GoDai and Wu Xing: A Comparative Exploration of Japanese and Chinese Elemental Philosophy

Two Systems of Five

Across East Asia, the number five holds deep symbolic importance. In both Japan and China, elemental systems emerged to describe the structure of reality, human experience, and the natural world. Yet, while both cultures developed models centered on five principles, the Japanese GoDai (五大, “Five Greats”) and the Chinese Wu Xing (五行, “…