Restoring the Chinese Calendar Li Fa and the Cosmic Breath Qi to the Real World a New Global Time System: the Stems and Branches Calendrical Clock
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See discussions, stats, and author profiles for this publication at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/319654236 Restoring the Chinese Calendar Li Fa and the Cosmic Breath Qi to the Real World A New Global Time System: The Stems and Branches Calendrical clock Conference Paper · September 2017 CITATIONS READS 0 270 1 author: Rey Tiquia University of Melbourne 110 PUBLICATIONS 43 CITATIONS SEE PROFILE Some of the authors of this publication are also working on these related projects: Translating Modern China Into a Yinyang Transmodern China World : 'Is It Possible to Transform China into a Force for Common Good?' View project Constructing a Symmetrical Translating Knowledge Space Between Traditional Chinese Medicine and Western Scientific Medicine in Australia View project All content following this page was uploaded by Rey Tiquia on 13 September 2017. The user has requested enhancement of the downloaded file. Intelligent Systems Conference 2017 7-8 September 2017 | London, UK Restoring the Chinese Calendar Li Fa and the Cosmic Breath Qi to the Real World A New Global Time System: The Stems and Branches Calendrical clock Dr. Rey Tiquia Technoscience Researcher University of Melbourne, Australia [email protected] Abstract—In essence, the political demise of the traditional of various pre-modern traditional Chinese natural studies and Chinese calendar in 1911 fractured the “unified field of all exist- their corresponding practices including traditional Chinese ence” or metaphysics of pre-modern traditional Chinese natural medicine (TCM), chronoacupuncture, traditional Chinese studies and their corresponding practices including Traditional language, astronomy, calendrical-almanac studies, traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), chronoacupuncture, traditional Chi- Chinese painting, geomancy, organic farming, traditional nese language, astronomy, calendrical studies, geomancy feng Chinese sexual practices, ancient Chinese divination and shui, organic farming, traditional Chinese sexual practices fang traditional Chinese prognosticational systems of foretelling zhong shu, ancient Chinese divination zhan bu and traditional major climactic events (floods, droughts) epidemics, natural Chinese prognosticational systems of foretelling major climactic disasters like earthquakes, etc. events like floods, droughts, epidemics, earthquakes, etc. In the preface to his book, The Fabric of the Cosmos, Keywords—Stems and branches calendrical clock; cosmic Brian Greene observed that ―space and time capture the breath; reality; transmodernity; time zones imagination like no other scientific subject. For good reason, they form the arena of reality, the very fabric of the cosmos. I. INTRODUCTION Our entire existence—everything we do, think, and In essence, the political demise of the traditional Chinese experience—takes place in some region of space during some calendar and almanac in 1911 fractured the ―unified field of interval of time‖. 3 In this sense, we can say that the political all existence‖ or ―nature and humanity are one1 metaphysics2 demise of the Traditional Chinese Calendar and Almanac signalled the dawn of the era of modernity or modernisation in China.4 1. http://www.researchgate.net/publication/233936650_The_construction_of_a_ Modernity is a historical epoch characterised by the Chinesemedi- emergence of capitalism, industrialism, ratio-legal cal_lunisolar_calendar1_for_the_Southern_Hemisphere>Accessed. November 10, 2016 bureaucracies, and state control of military power and 2. According to Ian Coulter, metaphysics are ‗broad generalisations about the surveillance. Its cultural dimensions include discourses of nature of the world and are usually ontological (about the ultimate nature of rationality, scientism (―an uncritical faith in science‖) and reality). Unlike theories that try to make sense of observations, metaphysics progress through economic development, objectivity, and in are a priori in that they provide schemes in terms of which reality can be the field of medicine the culture of the randomised controlled approached before we even begin to think about theory. Examples of meta- trial (RCT). In his book, Cosmopolis the Hidden Agenda of physics in science include mechanism, dualism, realism, idealism, materialism and reductionism. These are all fundamental presuppositions whose truth or Modernity (1990), Stephen Toulmin aptly describes the falsehood cannot be established empirically through observation. They are also fundamental in the sense that the purpose of research done under their 66. Thomas Michael believes that the domain of metaphysics begins with the guidance is not to question or test these assumptions. To this extent, they are question of ontology: ‗what is there in the universe?