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The Korean National Flag, the T'aegukki,
takes its name from the t'aeguk circle in the center of the
flag, is divided equally and is in perfect balance. The
red upper section represents yang and the blue lower section
um, an ancient symbol of the universe - of the great cosmic
forces that oppose each other but achieve perfect harmony and
balance: fire and water, day and night, dark and light,
construction and destruction, masculine and feminine, active
and passive, heat and cold, plus and minus, and so on.
The South Koreans may well have the most
philosophical flag in the world. The white background
represents Confucian 'purity' or the Buddhist concept of
'emptiness'. In the center lies a T'aeguk, the Taoist
symbol of the balance of or harmony between opposites.
It was adapted from the Chinese, who usually depicted it in
black & white, and divided vertically. The Korean
version is more colorful and divided horizontally, with the
red top half representing Yang (Also Yang in Chinese)(Heaven,
day, male, heat, active, construction, etc.). The blue
lower half represents Um (Yin in Chinese) (Earth, night,
female, cold, passive, destruction, etc.). These twin
cosmic forces are cycled perpetually, in perfectly balanced
harmony, despite their superficial opposition; wisdom doesn't
see them as fighting each other, but rather as two sides of
the same coin.
The three lines at each corner, knows as
trigrams, were borrowed from the most important ancient book
of Chinese thought, the Classic of Changes (Korean: the
Chu Yok; Chinese: the I Ching). The three unbroken bars
symbolise Heaven-Creative 
(kun), while the opposite three broken bars symbolise
Earth-Receptive 
(kon). The trigram in the upper right corner is
Water-Treacherous Danger 
(kam), and in the opposite corner lies Fire-Loyal Love 
(yi).
The flag as a whole symbolizes the ideal
of the Korean people developing forever in harmony with the
universe.
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