but all roads go from point A to point B.
Even in politics we get hung up with lines. “Middle of the road” is moderate, “Left” is liberal, and “Right” is conservative. We think of them as straight lines with no deviation from the path. No crossing the line to the views of “the other side.” “Keep on the straight and narrow path,” we are told.
Party lines. I’ve often said if one party put a pig on the ballot, many people would vote for the pig, just because the pig is running on the right ticket. Who cares about the views or lack of views of the pig as long as he’s running in “Our Party?” It’s straight-line thinking instead of circle thinking that creates conflict and the lack of compromise.
Which brings my wandering mind back to the yin-yang symbol.
The interaction of two opposing forces is referred to as “yin” and “yang” in the Orient, “negative” and “positive” in the Western world.
The symbol is representative of two opposing forces flowing into one another in a continuous state of change. Yin is passive or negative. Yang is active or positive. They are opposite yet complementary. There is black and white flowing into each other and in a process of constant change. Also, nothing is completely black or white. In the black there is a spot of white, and in the white, a spot of black.
There is light and dark, love and hate, happy and unhappy, up or down, smile or frown, male and female, optimist or pessimist, day and night, right and wrong, weak and strong, and the list goes on and on. I think you can see the many opposites in your life.
In the martial arts we taught people how to use an attacker’s strength and force against themselves. By applying the principles of the Tao, or circle, the weak can overcome the strong. But it didn’t just represent self-defense. It became a philosophy of life. At the urging of a friend who counseled veterans, I founded a Karate club in Madison, called Nam Ki Do, for veterans who were having problems. I enlisted the help of my friend, Wes Severson, who was also a black belt in Tai Kwon Do and a veteran, to help instruct. The instruction was free of charge, but the students were expected to take the instruction seriously and not use what they learned in an aggressive way. Gichin Funakoshi, the founder of Shotokan Karate said, “The ultimate aim of the art of Karate lies not in victory or defeat, but in the perfection of the character of its participants.” He also said “To subdue the enemy without fighting is the highest skill.” Those are the attitudes we wanted to instill in our students. Using the principles of yin-yang we taught them how to control their anger and how to take the negative experience of war and turn it into something positive. Some of our students had drug and alcohol problems and many of them got their lives back together after getting involved in Nam Ki Do and learning the yin-yang of life. Several stuck with us long enough to earn their black belts and a couple have gone on to teach self-defense classes to women, also at no charge. When we left Madison, Wes took over and Nam Ki Do is still being taught after 24 years. And so the circle represented by the Tao continues to evolve. The negatives have morphed into positives.
Yin-yang is representative of life. Which side we choose, which direction we go, depends on our personal outlook. If you want to live a happy, vigorous, healthy life, look to the bright side. If gloom, misery, and self-defeating attitudes attract you, look to the dark side. The path lies before each of us and we have the power to choose the way we wish to go.
Just remember, even if you find yourself on the dark side of life, look for the bright spot, no matter how small. Then follow that light and use those negative experiences to make you stronger and turn the negatives into positives by changing the yin into yang. The choice is ours to make!
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