You are at the mercy of the flow of events.  Any changes or improvement of your situation must come from change within you.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 22 – If you want to become whole, let yourself be partial. If you want to become straight, let yourself be crooked.

Meditation: LA057 780928 Change your frequency

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “Broaden your view. Include everything. Feel everything from the inside, merging with the outside.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “Enjoy what has been accomplished by many small measures and its ensuing peace. Any further action may disrupt it.”

See related posts.

Read the text from Richard Wilhelm's, Thomas Cleary's, Brian Arnold's and other translations of the I Ching

47 – Forty-Seven.  K’un / Exhaustion

A Dead Sea, its Waters spent eons ago, more deadly than the desert surrounding it:
The Superior Person will stake his life and fortune on what he deeply believes.

Triumph belongs to those who endure.
Trial and tribulation can hone exceptional character to a razor edge that slices deftly through every challenge.
Action prevails where words will fail.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

This is the realm of the Shaman.
You have exhausted every alternative, spent yourself completely, taxed body and mind beyond your former limits.
Survival and salvation lie beyond your reach now.
Only transcendence to a new existence — a higher plane of being — will see you through.
The Old You is just a dry husk.
You can’t return to it.
Metamorphosis is the only grace offered.
You can only return to your homeland as a New You.

		above: Tui / The Joyous, Lake
		below: K’an / The Abysmal, Water

 

The lake is above, water below; the lake is empty, dried up.1 Exhaustion is expressed in yet another way: at the top, a dark line is holding down two light lines; below, a light line is hemmed in between two dark ones. The upper trigram belongs to the principle of darkness, the lower to the principle of light. Thus everywhere superior men are oppressed and held in restraint by inferior men.THE JUDGEMENT OPPRESSION. Success. Perseverance. The great man brings about good fortune. No blame. When one has something to say, It is not believed. Times of adversity are the reverse of times of success, but they can lead to success if they befall the right man. When a strong man meets with adversity, he remains cheerful despite all danger, and this cheerfulness is the source of later successes; it is that stability which is stronger than fate. He who lets his spirit be broken by exhaustion certainly has no success. But if adversity only bends a man, it creates in him a power to react that is bound in time to manifest itself. No inferior man is capable of this. Only the great man brings about good fortune and remains blameless. It is true that for the time being outward influence is denied him, because his words have no effect. Therefore in times of adversity it is important to be strong within and sparing of words.

THE IMAGE There is no water in the lake: The image of EXHAUSTION. Thus the superior man stakes his life On following his will. When the water has flowed out below, the lake must dry up and become exhausted. That is fate. This symbolises an adverse fate in human life. In such times there is nothing a man can do but acquiesce in his fate and remain true to himself. This concerns the deepest stratum of his being, for this alone is superior to all external fate. 1. [Literally, “exhausted”.]

Use all that you have to for the greatest good.  Channel your abundance to where it is needed.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 21 – The Master keeps her mind always at one with the Tao; that is what gives her her radiance.

Meditation: NM0163 – Feel God Within You, The Kindness in You

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “Broaden your view. Include everything. Feel everything from the inside, merging with the outside.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “Enjoy what has been accomplished by many small measures and its ensuing peace. Any further action may disrupt it.”

See related posts.

Read the text from Richard Wilhelm's, Thomas Cleary's, Brian Arnold's and other translations of the I Ching

15 – Fifteen.  Ch’ien / Modesty

The Mountain does not overshadow the Plain surrounding it:
Such modest consideration in a Superior Person creates a channel through which excess flows to the needy.

Success if you carry things through.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

The Cosmos is moving toward equilibrium.
Extremes are being tempered, excess is beginning to shift toward the empty.
You can use these moderating influences to strike a balance in the world around you.
Remember, though, that this Leveling will not come about through an arrogant confiscation of excess, but through subtler persuasions.
Modesty and moderation are the keys.

		above: K’un / The Receptive, Earth
		below: Kên / Keeping Still, Mountain

 

