The Existence of Negativity as Sometimes Misrepresented in Yin Versus Yang

I have one of those plasticised cards that describes Yin and Yang thus:

"The dualistic world of Yin/Yang is not seen as good versus bad.  Yang, represented by the white represents the creative principle, While Yin, represented by black, represents dissolution and return (to creation).  The forces are believed to be cyclical, moving and evolving into each other, represented by the white dot in black and the black dot in the white.  Yin and Yang can transform into one another just as night turns into day, thus symbolising the transition of opposites.  It is a Taoist symbol of the interplay of forces in the Universe."

Before we really get into it, some things, such as a death, are very hard to deal with and the how of it happening can be horrific as we all know.  Although I could try to apply some logic here I'm not going to because death is something we just have to cope with as best we can and it defies all logic and common sense.  All I can say is that if you're struggling at this time my heart goes out to you and I send you love and support to deal with it.  I just wanted to make it very clear that I'm not going there and death isn't part of this conversation.

This description really surprised me because when I was first introduced to Yin/Yang I was told that Yin was female and negative and Yang was male and positive, a sexist description that this modern world of ours really needs.

The other misunderstanding around Yin and Yang is that it represents negative and positive, and of course the translation in western society of negative and positive is often 'right' and 'wrong'.

We are lovingly scolded in positive thinking books for negative thinking, something that must be expunged, we not-so-lovingly tell each other off for negative thinking which drags other people down and definitely gets in the way of cosmic ordering and all that is good.  "Well what do they expect, they are such a negative thinker, it's not a wonder that everything goes wrong for them."

I wanted to look at negativity because we need to get it into perspective, especially in human thinking and relationships.  Firstly, by thinking about what negativity actually is.

For a start it's a word that we have given meaning and that meaning has an element of 'attraction' about it. You will often hear people say that we attract the negative, that it's down to our attitude that negative things happen.  It can sound and feel like a real blame game, which is of course a losers game.

 If you apply the word to a magnet it means that there are two poles and one without the other would not work.  However, that is not a bad thing,  It just is.  As the positive pole of the magnet just is.  Neither good nor bad, just the way a magnet works.  If you look at it in these terms positivity and negativity is a team situation that creates something useful.  If, however, you apply it to life you need to be very careful - for the sake of your sanity and coping skills.

So, I want to get you thinking about deciding for yourself what the word negative means and where you will choose to apply it, because being in a negative situation can feel like a punishment, especially if you have a period when everything seems to go wrong at once and you're wondering what the heck you did to deserve all this and why the Universe has it in for you.  This feeling can create such distress and unhappiness in you that you find it hard to see the good when it returns, as it normally does, and may accidentally trap yourself in a loop where you yourself create more unhappiness.  Seeing the light when it returns is critical to healing.

Do you feel that when a person is unkind to you that this is negative and you have attracted it?  Or would it be better to think of this in terms of extremely bad behaviour by a person who is not choosing to handle things in the best possible way with as much courtesy as possible?  We all have a choice how we handle difficult situations and if someone chooses to come to you in a way that is rude and disrespectful that is a choice.

Is a car accident a force of negativity, or is it a moment's inattention or misjudging of speed, distance or width, that everyone could have done without?  Or maybe an angry and aggressive person in charge of a car?

Is having horrible people in your life such as bosses, people who call themselves friends, and a proportion of social networking engagees a negative situation or a simple case of you staying put when things are not working?  The same goes for a job/career that you dislike.  Have you stumbled into negativity or inactivity?

I could go on, but just get into the habit of when something happens defining for yourself whether it is this ephemeral creation of the human psyche called negativity or whether it is a life event that can be dealt with.

Why?

Partly because I am questioning the idea that certain forms of what are known as negativity (unkindness, violence, war, aggression, gossip, spite, etcetera)  have to exist.  Do they really?  Is there a rule that says there must be negativity?  Is it true that we cannot appreciate the good without the bad, happiness without unhappiness and so on?  I can tell you beyond a shadow of doubt that I would have had no trouble appreciating happiness, abundance and joy if negativity did not exist.  Okay, I might not have known that I was happy but most certainly I would have been happy.

AND because your attitude is everything and the more positive your attitude the better your life will be, therefore the less you think about negativity and the more you think about solving difficulties the less negativity there will be in your psyche and therefore your life.  Rudeness will be rudeness, that's one negative gone, accidents will be accidents, there goes another, and so on.

If we wish to evolve as a race and bring about peace, harmony and abundance for all, the belief that there has to be bad in the world needs to diminish so that in turn we diminish the bad.

Let's Yin that negativity!

Deb