冬至 Dōngzhì
Winter Solstice
In 2026: 22 December 2026 to 5 January 2027 (Beijing time)
The longest night: yin reaches its peak and one yang line returns. Hexagram 24, Return, is this moment.
- Sun’s longitude
- 270°
- Month (earthly branch)
- 子month
- Season
- Winter
- Five Phase
- 水Water
The three pentads
Each term is divided into three five-day pentads, named for what the ancients saw happen in nature.
- First pentad蚯蚓结Earthworms curl up
- Second pentad麋角解Elk shed their antlers
- Third pentad水泉动Springs begin to stir
Wudang yangsheng for this term
- Breath
- The longest night, when one yang line returns (hexagram 24, Return): rest the breath and sit in stillness.
- Warm tea and diet
- Dumplings or tangyuan, as custom has it; warm cooked food and black tea.
- Sleep and daily rhythm
- Rest more than usual; avoid exhausting effort and heavy sweating.
Traditional guidance, not medical advice. The terms follow the seasons of central China.
In the Book of Changes
Each month has a sovereign hexagram (消息卦) that shows how far yin or yang has grown. For the 子 month it is 复, Return.
Seeker’s Q&A
Why rest just when the light is returning?
A shoot that has only just broken the soil is fragile. Tradition says the newborn yang should be protected, not spent; the energy for action comes later, in spring.
What do people eat at the Winter Solstice?
In southern China and Singapore, families make tangyuan, glutinous rice balls, and eat them together; in the north, dumplings. Both are about gathering the family on the longest night.
How does the Dao De Jing see this return?
Chapter 16 says that returning to the root is called stillness. The solstice is the year’s own return to its root.
Do I have to stop working or travelling?
No. Take the idea, not the rule: one quiet evening, one day without new plans, an early night around 21 or 22 December.
One-minute practice
Sit or lie comfortably with one hand below your navel. Breathe in so the hand rises a little, breathe out so it sinks, and imagine a small warm point there growing brighter. One minute, then go to bed earlier than usual.