A Grammar of Correspondence

The power of the wu xing lies in the cycles: because the phases generate and overcome one another in fixed order, the scheme models change and interaction rather than mere classification, and it is used to explain how one thing gives rise to or checks another, in the body, in the seasons, in the relations of things. It pairs with yin and yang as the basic framework of Chinese natural philosophy.

The atlas gives each phase its correspondences and its place in the generating and overcoming cycles. The stems, branches, organs and directions the phases organise are treated in their own categories under Eastern Systems.