BY VARIOUS AUTHORS

TRANSLATED BY HEINER FRUEHAUF

The qi of earth ascends, the qi of heaven descends. In this fashion, yin and yang grind against each other, and heaven and earth merge in undulating embrace. If this setting is vibrated by thunder, excited by wind and rain, moved by the flow of the four seasons, and fondled by the germinating light of sun and moon, the world’s myriad processes of transformation become aroused.

FROM BOOK OF RITES (LI JI), FL. 2ND CENTURY B.C.E.

GERMAN TRANSLATION BY MARKUS GOEKE