釋氏稽古略 1.71

1.71

The Yi Qianzuodu states: 'In the past, the Suiren Clan gazed upward to observe the Pole of the Dipper to determine the names of the directions; Paoxi followed this and drew the eight trigrams. The Yellow Emperor received the mandate and commanded Da Nao to create the sexagenary cycle and Rong Cheng to order the calendar calculations; the doctrines of the Five Phases and Nine Palaces arose from this. Therefore, the Explanation of the Trigrams states: "The yang number nine: to establish the Way of Heaven, it is called yin and yang; with two yin and one yang, Heaven has three; to establish the Way of Earth, it is called soft and hard; with two soft and one hard, Earth also has three; to establish the Way of Man, it is called benevolence and righteousness; with two righteousness and one benevolence, Man also has three." Three threes combine into nine; yin and yang envelop each other to accomplish the myriad things.'