Month: December 2023

Today: “However you grow and support your body, mind and spirit, keep up. Remain flexible while holding your direction.” – from the I Ching

However you grow and support your body, mind and spirit, keep up. Remain flexible while holding your direction.

Today: “Teaching is not a verbalization or a communication; teaching is also not a direction; teaching is to be.” – Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: LA692-781102 – Experience Tremendous Strength

Meditation: NM345- Strengthen and enhance the radiant body

32 – Thirty-Two. Hêng / Durability

Arousing Thunder and penetrating Wind.
Close companions in any storm:
The Superior Person possesses a resiliency and durability that lets him remain firmly and faithfully on course.

Such constancy deserves success.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

Endurance is the key to success in this situation.
However, durability is not synonymous with stone-like rigidity.
True resilience requires a flexibility that allows adaptation to any adverse condition, while still remaining true to the core.
Can you maintain your integrity under any circumstance?
Can you influence the situation without giving opposing forces anything to resist?
Then you will endure to reach your goal.


		above: Chên / The Arousing, Thunder
		above: Chên / The Arousing, Thunder


		below: Sun / The Gentle, Wind
		below: Sun / The Gentle, Wind

The strong trigram Chên is above, the weak trigram Sun below. This hexagram is the inverse of the preceding one (31). In the latter we have influence, here we have union as an enduring condition. The two images are thunder and wind, which are likewise constantly paired phenomena. The lower trigram indicates gentleness within; the upper, movement without.
In the sphere of social relationships, the hexagram represents the institution of marriage as the enduring union of the sexes. During courtship the young man subordinates himself to the girl, but in marriage, which is represented by the coming together of the eldest son and the eldest daughter, the husband is the directing and moving force outside, while the wife, inside, is gentle and submissive.

THE JUDGEMENT

DURATION. Success. No blame.
Perseverance furthers.
It furthers one to have somewhere to go.

Duration is a state whose movement is not worn down by hindrances. It is not a state of rest, for mere standstill is regression. Duration is rather the self- contained and therefore self-renewing movement of an organised, firmly integrated whole, taking place in accordance with immutable laws and beginning anew at every ending. The end is reached by an inward movement, by inhalation, systole, contraction, and this movement turns into a new beginning, in which the movement is directed outward, in exhalation, diastole, expansion.
Heavenly bodies exemplify duration. They move in their fixed orbits, and because of this their light-giving power endures. The seasons of the year follow a fixed law of change and transformation, hence can produce effects that endure.
So likewise the dedicated man embodies an enduring meaning in his way of life, and thereby the world is formed. In that which gives things their duration, we can come to understand the nature of all beings in heaven and on earth.

Thunder and wind

THE IMAGE

Thunder and wind: the image of DURATION.
Thus the superior man stands firm
And does not change his direction.

Thunder rolls, and the wind blows; both are examples of extreme mobility and so are seemingly the very opposite of duration, but the laws governing their appearance and subsidence, their coming and going, endure. In the same way the independence of the superior man is not based on rigidity and immobility of character. He always keeps abreast of the time and changes with it. What endures is the unswerving directive, the inner law of his being, which determines all his actions.

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Today: “Teaching is not a verbalization or a communication; teaching is also not a direction; teaching is to be.” – Yogi Bhajan

“Teaching is not a verbalization or a communication; teaching is also not a direction; teaching is to be.” Yogi Bhajan

See related posts

Today: “Receive the onslaught without calling attention to yourself. Through your trials you can help others and be a hero.” – from the I Ching

Clean your own house rather than oversee other peoples’ business.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 58 – “If a country is governed with tolerance, the people are comfortable and honest”

Meditation: TCH36-1-A00713 – Pain and Ecstasy – Triangle of Knowledge

Meditation: NM345- Strengthen and enhance the radiant body

35 – Thirty-Five. Chin / Aspiration

The Sun shines down upon the Earth:
Constantly honing and refining his brilliance, the Superior Person is a Godsend to his people.
They repay his benevolence with a herd of horses, and he is granted audience three times in a single day.

