I was supposed to find out the meaning of the Korean flag from the internet as a homework. As much as there is an official meaning to the flag, I do have some other interpretation of the Taegeukgi (태극기-太極旗).
I see the red 'yang' as symbolising the Democratic People's Republic of Korea while the blue 'yin' the Republic of Korea. 'Yang' is powerful but lacks endurance while 'ying' is soft but enduring. The 'yin' and 'yang' are maintained in its current state by the four trigrams or kwae(괘-卦) surrounding the taegeuk circle.
The top left trigram is 'geon'(건-乾) or heaven and it symbolises 'justice'. Russia is the 'justice'.
The bottom right trigram is 'gon'(곤-坤) or earth and it symbolises 'fertility'. Japan is the 'fertility'.
The top right trigram is 'gam'(감-坎) or water and it symbolises 'life'. US is the 'life'.
The bottom left trigram is 'i'(이-離) or fire and it symbolises 'wisdom'. China is the 'wisdom'.
From the book of 'I-Ching', 'geon' and 'gon' are direct opposites. Similarly, 'gam' and 'i' are direct opposites. The way in which the four trigrams interacts with one another has a profound impact on the state and health of the taegeuk circle.
Perhaps we can see the current state of affairs of the Korean peninsula through this Taegeukgi. Any possible resolution to the nuclear crisis in the peninsula will likely have to be achieved through the six-party talks. But any hope of quick resolution is almost a naive thought.
For how long will Korea peninsula be apart? I like to remember what former South Korea's President, Kim Dae Jung had said in year 2000 when the North Korea requested to delay the historic meeting of the top leaders of the two Koreas by one day. "The two sides have waited 55 years, so one more day does not matter." he said.
I see the red 'yang' as symbolising the Democratic People's Republic of Korea while the blue 'yin' the Republic of Korea. 'Yang' is powerful but lacks endurance while 'ying' is soft but enduring. The 'yin' and 'yang' are maintained in its current state by the four trigrams or kwae(괘-卦) surrounding the taegeuk circle.
The top left trigram is 'geon'(건-乾) or heaven and it symbolises 'justice'. Russia is the 'justice'.
The bottom right trigram is 'gon'(곤-坤) or earth and it symbolises 'fertility'. Japan is the 'fertility'.
The top right trigram is 'gam'(감-坎) or water and it symbolises 'life'. US is the 'life'.
The bottom left trigram is 'i'(이-離) or fire and it symbolises 'wisdom'. China is the 'wisdom'.
From the book of 'I-Ching', 'geon' and 'gon' are direct opposites. Similarly, 'gam' and 'i' are direct opposites. The way in which the four trigrams interacts with one another has a profound impact on the state and health of the taegeuk circle.
Perhaps we can see the current state of affairs of the Korean peninsula through this Taegeukgi. Any possible resolution to the nuclear crisis in the peninsula will likely have to be achieved through the six-party talks. But any hope of quick resolution is almost a naive thought.
For how long will Korea peninsula be apart? I like to remember what former South Korea's President, Kim Dae Jung had said in year 2000 when the North Korea requested to delay the historic meeting of the top leaders of the two Koreas by one day. "The two sides have waited 55 years, so one more day does not matter." he said.
The relationship between North Korea and South Korea is similar to the relationship between China and Taiwan, don't you think?
ReplyDeleteActually they are quite different. China and Taiwan split was caused internally while North and South Korea split was caused externally. Superficially, yes, they are the same.
ReplyDelete