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The Pentagram though the ages continued…
China The Chinese felt the power of five, and "arranged accordingly the directions, seasons of the year, sounds, parts of the body, tastes and colors. The entire life in this world is built on five." This system of thought became the basis for feng shui, or the art of geomancy. In China (and Korea as well), the art of geomancy is a form of fortune telling using the earth. This art is centered around five colors, five directions, five animals, and five types of energy. Feng shui combines religious, philosophical, astrological, cosmological, mathematical, and geographical concepts.
When entering into the Forbidden City of Beijing, visitors arrive in an immense courtyard through the Meridan Gate, and find themselves faced with five bridges over the Golden Water. It is said that these bridges represent the five Confucian (or constant) virtues: humanity, sense of duty, wisdom, reliability and ceremonial propriety.
In Chinese art there are five symbols commonly referred to as the "five happinesses." These symbols are found in most ancient Chinese art and are considered to foretell good luck. They are the shou, Ch’i Lin (a mythical animal similar to the chimera), Lung ( A Chinese Dragon), the Feng Huang (or phoenix) and the Ju-I. Interestingly, the dragon was only depicted as having five claws when used by the emperor. Lesser princes could also use the dragon design, but only depicting three or four claws.
Gung-fu is an ancient Chinese martial art. Students of gung-fu study five animal forms: tiger, crane, leopard, dragon, and snake. There is a sixth form, that of the monkey, represented by the fist, which is said to symbolize that combination of the first five animals; it is also believed that each of the first five animals is a finger on a hand that makes the fist. Each animal had a strength or attitude that the practioner was to learn, as well as being associated with a specific technique. The tiger represents the passion and enthusiasm; it is associated with the horse stance. The crane is defense, its stance one where the lead leg is lifted, bent and cocked, ready for action. The leopard marks the final stage of the beginner, and combines the aggression of the tiger and the defense of the crane, focusing on acceleration, power and balance; its stance is that of the cat. The dragon represents controlled rage, and is associated with the twisted stance and claw hands rear above head and about a foot in front of midsection; the dragon is also associated with the ki-ai. The snake is the animal of ki; here the students study the cat stance with a stacked mantis-like forearm cover.
Tai chi chuan is a martial art originating from China, one that is considered "soft" and "internal." Wong Kiew Kit, a widely published author has said of tai chi that "all the critical lessons of tai chi chuan training can be summarized into five areas: mind – as in being mindful of the opponents movements; body or form – to flow with the opponent’s form; vital energy or chi – diffused all over the body; internal force – controlled at the waist; and spirit or shen – as a general preparation for the above four." This is further elaborated in the "Five Characters Formula," which refers to mind tranquil, body agile; energy full; force complete and spirit focused. Mind tranquil encourages the practitioner to remember that if the mind is not tranquil, then it is also not concentrated or focused. Body agile means that if body movement is sluggish, movement is not as efficient as possible. Energy full is harnessing the c’hi, or energy, so that it flows and connects every part of the body. Force complete is using the whole body as one force. When the spirit is focused, it is said that there is "abundant energy, mental freshness, and coordinated movement." There are also five fundamental leg movements in tai chi, or: jin (forward); tui (backward); ku (left); pan (right); and ding (remaining at the center). These are said to "symbolize the five elemental processes of the universe – metal, water, wood, fire and earth, are the processes or phases, not the elements."
There are theories that the number five in China "was the most common of the numerical categories used by the Chinese. It may symbolize the five happinesses, the five constant virtues, or the five great leaders of antiquity."
Japan The number five appears to be central to Japan as well, perhaps imported from China. According to an ancient Chinese text (c. 250), the Empress Himiko of Japan eagerly learned of Taoism and the yin-and-yang theory, as well as the five elements. Five pentagonal stone monuments surround the burial site of Himiko, and are said to represent the five elements.
Abe-no-Seimei was an 11th century government official and author in Japan. His symbol mark was a regular pentagram. Many pentagrams can be found in the Seimei-jinjya Shrine in Kyoto where he lived. "It is not clear why Seimei liked the pentagram. His pentagram may show a relationship to the Chinese five-elements, or he might have known about the famous relationship between a pentagram and Pythagoras."
Until recently, the pentagram was painted, engraved or embroidered on objects as diverse as swords, kimonos for the Hana-matsuri, on the tops of caps worn in the military (as late as the early 20th century), and as a talisman after Abe-no-Seimei.