‘ (minds? Bodies? Stuff? taken-for-granted guidelines for investigations. If they are challenged, it will Ghosts?Spirits?Angels?). It then asks the question of cosmogony: ‗whatever be through appeal to an alternative metaphysics. So for example, Descartes there is in the universe, how did it originate?‘ (Genesis? Brahma? Shunyata?). challenges the extreme notion of mechanism, and rescues mechanism by It finally asks the question of cosmology: ‗Whatever there is in the universe, establishing a dualism to deal with the order of the mind. Current chaos theory how do the pieces of it relate to each other?‘ (Mind body problem, how many challenges the metaphysic of determinacy.‘ According to Ian Coulter, Joseph angels dance on the head of the pin, reductionism). Theology adds a further Agassi in 1964 ‗proposed that metaphysics play a dominant role in working consideration with its soteriology: ‗Whatever there is in the universe, where out which scientific problems at any given time will be engaged with by sci- does it lead?‘ (Salvation or damnation? Utopia? Democracy, theocracy, or entists, a role given to paradigms in Thomas Kuhns (1962) theory‘. I. Coulter, socialism? T. Michael, The Pristine Dao: Metaphysics in Early Daoist Dis- ‗Integration and Paradigm Clash: The Practical Difficulties of Integrative course (Albany: State University of New York Press, 2005), 6. Medicine‘, in The Mainstreaming of Complementary and Alternative Medi- 3 . Brian Greene, The Fabric of the Cosmos (Australia: Penguin Books, cine , ed. P. Tovey, G. Easthope and J. Adams (London: Routledge, 2004), 2004.ix) 103–21. Yan Fu (1854–1921) was one of the first generation of Chinese trans- 4. lators of European texts who used the Chinese term xing er shang 形⽽上 to https://www.researchgate.net/publication/311492235_Performing_the_Tradto translate Aristotle‘s metaphysics: R. Wang, YinYang: The Way of Heaven and al_Chinese_Language_and_Medicine_together_in_a_Transmodern_World Earth in Chinese Thought and Culture (Cambridge University Press, 2012), Accessed: 28 January 2017. 1 | P a g e 978-1-5090-6435-9/17/$31.00 ©2017 IEEE Intelligent Systems Conference 2017 7-8 September 2017 | London, UK cosmology of ―High Modernity‖ as one ―which saw nature assumes the character of a ‗clotted assemblage‘, i.e., an and humanity as distinct and separate‖. This cosmology in obligatory passing node of various enterprises [Tiquia, 2015]. turn gave rise to the Cartesian credo of ―I think, therefore I am‖: which opened the way to the mechanical metaphysics or ―mechanism‖ which dichotomise the mind from the body, theory from practice, ‗heaven‘ from ‗man‘, ‗God the father‘ from ‗Mother Earth‘, ‗space‘ from ‗time‘ and a ‗gulf‘ or a ‗divide‘ between ‗people‘s expectations and their daily experiences of real life‘ [Tiquia, ― Paradigm,‖ 2015]. II. PERFORMATIVE PARADIGM OF THEORY-AS-PRACTICE I would like to suggest a way of ‗healing‘ this fractured metaphysics that separates the realm of ‗the abstracted theoretical world‘ (theory) from ‗the realm of the real world‘ (practice). In its place I propose the performative metaphysical paradigm of theory-as-practice. Taking this road can bring about the integration of humanity with nature; knowledge with action; mind with body; spirit with body; cause with effect, Fig. 1. Step-by-step Calligraphic Construction of the Chinese Script A sem- theory with practice and space with time. In addition, in this ‗unified field of existence‘, yin embraces yang, one element blage for the Chinese Word yi 醫 (Medicine) in 18 Strokes. embraces the other four elements/agents/phases and one trigram embraces the other seven trigrams of the Book of In many ways, the performance, representation or re- Change. In this way, the performance and mapping of the enactment of a transmodern world is similar to writing the cosmic breath in a four dimensional process which Chinese character in the sense that the Chinese script embeds encompasses the three spatial dimensions of length, breadth, a qi (the Life Force or Cosmic Breath or space time) which depth and the fourth dimension of time can be realised moves horizontally, vertically, slopes up, down and crosses in [Tiquia, 2015]. This view is similar to the concept of the accordance with a standard ordering to convey the right ―4D\block universe‖ (BU) in which the past, present, and meaning. In the Chinese language, writing the word yi future are all equally real. It is also referred to as ‗eternalism‘.5 (‗medicine‘) is practically ‗doing‘ it, bringing the actants in the assemblage6 to life stroke by stroke. From the ‗dot‘, the III. PERFORMING A TRANSMODERN WORLD inscription moves horizontally, vertically, crosses, slants downwards and upwards, and the agential figure comes to life At the present epoch of transmodernity where