Promotion.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

This is a time of reward for good works.
Those you have helped want to show their gratitude.
Benefits come both from on high and from the humble you uplifted.
Accept all gifts graciously, though the reward may not be what you truly need or hoped for.
Some may bestow more than they can afford to give, but you must realize that they need to feel that they have repaid you.

Nine at the top means:

Though politically perilous, it is wiser to put infidels within your own city walls to the sword, rather than lead a Crusade to convert faraway lands.

Making progress with the horns is permissible
Only for the purpose of punishing one’s own city.
To be conscious of danger brings good fortune.
No blame.
Perseverance brings humiliation.

Gemsbucks

Making progress with lowered horns – i.e., acting on the offensive – is permissible, in times like those referred to here, only in dealing with the mistakes of one’s own people. Even then we must bear in mind that proceeding on the offensive may always be dangerous. In this way we avoid the mistakes that otherwise threaten, and succeed in what we set out to do. On the other hand, perseverance in such overenergetic behavior, especially toward persons with whom there is no close connection, will lead to humiliation.

6 – Sixteen Yü / Enthusiasm

Thunder comes resounding out of the Earth:
Similar thunder roars up from the masses when the Superior Person strikes a chord in their hearts.

Whip up enthusiasm, rally your forces, and move boldly forward.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

There is a rhythmic force, a world music, that lives deep in the Unconscious of each of us.
It’s a primitive drumbeat, a shaking rattle, a tribal chant that invokes the primal self to rise up and join the dance.
This is the enthusiasm that is generated now.
Not rhetorical persuasion, not a play on the emotions, but a charismatic, irresistible Call of the Wild.
Confucius said that the person who could comprehend this could ‘rule the world as though it were spinning in his hand.’
This is a time for instinct, not intellect — the Thunder from the Beneath.

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Today: “Teaching is not a verbalization or a communication; teaching is also not a direction; teaching is to be.” – Yogi Bhajan

“Teaching is not a verbalization or a communication; teaching is also not a direction; teaching is to be.” Yogi Bhajan

See related posts

Today: “Receive the onslaught without calling attention to yourself. Through your trials you can help others and be a hero.” – from the I Ching

Receive the onslaught without calling attention to yourself. Through your trials you can help others and be a hero.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 58 – “If a country is governed with tolerance, the people are comfortable and honest”

Meditation: TCH36-1-A00713 – Pain and Ecstasy – Triangle of Knowledge

Meditation: NM0337-Bujung Kriya – For Wisdom and Understanding

36 – Thirty-Six. Ming I / Eclipsing the Light

Warmth and Light are swallowed by Deep Darkness:
The Superior Person shows his brilliance by keeping it veiled among the masses.

Stay true to your course, despite the visible obstacles ahead.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

This time calls for a saintly effort to turn the other cheek.
You have been deliberately injured.
Going blow-for-blow will only escalate this war.
Abstain from vengeance.
Show all watching that you are above it.
Sidestep your aggressor’s headlong charge, giving him the opportunity to fall on his face.

Six in the second place means:

The grieving pheasant has a wounded left wing.
The agent of darkness wounds the man in his left thigh.
Still the man helps others to safety with the strength of a horse.

Darkening of the light injures him in the left thigh.
He gives aid with the strength of a horse.
Good fortune.

Here the Lord of Light is in a subordinate place and is wounded by the Lord of Darkness. But the injury is not fatal; it is only a hindrance. Rescue is still possible. The wounded man gives no thought to himself; he thinks only of saving the others who are also in danger. Therefore he tries with all his strength to save all that can be saved. There is good fortune in thus acting according to duty.

19 – Nineteen. Lin / Noble Calling

The rich, loamy Earth on the banks of the Marsh provides fertile soil for exceptional progress.
The Superior Person is inexhaustible in his willingness to teach, and without limit in his tolerance and support of others.