This hexagram is made up of the trigrams Kên, Keeping Still, mountain, and K’un. The mountain is the youngest son of the Creative (1), the representative of heaven and earth. It dispenses the blessings of heaven, the clouds and rain that gather round its summit, and thereafter shines forth radiant with heavenly light. This shows what modesty is and how it functions in great and strong men. K’un, the earth, stands above. Lowliness is a quality of the earth: this is the very reason why it appears in this hexagram as exalted, by being placed above the mountain. This shows how modesty functions in lowly, simple people: they are lifted up by it. THE JUDGEMENT MODESTY creates success. The superior man carries things through. It is the law of heaven to make fullness empty and to make full what is modest; when the sun is at its zenith, it must, according to the law of heaven, turn toward its setting, and at its nadir it rises toward a new dawn. In obedience to the same law, the moon when it is full begins to wane, and when empty of light it waxes again. This heavenly law works itself out in the fates of men also. It is the law of earth to alter the full and to contribute to the modest. High mountains are worn down by the waters, and the valleys are filled up. It is the law of fate to undermine what is full and to prosper the modest. And men also hate fullness and love the modest. The destinies of men are subject to immutable laws that must fulfil themselves. But man has it in his power to shape his fate, according as his behavior exposes him to the influence of benevolent or of destructive forces. When a man holds a high position and is nevertheless modest, he shines with the light of wisdom; if he is in a lowly position and is modest, he cannot be passed by. Thus the superior man can carry out his work to the end without boasting of what he has achieved.

THE IMAGE Within the earth, a mountain: The image of MODESTY. Thus the superior man reduces that which is too much, And augments that which is too little. He weighs things and makes them equal. The wealth of the earth in which a mountain is hidden is not visible to the eye, because the depths are offset by the height of the mountain. Thus high and low complement each other and the result is the plain. Here an effect that it took a long time to achieve, but that in the end seems easy of accomplishment and self-evident, is used as the image of modesty. The superior man does the same thing when he establishes order in the world; he equalises the extremes that are the source of social discontent and thereby creates just and equable conditions.1 2 1. This hexagram offers a number of parallels to the teachings of the Old and the New Testament, e.g., “And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted” [Matt. 23:12]; “Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain” [Isa. 40: 4]; “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble” [Jas. 4: 6]. The concept of the Last Judgment in the Parsee religion shows similar features. The Greek notion of the jealousy of the gods might be mentioned in connection with the third of the biblical passages here cited. 2. There are not many hexagrams in the Book of Changes in which all the lines have an exclusive favorable meaning, as in the hexagram of MODESTY. This shows how great a value Chinese wisdom places on this virtue.

Broaden your view. Include everything.  Feel everything from the inside, merging with the outside.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 20 – Stop thinking, and end your problems.

Meditation: Know the Psyche of the Other

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “Enjoy what has been accomplished by many small measures and its ensuing peace. Any further action may disrupt it.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “If you live simply without social ambition and do your work to your satisfaction, you will be free to live as you will and unencumbered by social pressures.”

See related posts.

Enjoy what has been accomplished by many small measures and its ensuing peace.  Any further action may disrupt it.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 19 – Throw away holiness and wisdom, and people will be a hundred times happier.

On the current state of democracy

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “If you live simply without social ambition and do your work to your satisfaction, you will be free to live as you will and unencumbered by social pressures.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “Complacency and apathy are as dangerous as the would-be oppressors. Pay attention! The very structure of what you hold dear is at risk. The choice is between unbridled creativity and abject oppression.”

See related posts.

If you live simply without social ambition and do your work to your satisfaction, you will be free to live as you will and unencumbered by social pressures.

The situation is one in which we are still not bound by any obligations of social intercourse. If our conduct is simple, we remain free of them. We can quietly follow our predilections as long as we are content and make not demands on people.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 18 – When the great Tao is forgotten, goodness and piety appear.

Meditation: LA010 – 19780210 – Gobinda – Project to the Infinite

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “Complacency and apathy are as dangerous as the would-be oppressors. Pay attention! The very structure of what you hold dear is at risk. The choice is between unbridled creativity and abject oppression.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “The darkness is decreasing. It will be necessary that sanity conquers chaos and wisdom accompanies action. In all ways, the dark forces will resist all change.”

See related posts.

Share The Magical Story of Mushkil Gusha over a meal with friends today.

Complacency and apathy are as dangerous as the would-be oppressors.  Pay attention!  The very structure of what you hold dear is at risk.  The choice is between  unbridled creativity and abject oppression.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 17 – When the Master governs, the people are hardly aware that he exists. Next best is a leader who is loved. Next, one who is feared. The worst is one who is despised.

