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夫刑者.殺罰爲名.自是刑於不義.非故相刑也.五行各在一方.寒暑推移.應時而動.不失其節.各不犯.各無應獨受刑者.但須用之不嚴而治.不可弃而不用.故皆還相刑.如以金治金.則成其器.以人治人.則成國政.呂氏春秋云.刑罰不可偃於國.笞怒不可廢於家.故五刑之屬三千.莫不本乎五行.周書曰.因五行相尅.而作五刑.墨.劓.剕.宮.大辟是也.火能變金色.故墨以變其肉.金能尅木.故剕以去其骨節.木能尅土.故劓以去其鼻.土能塞水.故宮以斷其淫泆.水能滅火.故大辟以絕其生命.至於漢文.去其肉刑.代之以鞭笞.其後梟斬流絞之徒.竝不越其五數.尚書云.流宥五刑.又.五流相去各五百里.鞭笞之數.起自於十.積而至百.亦依十干之數.尚書刑德攷云.大辟象天刑.罰贖之數三千.應天地人.日辰支干之刑.亦有三種.故天地人之刑.其揆一也.三種者.一.支自相刑.二.支刑在干.三.干刑在支.支自相刑者.子刑在卯.卯刑在子.丑刑在戌.戌刑在未.未刑在丑.寅刑在巳.巳刑在申.申刑在寅.辰午酉亥各自刑.漢書翼奉奏事云.木落歸本.故亥卯未.木之位.刑在北方.亥自刑.卯刑在子.未刑在丑.水流向末.故申子辰.水之位.刑在東方.申刑在寅.子刑在卯.辰自刑.金剛火強.各還其鄕.故巳酉丑.金之位.刑在西方.巳刑在申.酉自刑.丑刑在戌.寅午戌.火之位.刑在南方.寅刑在巳.午自刑.戌刑在未.干刑支者寅刑在庚.卯刑在辛.辰刑在甲.巳刑在癸.午刑在壬.未刑在乙.申刑在丙.酉刑在丁.戌刑在甲.亥刑在己.子刑在戊.丑刑在乙.支刑干者.甲刑在申.乙刑在酉.丙刑在子.丁刑在亥.戊刑在寅.己刑在卯.庚刑在午.辛刑在巳.壬刑在辰戊.癸刑在丑未.此竝以所勝爲刑也.凡卜筮所用.遇刑非善.然所求之事.非刑不獲.史蘇龜經云.當成不成.視兆相刑.又問云.六合是吉.而巳申相尅者何.答曰.金帶水生火中.火爲金鬼.水爲火鬼.金共水生火中.則是鬼母子身.申是金位.兼復懷水.巳是火位.復有生金.還相讎.故以爲刑也.然刑有上下.寅刑在巳者.巳爲刑上.寅爲刑下.餘例悉爾.故兵書云.刑上風來.坐者急起.行者急住.卽此謂也.云三刑者.如寅刑在巳.巳刑在申.寅日申時.巳上起風.或巳上見妖.謂之三刑也.他亦效此.別有從氣爲刑.與德相對者.已從前解.故不重釋.
Punishment (Xing), named for its nature of execution and penalty ⚡, is fundamentally a penalty for unjust actions, not an intentional mutual conflict. The Five Elements each occupy their own positions, with cold and heat alternating in progression, acting in accordance with the times without losing rhythm, and not infringing upon one another. Originally, there is no singular entity that solely receives punishment. However, punishment must be applied with a measured approach to governance—it cannot be abandoned entirely, hence the mutual conflict among the Five Elements. For example, using metal to work metal creates tools; using humans to govern humans establishes state governance. The Lüshi Chunqiu states: "Punishments cannot be abolished in a state, nor can reproach and anger be discarded in a family." The five punishments encompass three thousand subtypes, all rooted in the Five Elements. The Book of Zhou states: "Based on the mutual conquest of the Five Elements, the five punishments were established—tattooing (marking), cutting off the nose, amputating feet, castration, and execution." Fire can alter the color of metal, hence tattooing changes the body; metal can conquer wood, hence amputation removes joints; wood can conquer earth, hence cutting off the nose removes the sense of smell; earth can block water, hence castration stops licentiousness; water can extinguish fire, hence execution ends life. By the time of Emperor Wen of Han, corporal punishment was replaced by flogging, and subsequent punishments such as beheading, exile, and hanging did not exceed the scope of the five punishments. The Book of Documents states: "Exile leniently substitutes for the five punishments; the five exiles are each five hundred li apart." The count of flogging starts from ten and accumulates to one hundred, also following the count of the Ten Heavenly Stems. The Examination of Punishment and Virtue in the Book of Documents states: "Execution mirrors heavenly punishment, with a redemption fine of three thousand, corresponding to heaven, earth, and humanity." The punishment of heavenly stems and earthly branches also has three types: First, branches punishing each other; second, branches punishing stems; third, stems punishing branches.
