From Wuji to Taiyi | The Unfolding of Daoist Cosmology
Aug 1
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Bernard Shannon
“The Dao gives birth to One (Wuji),
One gives birth to Two (Yin-Yang),
Two gives birth to Three (Heaven-Earth-Human),
Three gives birth to the Ten Thousand Things.”
— Dao De Jing, Ch. 42
The above description of Daoist cosmology is generally accepted as “standard”: From the Dao to Wuji, from Wuji to Taiji, and so forth. But did you know there is another stage of development? It goes from the Dao to Wuji, from Wuji to Taiyi, and from Taiyi to Taiji.
• What is Taiyi?
• What is the difference between Wuji and Taiyi?
Let’s explore.
In Daoism, Wújí (无极) and Tàiyī (太一) are both foundational concepts, but they represent different stages in the Dao’s unfolding—from the formless void to the first unity of creation. Their differences shape how they are understood in cosmology, internal cultivation, and divinity.
Wuji
Wújí is comprised of two characters (1) Wú (无) means no, not and (2) Jí (极) means extreme, pole, limit. Wuji is often translated as emptiness, the void, and refers to the primordial state of undifferentiated emptiness. It refers to the absolute void, the undifferentiated state before the arising of duality—beyond Yin and Yang. It is often equated with the Dao itself in its formless, ineffable state—a state of total emptiness, non-distinction, and non-action.
In Daoist metaphysics, Wuji is the Dao in its most ineffable and abstract form: silent, unmanifest, beyond form and duality. It is a state prior to the existence of even the most subtle energies, prior to Yin and Yang, prior to time and space.
Philosophically, Wuji corresponds to the idea of nonbeing (wu 无) in the Dao De Jing, the Dao in its unnamable aspect that predates heaven and earth:
"There was something formless and perfect before the universe was born... I don't know its name, so I call it Dao."
(Dao De Jing, Ch. 25)
Wuji is the potentiality of all things, but it is not a thing itself. It is like the blank canvas before the painting, the silence before the sound. It contains within it the infinite possibility of creation, but no differentiation or movement yet exists.
Graphically, Wuji is often represented as a blank circle, an empty space without division. In Neidan texts and diagrams, it occupies the topmost or outermost position, signifying its transcendence of all manifestation.
In Daoist meditation, Wuji corresponds to the still point of awareness, the state of complete emptiness or "no-mind" (wuxin 无心) where the practitioner dissolves the ego, thoughts, and even subtle intention.
Graphically, Wuji is often represented as a blank circle, an empty space without division. In Neidan texts and diagrams, it occupies the topmost or outermost position, signifying its transcendence of all manifestation.
In Daoist meditation, Wuji corresponds to the still point of awareness, the state of complete emptiness or "no-mind" (wuxin 无心) where the practitioner dissolves the ego, thoughts, and even subtle intention.
Taiyi
Tàiyī is also comprised of two characters (1) Tài (太) means great or supreme and (2) Yī (一) means one or unity. Taiyi is often understood as the first emanation of the Dao, but actually Taiyi is the first emanation from Wuji. Together, Taiyi refers to the origin of the cosmos, the undivided One from which Yin and Yang, and eventually the Ten Thousand Things (万物), emerge. It is the axis of creation, bridging Wuji’s formless potential and Taiji’s dualistic manifestation.
Taiyi —the One that arises when the Dao begins to move. It is the first distinction, the first seed of existence, the oneness before duality.
In Daoist Internal Alchemy (Nèidān 內丹), Taiyi often symbolizes the unification of internal energies:
• The return to unity from the duality of Yin and Yang
• The integration of body (jing), breath (qi), and spirit (shen)
• The attainment of spiritual immortality, or union with the Dao
Spiritually, Taiyi also refers to the inner realization of unity:
• The original spirit (元神 yuán shén)
• The true self beyond dualistic thought
• The still point of awareness in deep meditation
The spiritual path in Daoism often involves a return or reversal (还处 Huánchǔ) of the cosmological unfolding. Just as all things emerged from Wuji, the adept aims to return to Wuji by internal refinement. Alchemically, reaching Taiyi, like refining the self back into pure undifferentiated unity, a reversal of the process of materialization. Neidan texts such as the Cantong Qi and Wuzhen Pian, speak of returning to the primordial source (Wuji) through internal alchemy.
Wuji to Taiyi
In Daoism, Wújí (无极) and Tàiyī (太一) are both foundational concepts, but they represent different stages in the Dao’s unfolding—from the formless void to the first unity of creation, from nonbeing to being, from silent stillness to dynamic transformation. Their differences shape how they are understood in cosmology, internal cultivation, and divinity.
• Wuji is non-being—pure potential without form or boundary.
• Taiyi is the first being—undivided unity before duality (Yin-Yang).
• Taiyi is the threshold—a unified spirit refined before transcending form.
• Wuji is the destination in spiritual reversal—dissolution into Dao.
• Wuji is the Dao’s emptiness, the unknowable mystery that precedes all form and unity.
• Taiyi is the Dao’s presence, the first pulse of life, light, and awareness.
The relationship between Wuji and Taiyi is at the heart of Daoist cosmology, spiritual practice, and metaphysical reflection. Wuji is the boundless potential of Dao; Taiyi is the first movement of that potential into unity. From there arise Yin and Yang, the Three, and the Ten Thousand Things.
To know these principles is not merely to understand the structure of the cosmos, but to begin the journey of returning to source. In meditation, in alchemical refinement, and in everyday life, the Daoist seeks not to conquer the world, but to dwell in harmony with it—by rooting deeply in the mystery that precedes all things.
From Wuji to Tai Yi, and from multiplicity back to stillness, the path is always one of returning. In that return, the Dao is revealed.