How Chinese culture links 4 cardinal directions to life’s natural cycle – and why

In traditional Chinese culture, the cardinal directions – east, west, south, and north – represent more than mere points on a compass; they reveal how ancient societies comprehended life, death, and human nature. The Shuowen Jiezi, the earliest surviving dictionary of China compiled during the Eastern Han dynasty (25–220), explains the four cardinal directions in relation to the movement of the sun. The east, or dong in Chinese, the direction of the sunrise, signifies spring, hope, and presti...

By Zoey Zhang