التراث الفلسفي الصيني .. الاسكندريه والسيمياء

Chinese Philosophical Heritage .. Alexandria and Alchemy

Chinese Philosophical Heritage

Around 525 BC, a philosopher called Confucius, the Latin pronunciation of Kung-Fu-Tsu or Master Kung, developed a system of values ​​that defined each person's fixed role in society.

This civil bureaucratic system - Confucianism - held China together through changing dynasties, empires, and social upheavals, and kept China intact as a political entity for 2,000 years. Confucian philosophy was concerned with social systems rather than natural philosophy, at least not to a great extent. However, other philosophies emerged in response to Confucian rigor, and these philosophies were concerned with the nature of the world.

One group of philosophers, appropriately named the Naturalists, held that the world was composed of five elements: metal, wood, earth, water, and fire. They believed that all material substances were the result of combinations of these five elements. They also used the dualism of yin and yang. Yin, the female element, was the moon—negative, heavy, earthy, with its dry, cold, dark, and dead properties. Yang, the male element, was the sun—positive, active, fiery, with its moist, warm, light, and life properties. Taoism may have preceded Confucianism, but it became more widespread as a reaction to Confucianism. This philosophical group embraced the concept of the five elements, yin and yang. They believed, for example, that all metals or minerals were essentially the same thing, differing only in the amount of yin and yang. Taoism was also anti-intellectual, rejecting any search for knowledge, and advocating—at least in its beginnings—a return to a simpler way of life. They believed that life could be extended on the principles of Taoism, and they sought peace and longevity in a simple, naive life spent in quiet meditation.

However, these ideas eventually became corrupted. The search for a longer life turned into a search for immortality, and Taoism turned from quiet meditation into the practice of magic. The secret they believed in was certainly the nature of gold: gold is incorruptible and eternal, so those who succeeded in incorporating gold into their bodies attained immortality. The Taoists began to search for a way to drink gold. They began to search for the elixir of life.