The Eight Trigrams – Pal Kae 齰恘

Pal Kae are another method of representing the inter-relationship of Um and Yang and of describing the fundamental principles of existence.

Each trigram is composed of a set of three lines. The broken lines represent Um and the unbroken lines represent Yang. Each trigram illustrates one of the eight primary energies or natural phenomena.

The eight Pal Kae trigrams with pinyin are listed below:

☰ Heaven – Qián 乾 ☱ Lake – Duì 兌 ☲ Fire – Lí 離 ☳ Thunder – Zhèn 震 ☴ Wind – Xùn 巽 ☵ Water – Kǎn 坎 ☶ Mountain – Gèn 艮 ☷ Earth – Kūn 坤

The four trigrams on the Korean flag are Heaven, Earth, Fire and Water. All have special meanings in Ki Gong. Certain Ki Gong postures are done to absorb then energy of the sky (Heaven Ki) or the energy of the ground (Earth Ki). Kan (water) and Li (fire) are two breathing processes used in traditional Ki Gong in the formation of Um or Yang energy during meditation.