Miyamoto Musashi, a Japanese samurai and undefeated duelist who wrote the Book of Five Rings in the mid-1600s. This book, while about the martial arts, has come more recently to be used on the battlefield of corporate business. According to translator Stephen Mitchell, it would actually "more properly be translated as The Book of Five Spheres." Musashi admonishes those who practice the martial arts with showmanship and commercialism, and turns attention to the psychology of ruthless victory in battle.
"Martial arts are the warriors’ way of life," he opens in the Earth Scroll. "Let us illustrate the idea of a way of life. Buddhism is a way of helping people; Confucianism is a way of refining culture. For the physician, healing is a way of life…few people are fond of the martial way of life. The way of the warriors means familiarity with both cultural and martial arts. Even if they are clumsy at this, individual warriors should strengthen their own martial arts." His five scrolls are earth, water, fire, wind and emptiness, hailing more to the Pythagorean essences. He also writes of five types of guard or defensive stance: "upper position, middle position, lower position, right-hand guard, and left-hand guard. There are no other kinds of guard except these five." Similarly, he writes of five formal techniques of swordplay.
More recently, a new, "eclectic" martial art called Taido was formed in Japan. This art has "no economy of motion…the object is to perform a difficult and beautiful technique." It is an art form, not practical for self-defense. The movements are patterned after five forms of natural motion: "untai, the waves, representing the movement of ascent/descent, and containing all flying techniques; sentai, the tornado, representing all spinning actions; hentai, the clouds, representing all falling or topping techniques; nentai, the whirlpool, or all spiral movement; and finally tentai, lightning, or the motion of the spheres."
Five is still seen as an active and empowering number. This is why it has been said "The mystic power of five may overwhelm everything in Japan."
Korea With all the invasions that Korea has undergone from both China and Japan, it is little wonder that the number five appears in many shapes and forms in their culture. Most trace back to China, Japan, Confucianism and Buddhism. The ancient Koreans believed that there were five elements as well. To them, the five elements were those of gold (metal), earth, fire, water, and wood. According to them, "the universe is subject to ever changing mutual relations among the five elements, each representing certain symbols, basic to the composition of the universe." As in other Asian cultures, the Koreans placed importance on fortune-telling. The instruments used for fortune telling were "five old coins. On each of the five pieces was inscribed an appropriate mark to indicate one of the five elements." Interpretation was done based on position and relation between elements. "To interpret properly symbols derived from this, the fortune teller has to be versed in the knowledge not only of the five elements, but also the theories of the taeguk (male and female / um and yang)."
It is little surprise then that the Hwarang-do warriors of Korea had five rules / guidelines for their organization. According to Korean folklore, these were devised by Wong Kwang Bopsa, a Buddhist high priest. Using the moral principles of Buddhism and the martial arts code of chivalry, his system, based on the belief that the martial artist needs to have something larger than ego and self-interest to sustain the commitment to study, came down to five rules. These were:
Serve the king with loyalty. Tend your parents with filial piety. Treat friends with sincerity. Never retreat from the battlefield. Be discriminate about the taking of a life.
During the Korean War, for the most part, martial arts training was suspended. However, it was during the Korean War that the five original kwans (or schools) got together and, under the leadership of General Choi, chose a unifying name for the arts practiced by the five kwans, or taekwon-do. In the oath of the Hwa-rang do youth are the roots for the five tenets and five lines of the student oath of modern day taekwon-do.
The Tenets of Taekwon-Do Courtesy Integrity Perseverance Self Control Indomitable Spirit
The Student Oath of Taekwon-Do I shall observe the tenets of Taekwon-do. I shall respect the Instructor and the seniors. I shall never misuse Taekwon-do. I shall be a champion of freedom and justice. I shall build a more peaceful world.
On the Cultural Fives With all the natural occurrences of the number five, it is little wonder that it is included in art, literature, and mythology, nowhere is this more evident than in the rites and rituals of the Freemasons.
Music, Art, Literature Although music is arranged around the octave, in tuning, there is a theory called the "Circle of Fifths." "Sound-wave frequencies of the upper and lower notes in intervals form simple mathematical rations, such as 2:1 (octave), 5:4 (major third) and 3:2 (fifth)." This last ratio is called the "pure" or "natural" fifth, and is the basis for Pythagorean tuning, used in Ancient Greece, Ancient China, and Medieval Islamic and European countries. "Tuning a series of fifths, beginning on F, produces the seven notes of the C-major scale ( F C G D A E B), and then the five notes F#, C#, G#, D#, A#, and finally E# and B# (theoretically identical with F and C, hence the term ‘circle of fifths’ for this series."
