Yin Yang Religion

Criterion A: Rationale and Preliminary Research Being Born in South Korea, I've always found the eastern religions a fascinating subject to study. I suppose examining them provided me a link with my birth place. Despite Taoism not being one of the major religions of South Korea, I have always viewed it as the eastern religion with a strong connection to my birth nation. While the link may not be obvious to most people, it becomes clear when you examine the National flag. Displayed prominently on the center of the South Korean flag is a red and blue Taegeuk, a symbol which is derived from the yin-yang. The major symbol of Taoism is also yin-yang which is why I connect the two with each other. While the colors may be different, the idea behind the two symbols is exactly the same. When presented with the opportunity to research a critical aspect of religion, I was immediately drawn to the idea of studying the yin-yang and its importance to the teachings of Taoism. My research question is what is the yin-yang and what is its importance to the teachings of Taoism. After choosing my subject to research, I began to investigate the origin of the yin-yang, and what I stands for. Through examining different resources, I discovered that the yin-yang has been dominant throughout the history of Asian philosophy. There is no exact …show more content…
At its beginning, Taoism was not a religion. Rather, it was a philosophy which allowed its users to seek knowledge and wisdom. Overtime it gained recognition and became one of the three major religions in China. The philosophical and religious system was built upon a holistic view of the world and the realization of the duality of everything. (Carnegie). While Taoism is a religion developed in Asia, its practices have come to affect many global practices such as meditation, acupuncture, herbal medicine and martial arts.