Culture Arena
China · Religion & Belief · Hard
Which five elements—wood, fire, earth, metal and water—form a system of phases (wuxing) that generate and overcome each other in constant cycles, underpinning Chinese medicine, cosmology, astrology and political theory?
Answer: Five Phases — The wuxing (often translated as 'five elements', more accurately 'five phases' or 'five agents') is a correlative cosmology: wood feeds fire, fire creates earth (ash), earth bears metal, metal enriches water, water nourishes wood in a generative cycle.
- A Four Humours
- B Three Doshas
- C Five Phases ✓
- D Seven Chakras
The wuxing (often translated as 'five elements', more accurately 'five phases' or 'five agents') is a correlative cosmology: wood feeds fire, fire creates earth (ash), earth bears metal, metal enriches water, water nourishes wood in a generative cycle.