In the Chinese system of Wu Xing, Green is associated with the element of wood, the season of spring and the direction east which faces the sunrise at the beginning of each new day. A fitting point for our cycle of energies to begin.
Red is the colour most associated with China and for good reason. It's the colour seen everywhere from commercial packaging to sacred buildings. Red represents good luck, prosperity, love, joy and the direction, south.
In Wu Xing's theory the cycle of life moves through five seasons - echoing nature?s rhythms of growth movement and rest. Wu Xing assigns a color to each part of this cycle; Late summer is yellow; connected to the element of Earth.
White is the fourth colour of the five phases, pointing west and is associated with the element of metal. It symbolizes righteousness, reaping at the end of the natural cycle of life and the season of autumn.
The final phase of the Wu Xing system, when all things have reached the utmost Yin, is represented by Black, the element of water and the cold ice of winter. It points north and the black of the night sky.