Supreme Success if you keep to your course.
But be aware that your time is limited; your power will wane, as Summer changes to Fall.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

You are in a position to help another.
This is a temporary situation, because your power is cyclical, seasonal.
Knowing this, you must perform your good deed without hope of reward.
You are not furthering your own process, but another’s.
Though you may cherish this other, you will never possess.
Touch without grasping.
Take comfort in becoming a fond memory.
Nurture, then let go.

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Today: “God just sent you to earth as parents send their child to kindergarten, to school, hoping that you will find some wisdom.” – Yogi Bhajan

God just sent you to earth as parents send their child to kindergarten, to school, hoping that you will find some wisdom.

Today: “Regardless of how you may have strayed from your path, or when or how things took a wrong turn, you may freely return. You are welcome to resume as you were from the point of departure, only wiser.” – from the I Ching

Regardless of how you may have strayed from your path, or when or how things took a wrong turn, you may freely return. You are welcome to resume as you were from the point of departure, only wiser.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 57 – If you want to be a great leader, you must learn to follow the Tao.

Meditation: LA004 780109 Experience the Experience

Meditation: NM0415 – 20010910 – Karma & Dharma

24 – Twenty-Four. Fu / Return

Thunder regenerates deep within Earth’s womb:
Sage rulers recognized that the end of Earth’s seasonal cycle was also the starting point of a new year and a time for dormancy.
They closed the passes at the Solstice to enforce a rest from commerce and activity.
The ruler himself did not travel.

You have passed this way before but you are not regressing.
This is progress, for the cycle now repeats itself, and this time you are aware that it truly is a cycle.
The return of old familiars is welcome.
You can be as sure of this cycle as you are that seven days bring the start of a new week.
Use this dormancy phase to plan which direction you will grow.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

You are about to experience a rebirth — about to be given another chance, a new lease on life.
You have persevered, gone the distance through an entire cycle — through the Spring of hope or new passion, through a Summer of growth and building, only to be sacrificed like the archetypal Harvest King at the Autumn reaping.
You lie dormant like seed beneath Winter snows now, healing and absorbing new energies in preparation for the new young Spring coming shortly to your life.

Six in the second place means:

Your return is welcome.
Great fortune.

Quiet return. Good fortune.

‘Return of the Prodigal Son’ – Murillo Bartolomé Esteban

Return always calls for a decision and is an act of self-mastery. It is made easier if a man is in good company. If he can bring himself to put aside pride and follow the example of good men, good fortune results.

19 – Nineteen. Lin / Noble Calling

Supreme Success if you keep to your course.
But be aware that your time is limited; your power will wane, as Summer changes to Fall.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

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Today: “God is not living on the seventh story and no lift goes to him. God is you, He is your expression.” – Yogi Bhajan

“God is not living on the seventh story and no lift goes to him. God is you, He is your expression. He is your identity in existence. That is why God is everywhere. Because wherever you are, God is. Because wherever you generate, organize, and destroy, it is a fraction of the same that is already prevailing in universal man. Therefore, we can conclude that man is the image, or the finite activity, of the universal activity in operation.” Yogi Bhajan

Today: “Recognize your inexperience in current matters. Do not overstep your level of expertise. Seek advice.” – from the I Ching

Recognize your inexperience in current matters. Do not overstep your level of expertise. Seek advice.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 56 – Those who know don’t talk. Those who talk don’t know.

Meditation: LA544 – 870610 – Know and Experience the Unknown

Meditation: LA051-780907 – Tune the Vagus Nerve to Cosmic Consciousness

4 – Four. Mêng / Inexperience

A fresh Spring at the foot of the Mountain:
The Superior Person refines his character by being thorough in every activity.
The Sage does not recruit students; the students seek him.
He asks nothing but a sincere desire to learn.
If the student doubts or challenges his authority, the Sage regretfully cuts his losses.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

This is a time of interchange between a mentor and pupil.
Whether you are the teacher or the student, it is a time of companionship along a mutual path.
This hexagram also emphasizes the eternal, cyclical nature of the mentor/student relationship — a mentor is merely a more seasoned pupil, further along on the journey.
A pupil holds within himself the seed of a future Master.