Branches punishing each other: Zi punishes Mao, Mao punishes Zi; Chou punishes Xu, Xu punishes Wei, Wei punishes Chou; Yin punishes Si, Si punishes Shen, Shen punishes Yin; Chen, Wu, You, and Hai each punish themselves. The Book of Han records Yifeng’s memorial: "Wood returns to its origin when it falls, hence the wood positions of Hai, Mao, and Wei are punished in the north—Hai punishes itself, Mao punishes Zi, Wei punishes Chou; water flows to its end, hence the water positions of Shen, Zi, and Chen are punished in the east—Shen punishes Yin, Zi punishes Mao, Chen punishes itself; metal is hard and fire is strong, each returning to its homeland, hence the metal positions of Si, You, and Chou are punished in the west—Si punishes Shen, You punishes itself, Chou punishes Xu; the fire positions of Yin, Wu, and Xu are punished in the south—Yin punishes Si, Wu punishes itself, Xu punishes Wei."
Stems punishing branches: Yin punishes Geng, Mao punishes Xin, Chen punishes Jia, Si punishes Gui, Wu punishes Ren, Wei punishes Yi, Shen punishes Bing, You punishes Ding, Xu punishes Jia, Hai punishes Ji, Zi punishes Wu, Chou punishes Yi.
Branches punishing stems: Jia punishes Shen, Yi punishes You, Bing punishes Zi, Ding punishes Hai, Wu punishes Yin, Ji punishes Mao, Geng punishes Wu, Xin punishes Si, Ren punishes Chen and Xu, Gui punishes Chou and Wei. All these are based on conquest as punishment.
In divination, encountering punishment is generally inauspicious, yet the desired outcome may not be achieved without punishment. The Turtle Scripture of Shi Su states: "When success seems unlikely, observe the cracks for signs of punishment." Another question: "The six harmonies are auspicious, so why do Si and Shen conflict?" Answer: "Metal carries water and is born in fire; fire is the enemy of metal, and water is the enemy of fire. Metal and water coexist in fire, making the enemy mother part of the body. Shen is the metal position and also carries water, while Si is the fire position and also produces metal. They conflict with each other, hence forming punishment." Punishment has upper and lower aspects: for example, Yin punishes Si, where Si is the upper punishment and Yin is the lower punishment. The same applies to other cases. Military texts state: "When punishment comes from above, those sitting should rise quickly, and those moving should stop immediately." The three punishments refer to cases like Yin punishing Si, Si punishing Shen, and on a Yin day at Shen hour, wind rising from Si or anomalies appearing, termed the three punishments. Other cases follow this pattern. There is also punishment based on Qi, which corresponds to virtue. This has been explained earlier and will not be repeated.
The essence of punishment is a penal mechanism based on the mutual conquest of the Five Elements, derived from the constraints of natural order to maintain balance. It is not malicious harm but a correction of injustice or imbalance, reflecting the governance wisdom of "using punishment to end punishment." Ancient systems linked punishment to the three realms of heaven, earth, and humanity, as well as the stem-branch system, forming a comprehensive symbolic framework.
In a modern context, punishment can be understood as rules and constraints, internal conflicts, or external challenges. For example:
The mutual conquest of the Five Elements can be mapped to modern systems theory: elements constrain each other (e.g., fire 🔥 and water 🌊 opposing each other) to maintain dynamic balance. Stem-branch punishment rules are akin to data algorithms used for pattern analysis (e.g., in fate calculation or risk assessment).
Punishment is deeply rooted in the philosophy of yin-yang balance: without punishment, there is disorder; with excessive punishment, there is tyranny. It reflects the universal law of cause and effect—every action has a reaction. Modern individuals can learn from this: challenges (punishment) are catalysts for growth, not pure obstacles; true harmony includes appropriate tension.