The bagua is a set of symbols from China intended to illustrate the nature of reality as being composed of mutually opposing forces reinforcing one another. Bagua is a group of trigrams—composed of three lines, each either "broken" or "unbroken", which represent yin and yang, respectively. Each line having two possible states allows for a total of 2 × 2 × 2 = 8 trigrams, whose early enumeration and characterization in China has had an effect on the history of Chinese philosophy and cosmology.
Bagua diagram explanation from Zhao Huiqian's 六書本義; Liùshū běnyì, 1370s
Alternative conversion of the trigrams to binary
A Tibetan "Mystic Tablet" containing the Eight Trigrams on top of a large tortoise (presumably, alluding to the animal that presented them to Fuxi), along with the 12 signs of Chinese zodiac, and a smaller tortoise carrying the Lo Shu Square on its shell
Chinese philosophy originates in the Spring and Autumn period and Warring States period, during a period known as the "Hundred Schools of Thought", which was characterized by significant intellectual and cultural developments. Although much of Chinese philosophy begun in the Warring States period, elements of Chinese philosophy have existed for several thousand years. Some can be found in the I Ching, an ancient compendium of divination, which dates back to at least 672 BCE.
Yin and Yang symbol with the bagua symbols paved in a clearing outside of Nanning City, Guangxi province, China
Kong Fuzi (Latin: Confucius)
Chinese glazed stoneware statue of a Daoist deity, from the Ming dynasty, 16th century
The Sakyamuni Buddha, by artist Zhang Shengwen, 1173–1176 CE, Song dynasty