Dualistic cosmology Confucianism, beliefs that divide the universe into the complementary oppositions of yin and yang. In traditions such as classical Hinduism, Zen Buddhism or Islamic Sufism, a key to enlightenment is "transcending" this sort of dualistic thinking, without merely substituting dualism with monism or pluralism. The opposition and combination of the universe's two basic principles of yin and yang is a large part of Chinese philosophy, and is an important feature of Taoism, both as a philosophy and as a religion, although the concept developed much earlier. Some argue that yin and yang were originally an earth and sky god, respectively.
Yin and yang < *"ʔəm" compares with Burmese "ʔum" "overcast; cloudy", Adi "muk-jum" "shade", and Lepcha "so'yǔm" "shade"; and is probably cognate with Chinese "àn" < *"ʔə̂mʔ" "dim; gloomy" and "qīn" < *"khəm" "blanket" "Yang" < *"laŋ" compares with Lepcha "a-lóŋ" "reflecting light", Burmese "laŋ" "be bright" and "ə-laŋ" "light"; and is perhaps cognate with Chinese "chāng" < *"k-hlaŋ" "prosperous; bright"; "bǐng" < *"braŋʔ" "bright"; "liàng" < "*raŋh" "(pale) light"; "lǎng" < "raŋʔ" "brilliant light"; "míng" < "mraŋ" "bright, become light, enlighten". Schuessler surmises that those items either are areal words (cf. Tai "plaŋ" "bright") or belong to an Austroasiatic word family (cf.