In an Ancient Celtic myth known as "Cormac’s Cup of Gold," it is said that Cormac "saw a royal fortress with 4 houses in it and a bright well with nine ancient hazels growing over it. In the well were five salmons who ate the nuts that dropped from the purple hazels and sent the husks floating down the five streams that flowed therefrom. The spring was the well of knowledge and the five streams, the five senses through which knowledge is obtained."
Freemasonry Freemasons are a fraternal organization dating back hundreds of years. The world’s largest "secret" society – these men are the fraternal descendants of the Knights Templar. It is a society bonded by a series of secrets, rituals, and charitable works (for example, the Shriners Hospitals). As described by the Masons themselves, freemasonry is "a beautiful system of morality, veiled in allegory and illustrated by symbols. The mind of freemasonry is its ritual, its symbolism, its morality, its character building. What is its soul? It is that which is hidden behind its symbols and its ritual teachings; its inner meanings and its aspirations, its touch with that part of man which is immortal."
It is little surprise, given the long history of the Masons that the number five appears frequently in these rituals. Central to the appearance of the number five is "all that Freemasonry is, all that it teaches, all that is within it which is valuable, has come through the five senses…Without the five senses man would not really be alive, even if his body possessed life. His five senses are his sole and only contacts with the world. A man with no senses could know nothing, communicate nothing."
To have a lodge, there must be five members: "the worshipful master, the two wardens, and two fellows of the working class." These five are required to hold a lodge "in allusion to the five noble orders of architecture, namely the Tuscan, Doric, Ionic, Corinthian and Composite," these are also sometimes referred to as the classical orders.
Grip with the right hand of each others’ wrist with the points of the fingers Right foot parallel to right foot on the inside Right knee to right knee Right breast to right breast Hand over shoulder supporting back
Each of these seemingly "meaningless" gestures is actually steeped with meaning and symbolism:
In addition to the rituals of the freemasons, the number five is an integral part of the heritage and rituals of the Eastern Star.
Hand to hand: I greet you as a brother; and when the necessities of a brother call for my aid and support, I will be ever ready to hand him assistance to save him from sinking, if I find him worthy thereof, as may not be detrimental to myself or my connections.
Foot to foot: I will support you in all your just and laudable undertakings. Indolence shall not cause my footsteps to halt, nor wrath to turn them aside. But forgetting every selfish consideration, I will be ever swift of foot to save, help, and to execute benevolence to a fellow creature in distress; but more particularly a brother mason, if worthy.
Knee to knee: Being the posture of my daily supplications, shall remind me of your wants. When I offer up my ejaculations to almighty god, a brother’s welfare I will remember as my own; for, as the voices of babes and sucklings ascend to the throne of grace, so most assuredly will the breathings of a fervent heart ascend to the maisons of bliss, as our prayers are certainly received for each other.
Breast to breast: That my breast shall be a safe and sacred repository for all your just and lawful secrets. A brother’s secrets, delivered to me as such, I would keep as my own, as to betray that trust might be doing him the greatest injury he could sustain in this mortal life; nay, it would be like the villany of an assassin who lurks in the darkness to stab his adversary, when unarmed and least prepared to meet an enemy.
Hand over back: that I will support a brother’s character in his absence, equally as though he were present. I will not wrongfully revile him myself, nor will I suffer it to be done by others, if in my power to prevent it. Thus, by the five points of fellowship are we linked together in one indivisible chain of sincere affection, brotherly love, relief and truth.
Summary Five is the quintessential number – it appears in all major religions and philosophies around the world in many forms. It permeates nature, math, art, literature and music. The pentagram is a widespread sacred symbols used in Ancient and modern times throughout almost all cultures of the world. The sacred nature of five is attested to by one ancient philosopher who wrote, "All things happen in fives or are divisible by or are multiples of fives. I find the law of fives to be more and more manifest the harder I look."
On the Figure Five The following table is a compilation of the fives included in the paper. The first section is primarily taken from the art of feng shui. The table is included as a quick, visual reminder of some of the commonalities running through most major religions and philosophies. It is also by no means complete.
The Pentagram through the ages - continued here
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TCM pg.5 |
