![]() The concept’s cyclical essence is concerned with the actual nature of the relationship between the elements in question – wood gives life to fire, fire fertilizes (with ashes) earth, earth ‘conceives’ metal, metal makes possible the existence of water, water feeds wood (trees). According to the concept of Wu Xing (schematized below), just about everything around us can be discussed in the allegorical terms of water, wood, fire, earth, and metal. The cycle of five elements/phases (Wu Xing) can be defined as the conceptual basis of Confucianism as a philosophy that promotes the idea that the integral components of the surrounding reality are organically interrelated with each other. In my paper, I will aim to substantiate the validity of this suggestion at length, while elaborating on what can be considered the main aspects of one’s association with the Chinese (Oriental) ethnocultural identity. Upon being closely examined, most of these motifs can be categorized as such that relate to the Confucian concept of Wu Xing (the cycle of five elements/phases), on the one hand, and to the Confucianism-based practice of venerating ancestors, on the other. ![]()
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