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上仪同三司城阳郡开国公萧吉撰
夫五行者，乃造化之根源，人伦之资始。万物依其变化而生成，百灵因其感应而通达。本乎阴阳，散乎精象，周遍天地，布列幽明。子午卯酉为经纬，八风六律为纲纪。故天有五度以垂象，地有五材以资用，人有五常以表德。万有森罗，以五为度；超过五的，数则变化。实赖五气，均和四时，孕育百物，陶铸万类。
善则五德顺行，三灵光耀；恶则九功不革，六疫互兴。原始要终，难究端兆。是以圣人体悟于未形之前，故设言以取象，立象以显事。事既悬有，可以象知；象则滋生。滋故生数，数则可纪；象则可形。可形可纪，理便可借以知之。可借以知，则龟筮是也。龟为象，故以日为五行之元；筮为数，故以辰为五行之主。
若夫参辰伏见，日月盈亏，雷动虹出，云行雨施，此天之象也；二十八宿，内外诸官，七曜三光，星分岁次，此天之数也。山川水陆，高下平污，岳镇河通，风回露蒸，此地之象也；八极四海，三江五湖，九州百郡，千里万顷，此地之数也。礼以节事，乐以和心，爵表章旗，刑用去恶，此人之象也；百官以治，万人以立，四教修文，七德阅武，此人之数也。
因象与数，故可识五行之始末；凭龟筮，方能辨阴阳之吉凶。是以事可借象以知，物因数而立。吉凶常寻阅群籍，研穷经典；自羲皇、神农以来，至于周汉，无不以五行为政治之本，以蓍龟为善恶之先。故传曰：天生五材，废一不可。《尚书》曰：商王受命，狎侮五常，殄弃三政。于是知：得之者昌，失之者亡。
昔日中原丧乱，晋室南迁，根本之书不足，枝末之学反盛。虚谈巧笔，争胜一时；硕学经邦，却弃于万古。后世沿袭，风气遂成。虽复占候之术尚行，皆从左道之说。卜筮之法，恒依爻象之理，却莫能分辨；月令无所依据，时制必有差爽。差之毫厘，失之千里。水旱兴起而不辨其由，妖祥作而不知其趣。非因形象，罕能征验；观其谬惑，叹学人皆信其末而忘其本，并举粗疏而遗漏精微。
古人有言：登山始见天高，临壑方觉地厚。不闻先圣之道，无以知学问之大。况五行幽深，岂可轻率而谈！今乃博采经纬，搜穷简牍，略谈大义，凡二十四段，别而分之，合为四十段。二十四者，节气之总；四十者，五行之成数。始自释名，终于虫鸟，凡与五行配合之义，皆在其中。庶几使斯道不坠，知其本始。
若能治心静志，研其精微，岂止怡神养性，保德全身？亦可辅弼政事，利益万物，此至人所达也。昔人因感于物而制经，吉今因事而述义。虽时世不同，然同轨殊途。叹味道之不齐，求利物之一致。倚赖后来哲人，补其缺漏焉。
The Five Elements are the root of all creation 🌱 and the foundation of human social ethics. All things depend on the transformations of the Five Elements to come into being, and all living beings connect through their resonance. The Five Elements originate from Yin and Yang, permeate subtle phenomena, and are distributed throughout the heavens and the earth, spanning both the visible and the hidden. Zi, Wu, Mao, and You serve as the warp and weft, while the Eight Winds and Six Pitches act as the guiding principles. Thus, the heavens have the degrees of the Five Stars to manifest their phenomena; the earth has the Five Materials to provide utility; and humans have the Five Constant Virtues to embody moral conduct. The complexity of all things is measured by the number five; numbers beyond five undergo transformations. This relies on the harmony of the Five Qi, which balance the four seasons, nurture all things, and shape the myriad categories.
Good deeds ensure the smooth operation of the Five Virtues, illuminating the Three Realms (heaven, earth, and humanity) ✨; evil deeds lead to the neglect of the Nine Achievements (governance) and the rise of the Six Calamities (disasters). Tracing the origins and outcomes, it is difficult to fathom their beginnings. Therefore, sages comprehended things before they took form, using language to capture their symbols and establishing symbols to reveal their essence. Since things exist, they can be understood through symbols; symbols, in turn, give rise to numbers. Numbers can be recorded, and symbols can take form. Where form and record are possible, the underlying principles can be discerned. This discernment is the function of turtle shell divination and yarrow stalk casting. The turtle represents symbols, so it takes the Heavenly Stems as the root of the Five Elements; the yarrow stalks represent numbers, so they take the Earthly Branches as the master of the Five Elements.
