What are detrimental aspects actually? Are negative emotions = Yin? Are we using the term "negative" wrong?

[4bsolute]

What does your intelligence say about negative feelings? Are negative feelings considered to be Yin in nature? Negative feelings are not Yin. In terms of Yin and Yang, balancing forces. In order for Yang to exist, there must be a Yin.

 

Isnt it a huge misconception to call Yin and Yang "Good and Bad"?

 

We clearly have a detrimental state, we call negative emotions. That really give us the sign we want to move away from them, into a positive state. This positivity we then feel as a balance. But balance means Yin and Yang. And for yin and yang we have terms like positive and negative. What the heck is going on here with our language?

 

Balancing forces, such as yin and yang have nothing to do with what we feel as negative and detrimental energy to our being, am I correct?

 

Are we using the term negative incorrectly? Do we need to invent more broader terms for all of this?

 

What are negative states in our being, that truly sap the life force out of us? What fundamentally are they?

 

When I feel negative, my gut instinct tells me "move away from it" - is this basic soul language? Yes, feels good continue - No, move away from? And yes I am of course speaking of having a clear perception of what feels moderately good. And not jumping into excess rollercoaster-suger consumption and then crashing down.

Edited July 13, 2014 by 4bsolute

[Chang]

Language can indeed be a great barrier to understanding.

 

Yin and Yang can be described as positive and negative, good and bad, but then Yin and Yang can be used to describe everything.

 

We can end up playing with words and that is shallow. Observe the Tai Chi symbol and see the perfect balance portrayed there.

Constant motion and change held in perfect balance.

 

Negative feelings come and go but we need not be swayed by them.

[ChiDragon]

The terms of Yin and Yang are only used as classifiers. Each has an attribute which is one is the complement of the other. In general, Yin is negative, and Yang is positive. To explain this maybe a bit confusing. For example, Yin is bad, Yang is good. It doesn't mean that Yin is really bad; it simply means that "bad" has the attribute of Yin and "good" has the attribute of Yang. In the other hand, negative feeling has the attribute of Yin. Negative feeling, only, and only, has the attribute of Yin but it doesn't mean that a negative feeling is bad.

[GrandmasterP]

Slice anything as finely as you can, right down to sub atomic levels and beyond , there's still Yin and Yang at play and in constant motion.

Hence there has to be both Yin and Yang 'at play' in all negative feelings.

Wittgenstein to Popper on 'feelings' BTW ( Popper was furiously brandishing a poker at W at the time)....

" Whilst we all have feelings Popper, sadly ; intellect is less equitably distributed."

 

Edited July 13, 2014 by GrandmasterP

[Aetherous]

What if it's positive feelings that are actually detrimental, and not the negative ones? For instance, a person who is constantly happy, never grows or changes in terms of their personality. In fact, they can devolve; they could literally become like a demon in the flesh. For an example, if you've ever watched Game of Thrones, King Joffrey is like that. He is used to getting his way and most of the time experiencing the most positive feelings (for him), and especially as times goes by, his way becomes worse and worse.

An example of negative emotions being beneficial rather than detrimental: if you're scared of being hurt in a new situation, you will be more alert and ready for danger that's lurking around the corner. And who do you think makes a better friend...a person who has been hurt by others, or a person who doesn't understand pain and isn't able to empathize? Obviously, the person who has been hurt becomes a better person. The other will take advantage of friends, thinking nothing of it, because they don't know how it feels in their shoes. Maybe all of this suffering has its purpose...

 

Another thing...an over-reliance on feelings as a guide about what decisions to make...isn't that also detrimental? I think it's better to be rational, than to react based solely on whatever emotions are present...the latter makes one a pawn of whoever can manipulate the feelings of others. That includes invisible beings, if you believe in such a thing, who may not have the same ideas of how your life should go, as you do. Take the reigns...don't be controlled by emotions. Observe them. It's a true spiritual teaching that attachment and aversion are both ways of becoming negative. To try and rid oneself of any negativity, is negativity. It's attachment to "positive" and aversion from "negative". The way out is through...you have to face these things. Facing them makes you realize you're not them, but are of a third substance. Then for some odd reason, they don't bother you anymore. I suppose like all things pertaining to oneself (body, mind, spirit), challenges faced bring positive adaptations...whereas aiming for total comfort all of the time creates pure weakness. For a cultivator, it's good to be sensitive, but it's not good to be without a filter.

Edited July 13, 2014 by Aetherous

[Marblehead]

Interesting that you started this thread today because it was only yesterday that I realized that I was improperly using "negative" to represent Yin. The word "negative" has some really bad connotations. (Yeah, I was going to say 'negative connotations.)

 

I forget what thread it was in but I used the word "return" to represent Yin. Like a yo-yo; the going out is Yang and the return is Yin.

 

I also think it is invalid to use the duality of Yin/Yang to represent other dualities such as good/bad, happy/sad, etc.

 

And while balance is a really nice concept I doubt that many of us have true balance in our life. Things keep going up and down. But there can be harmony within these variations.

[ChiDragon]

1.What if it's positive feelings that are actually detrimental
2. An example of negative emotions being beneficial rather than detrimental:

In the concept of the Yin and Yang, there are conditions like:
Yin is within Yang: condition #2
Yang is within Yin. condition #1

When Yin had reached its lowest state, it will return to the highest Yang state.
When Yang had reached its highest state, it will return to the lowest Yin state.

The Yin and Yang are always in the process of balancing themselves.

[Harmonious Emptiness]

(before I comment, just want to say it's funny that we're talking a lot about the moon cycles today, around the time of the super moon, yesterday, and 4absolutes post count is at 365 right now...)

 

 

A very Taoist question, that's for sure. Is the negative negative? What is the balance?

 

Made me think about how the organs in the body compensate for each other by becoming weaker and stronger to keep an overall balance. Is the imbalance necessarily negative in all ways?

 

It's generally said that it's an excess of emotions which cause imbalances in the body, so, like Chi Dragon said, the excessive is followed by deficiency.

 

Anger and sorrow have their place "in the right dose." It's also best that people don't build a nest in them either.

[Chang]

 

 

 

Anger and sorrow have their place "in the right dose." It's also best that people don't build a nest in them either.

 

"That the birds of worry and care fly above your head, this you cannot change. But that they build nests in your hair, this you can prevent."