Apart from the Yin-Yang Bagua System, the Five Element (五行) system represents another method Chinese use to categorize and describe the world, but its applicability is pertained to the material (form) part of the world only. The five elements are Metal(金), Wood(木), Water(水), Fire(火), and Earth(土). These five elements are used to describe different parts of the world, and of the human body. For example, in astrology 5 elements are used to describe major plants and star formations in five directions, in medicine 5 elements are used to describe different human organs and body parts.
Apart from general representation, there are two types of interactions between the five elements, i.e. the constructive interaction (相生) and controlling interaction (相克). Based on the specific nature of each element, each element would naturally strengthen one element while control/weaken another. The constructive cycle is: Wood->Fire->Earth->Metal->Water, and the controlling cycle is Wood->Earth->Water->Fire->Metal, represented in the following diagram:
The Five-element system, apart from being used to describe different parts of the world and their interactions, are broadly used in Chinese Medicine (中医) and Fengshui (风水- architecture and interior design). In Chinese Medicine, for example, Daoist believes that bodily health could be achieved when the yin-yang and 5 elements are in balance, while sickness/disease would arise when these elements are off imbalance.
除了阴阳八卦的系统外，五行系统代表了中国人另一个描述世界和人生的方法。五行包括金，木，水，火，土。这五个要素是用来描述世界的不同部分，由于人体是个小宇宙，所以五行的关系也可应用于人体之内。例如，在医学上五行被用来描述人体不同的器官和身体部位。
除了一般的表示外，五行之间有着两种相互作用，即建设性的互动（相生）和控制作用（相克）。每个元素，会加强另一个元素（相生）并同时控制/削弱另一个元素（相克）。 相生的循环是：木->火->土->金->水，控制的循环是木->土->水->火->金。下图外圈是相生的循环，内圈是相克的循环：
五行系统，除了被用来描述世界的不同成分和它们之间的相互作用外，被广泛地运用在中医和风水（建筑及室内设计）。例如：中医认为，身体健康时，身体内的阴阳和五行是平衡的，而疾病发生时，是因为这些元素的不平衡。