Explanation of the Supreme Polarity Diagram:

annotated translation of a metaphysical classic

Abstract

Zhōu Dūn Yí (1017-1073) was an important Confucian philosopher of the early Sòng era (960-1279) in China, responsible for reviving interest in the study of the Classic of Changes, Yì Jīng. His work Explanation of the Diagram of Supreme Polarity (Tài Jí Tú Shuō), translated here with the help of specialized publications, constitutes a brief but valuable text, as it presents an intense power of theoretical-conceptual synthesis based on the Diagram of Supreme Polarity (Tài Jí Tú). In the Diagram and its Explanation, Zhōu synthesizes debates and concepts that began to be discussed since antiquity, e.g., the notion of Yīn Yáng as a dual, yet complementary, relational and alternating expression of polar forces of reality, which has in the concept of Supreme Polarity, Tài Jí, its synthesis and unity. There are also metaphysical and ethical notions debated for centuries by the Tradition of Scholars, ancient Naturalists, Daoists and Buddhists. Aiming to present this text to the academic audience at undergraduate level, I wrote brief comments to the text with simple language and avoiding being too technical. I hope to my comments clarify the reader, or at least point out ways to who wishes to delve deeper into any subtopic.