IN THIS HEXAGRAM we are reminded of youth and folly¹ in two different ways. The image of the upper trigram, Kên, is the mountain, that of the lower, K’an, is water; the spring rising at the foot of the mountain is the image of inexperienced youth. Keeping still (52) is the attribute of the upper trigram; that of the lower is the abyss (29), danger. Stopping in perplexity on the brink of a dangerous abyss is a symbol of the folly of youth. However, the two trigrams also show the way of overcoming the follies of youth. Water is something that of necessity flows on. When the spring gushes forth, it does not know at first where it will go. But its steady flow fills up the deep place blocking its progress, and success is attained.

THE JUDGEMENT

Youthful folly has success.
It is not I who seek the young fool;
The young fool seeks me.
At the first oracle I inform him.
If he asks two or three times, it is importunity.
If he importunes, I give him no information.
Perseverance furthers.

IN THE TIME OF youth, folly is not an evil. One may succeed in spite of it, provided one finds an experienced teacher and has the right attitude toward him. This means, first of all, that the youth himself must be conscious of his lack of experience and must seek out the teacher. Without this modesty and this interest there is no guarantee that he has the necessary receptivity, which should express itself in respectful acceptance of the teacher. This is the reason why the teacher must wait to be sought out instead of offering himself. Only thus can the instruction take place at the right time and in the right way.
A teacher’s answer to the question of a pupil ought to be clear and definite like that expected from an oracle; thereupon it ought to be accepted as a key for resolution of doubts and a basis for decision. If mistrustful or unintelligent questioning is kept up, it serves only to annoy the teacher. He does well to ignore it in silence, just as the oracle gives one answer only and refuses to be tempted by questions implying doubt. Given in addition a perseverance that never slackens until the points are mastered one by one, real success is sure to follow. Thus the hexagram counsels the teacher as well as the pupil.

Spring wells up at foot of mountain

Flathead River at Old West Glacier Bridge, Montana
Credit: Glacier National Park Service [Public Domain]

THE IMAGE

A spring wells up at the foot of the mountain:
The image of YOUTH.
Thus the superior man fosters his character
By thoroughness in all that he does.

A SPRING succeeds in flowing on and escapes stagnation by filling up all the hollow places in its path. In the same way character is developed by thoroughness that skips nothing but, like water, gradually and steadily fills up all gaps and so flows onward.

1. [“Fool” and “folly” as used in this hexagram should be understood to mean the immaturity of youth and its consequent lack of wisdom, rather than mere stupidity. Parsifal is known as the “pure fool” not because he was dull-witted but because he was inexperienced.]

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Today: “When you say cosmic consciousness, you mean God. When you say universal mind, you mean God.” – Yogi Bhajan

“When you say cosmic consciousness, you mean God. When you say universal mind, you mean God. There is no difference, there is just the difference in expression.” Yogi Bhajan

Today: “Summon your courage to engage with conviction what must be addressed now. It will not wait. Then, you will have the power to choose how you will proceed in life.” – from the I Ching

Summon your courage to engage with conviction what must be addressed now. It will not wait. Then, you will have the power to choose how you will proceed in life.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 54 – Whoever is planted in the Tao will not be rooted up

Meditation: NM091 – 19921110 – Self Emboldenment, Engagement, Vision

Meditation: LA741 – 921125 – Dance of Shiva

10 – Ten. Lü / Worrying the Tiger

Heaven shines down on the Marsh which reflects it back imperfectly:
Though the Superior Man carefully discriminates between high and low, and acts in accord with the flow of the Tao, there are still situations where a risk must be taken.

You tread upon the tail of the tiger.
Not perceiving you as a threat, the startled tiger does not bite.
Success.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

You have reached a perilous point in your journey.
This is a real gamble — not a maneuver, not a calculated risk.
The outcome is uncertain.
If it goes as you hope, you will gain — but if it turns against you it will cause serious injury, at least to your plans.
The best tack is extreme caution and a healthy respect for the danger involved.

