The Taijitu
Probably one of the most recognizable symbols associated with Daoism is the taijitu. It’s also commonly referred to as the “yin-yang”, or tai’chi symbol. Recently someone asked me if the depiction of the symbol with the dark side rising was “bad”. I think this stems from a common misconception which seems to be prevalent in Western thought. Dark is bad, light is good. If you depict the dark side on the left, giving the appearance that its swirling into a top, or dominant position, then it is implying that the bad is stronger or somehow overcoming the good.
Yin, is represented by the dark color and means “shady place” while yang is the lighter color and means “sunny place”. The swirling symbol containing these two concepts is called the taijitu and means “diagram of the supreme ultimate”.
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