As for the appearances and disappearances of the stars Shen and Chen, the waxing and waning of the sun and moon, the stirrings of thunder and the emergence of rainbows, the movement of clouds and the falling of rain—these are the symbols of heaven. The Twenty-Eight Mansions, the inner and outer star officials, the Seven Luminaries (sun, moon, and five planets), and the Three Lights (sun, moon, and stars), the divisions of star degrees and the progression of years—these are the numbers of heaven. Mountains, rivers, land, and water; high, low, flat, and murky terrain; mountains guarding and rivers flowing; winds circling and dew evaporating—these are the symbols of earth. The Eight Extremities and Four Seas, the Three Rivers and Five Lakes, the Nine Provinces and Hundred Prefectures, spanning thousands of miles and myriad acres—these are the numbers of earth. Rituals to regulate affairs, music to harmonize the heart, ranks and banners to honor achievements, punishments to eliminate evil—these are the symbols of humanity. Officials to govern, people to establish themselves, the Four Teachings (cultural education) to cultivate civility, the Seven Virtues (military virtues) to review martial prowess—these are the numbers of humanity.
Through symbols and numbers, one can understand the beginning and end of the Five Elements; through turtle shell divination and yarrow stalk casting, one can discern the auspicious and inauspicious aspects of Yin and Yang. Thus, things can be understood through symbols, and all things are established through numbers. Auspicious and inauspicious outcomes often require consulting numerous texts and studying the classics. From the times of Fuxi and Shennong down to the Zhou and Han dynasties, the Five Elements have always been the foundation of governance, and divination has been the precursor to judging good and evil. Therefore, the texts say: "Heaven produces the Five Materials (metal, wood, water, fire, earth), and not one can be dispensed with." The Book of Documents states: "King Shang received the mandate but disdained the Five Constants and abandoned the Three Policies." From this, we know: those who follow the Dao flourish, while those who lose it perish.
In the past, the Central Plains fell into chaos, and the Jin court moved south, leading to a scarcity of fundamental texts while peripheral studies flourished. Empty debates and clever writings competed for attention, while the profound learning of statecraft was neglected for ages. Later generations followed suit, and this trend became entrenched. Although divination practices persisted, they often adhered to heterodox teachings. The methods of divination, which should be based on the principles of hexagrams and symbols, were no longer understood; the monthly ordinances lacked basis, and the timing systems were often erroneous. A slight deviation can lead to a vast error. Floods and droughts arose without understanding their causes, and omens appeared without recognizing their trends. Without relying on symbols and forms, validation was rare; observing these errors, it is lamentable that scholars believed in the trivial and forgot the fundamental, emphasizing the coarse while neglecting the subtle.
The ancients said: "Only by climbing a mountain can one see the height of heaven; only by facing a chasm can one feel the depth of the earth." Without hearing the teachings of the ancient sages, one cannot grasp the vastness of learning. How much more profound is the theory of the Five Elements—how can it be discussed lightly! Now, by broadly collecting classical texts and exhaustively searching through documents, I will briefly discuss its great meaning, dividing it into twenty-four sections and combining them into forty segments. Twenty-four represents the total number of solar terms; forty represents the completed number of the Five Elements. Starting with the explanation of names and ending with insects and birds, all meanings related to the correspondence of the Five Elements are included herein. I hope this will prevent the Dao from being lost and allow others to know its origins.
If one can calm the mind and focus the will, studying its subtleties, it will not only bring peace to the spirit and nurture one’s nature, preserving virtue and safeguarding the body, but also assist in governance and benefit all things. This is the realm attained by the highest sages. The ancients created classics inspired by things; today, I elucidate meanings based on events. Though the times differ, the path is the same even if the methods vary. Lamenting the disparities in understanding, I seek consistency in benefiting all things. I rely on future wise minds to supplement its omissions.
The theory of the Five Elements is the fundamental framework of the universe, originating from Yin and Yang and manifested through symbols (phenomena) and numbers (quantities). The Five Elements (metal, wood, water, fire, earth) harmonize the four seasons, nurture all things, and permeate the three realms of heaven, earth, and humanity. Good and evil actions affect the operation of the Five Virtues, leading to auspicious or inauspicious outcomes. Sages used turtle shell divination and yarrow stalk casting to understand and predict these changes, emphasizing the central role of the Five Elements in politics, ethics, and daily life.
In a modern context, the theory of the Five Elements can be seen as an ancient form of systems thinking, similar to today’s holistic approaches in ecology, psychology, or management. It emphasizes balance and harmony: for example, the Five Elements correspond to natural elements (🔥 fire, 🌊 water, 🌬 wind, ⛰ mountain, 🌱 wood), reminding us to maintain sustainable development in the environment. On a personal level, the Five Constants (benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and faithfulness) are akin to modern ethics, advocating moral behavior. The divination aspect (such as turtle shell and yarrow stalk casting) can be understood as ancient decision-making tools, similar to modern risk assessment or data prediction, though they should be viewed rationally to avoid superstition.
The theory of the Five Elements reflects the ancient deep understanding of the unity and variability of the universe. It implies the interconnectedness of all things and emphasizes the importance of "balance"—imbalance leads to disasters, resonating with modern systems theory (e.g., chaos theory). At the same time, it raises questions about human agency: how do our actions (good/evil) influence the world? This idea of the unity of heaven and humanity encourages reverence for nature and moral self-discipline, reminding us in the modern technological age not to forget our roots and to pursue sustainability and harmony.