Six in the third place means:
A one-eyed man is able to see,
A lame man is able to tread.
He treads on the tail of the tiger.
The tiger bites the man.
Misfortune.
Thus does a warrior act on behalf of his great prince.

Worrying the Tiger

A one-eyed man can indeed see, but not enough for clear vision. A lame man can indeed tread, but not enough to make progress. If in spite of such defects a man considers himself strong and consequently exposes himself to danger, he is inviting disaster, for he is undertaking something beyond his strength. This reckless way of plunging ahead, regardless of the adequacy of one’s powers, can be justified only in the case of a warrior battling for his prince.

1 – One Ch’ien / Creative Activity

Heaven above and Heaven below:
Heaven in constant motion.
With the strength of the dragon, the Superior Person steels himself for ceaseless activity.

Productive Activity.
Potent Influence.
Sublime Success if you keep to your course.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

The time for action has come.
You now have the focus and the stamina necessary for accomplishing great tasks.
The path before you is being cleared and reward lies ahead.

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Today: “If there is happiness there is going to be sadness. If there is sadness there is going to be happiness.” – Yogi Bhajan

“If there is happiness there is going to be sadness. If there is sadness there is going to be happiness. Sadness attracts happiness, happiness attracts sadness. This is the cycle. Night is followed by day, clouds are followed by sunshine, youth is followed by old age.” Yogi Bhajan

Today: “Take your time with important commitments. Make sure everything is right before proceeding.” – from the I Ching

Take your time with important commitments. Make sure everything is right before proceeding.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 54 – Whoever is planted in the Tao will not be rooted up

Meditation: 760422 – Balancing Projection with Intention

Meditation: LA907 – Kriya for Non-Reaction

54 – Fifty-Four. Kuei Mei / A Loveless Marriage

The Thunderstorm inseminates the swelling Lake, then moves on where the Lake cannot follow:
The Superior Person views passing trials in the light of Eternal Truths.
Any action will prove unfortunate.
Nothing furthers.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

This is at best a Marriage of Convenience.
You have found yourself in desperate straits, a position of weakness, and you are tempted to pay dearly for a remedy.
A drowning man isn’t picky about who throws him a rope.
The rescue offered to you now is undesirable.
It may pull you out of this sticky situation, but it will cause even greater predicaments down the road.
Don’t obligate yourself in this way.
You are selling your future for a quick fix today.

Nine in the fourth place means:

The maiden waits far longer than seems wise, to make sure her marriage is right.

The marrying maiden draws out the allotted time.
A late marriage comes in due course.

‘Giovanni Arnolfini and His Wife Giovanna Cenami’
(The Arnolfini Marriage) – Jan van Eyck, 1434

The girl is virtuous. She does not wish to throw herself away, and allows the customary time for marriage to slip by. However, there is no harm in this; she is rewarded for her purity and, even though belatedly, finds the husband intended for her.

7 – Seven. Shih / Recruiting Allies

Deep Water beneath the Earth’s surface:
Untapped resources are available.
The Superior Person nourishes and instructs the people, building a loyal, disciplined following.
Good fortune.
No mistakes if you follow a course led by experience.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

You must gain support from others.
Find a way to make others want to see your objectives met as badly as you want it.
How can they profit from the attainment of this goal?
Can you command confidence that you are just the person that can bring this plan to fruition?

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Today: “Host those who have been your enemies, respect those who have slandered you, and communicate with those who have been all your life angry with you.” – Yogi Bhajan

“Host those who have been your enemies, respect those who have slandered you, and communicate with those who have been all your life angry with you.” Yogi Bhajan

Today: “Curb your ambitions for now. Do not pursue anything. Wait.” – from the I Ching

Curb your ambitions for now. Do not pursue anything. Wait.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 53 – The great Way is easy, yet people prefer the side paths

Meditation: LA021-780319 – You Will Feel Totally Conscious