Meditation: LA046 – 780614 – Hari Shabad Meditation – Use the Wind to Produce Trance and Dissolve Negativity

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “The darkness is decreasing. It will be necessary that sanity conquers chaos and wisdom accompanies action. In all ways, the dark forces will resist all change.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “Choose carefully who will serve as your leader. They should have integrity and not be a tool of external forces.”

See related posts.

The darkness is decreasing.  It will be necessary that sanity conquers chaos and wisdom accompanies action.  In all ways, the dark forces will resist all change.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 16 – Empty your mind of all thoughts. Let your heart be at peace. Watch the turmoil of beings, but contemplate their return.

Meditation: NM0337-Bujung Kriya – For Wisdom and Understanding

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “Choose carefully who will serve as your leader. They should have integrity and not be a tool of external forces.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “You are treading on dangerous terrain. Ultimately, caution, commitment and perseverance will carry you to success.“

See related posts.

Choose carefully who will serve as your leader.  They should have integrity and not be a tool of external forces.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 15 – The ancient Masters were profound and subtle

Meditation: LA935-980608- Connect the subconscious and intuition

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “You are treading on dangerous terrain. Ultimately, caution, commitment and perseverance will carry you to success.“

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “Take the path of least resistance as you project your intentions. Stop trying to enforce your will on everything.”

See related posts.

20 – Twenty.  Kuan / Contemplation

The gentle Wind roams the Earth:
The Superior Person expands his sphere of influence as he expands his awareness.
Deeply devoted to his pursuit of clarity and wisdom, he is unconscious of the inspiring, positive example he is setting for others to emulate.

You have cleansed yourself; now stand ready to make your humble, devout offering.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

The situation marks a rising to new heights.
As you climb for a better view of the panorama, you make yourself more conspicuous to those below.
This hexagram is also known as the Watchtower, because the shape formed by its lines resembles the ancient guardposts manned by Chinese soldiers.
These towers were placed on mountainsides to give a better vantage point.
To those below, the watchtowers served as landmarks to help them find their way.
The quality of your search for clarity in this situation serves as such a guidepost for others along the Way.

45 – Forty-Five.  Ts’ui / Gathering

The Lake rises by welcoming and receiving Earth’s waters:
The King approaches his temple.
It is wise to seek audience with him there.

Success follows this course.
Making an offering will seal your good fortune.
A goal will be realized now.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

This is an important Convergence, and you must be part of it.
Look for the Center of this convergence.
Like waters running to the sea, like an astronomical convergence of planets revolving around the sun, you should let the gravity of this Center draw you near.
Others are also drawn to this Center, and among them you will find shared bonds and kindred spirits.
This tribal convergence will give you a clarity of purpose.
You will no longer be alone.

You are treading on dangerous terrain.  Ultimately, caution, commitment and perseverance will carry you to success.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 14 – Look, and it can’t be seen. Listen, and it can’t be heard. Reach, and it can’t be grasped.

Meditation: TCH2012 960727 – Warrior’s Exercise for Opening the Energy into the Shushmana & Balancing the Hemispheres of the Brain

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “Take the path of least resistance as you project your intentions. Stop trying to enforce your will on everything.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “In this time we need experienced leadership to guide us in our struggles. We must leave the child behind and follow the adult in charge.”

See related posts.

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.

Nine in the fourth place means:

He treads on the tail of the tiger.
Caution and circumspection
Lead ultimately to good fortune.

He shows humble hesitation and breathless caution, yet still resolutely takes a necessary step on the tail of the tiger.
His modest manner saves him from the bite.

This text refers to a dangerous enterprise. The inner power to carry it through is there, but this inner power is combined with hesitating caution in one’s external attitude. This line contrasts with the preceding line, which is weak within but outwardly presses forward. Here one is sure of ultimate success, which consists in achieving one’s purpose, that is, in overcoming danger by going forward.

3 – Three.  Chun / Difficulty at the Beginning

Thunder from the Deep:
The Superior Person carefully weaves order out of confusion.

Supreme Success if you keep to your course.
Carefully consider the first move.
Seek help.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

New ventures always pack along their inherent chaos.
Though this is an annoyance at best, and can even imperil or downright doom an endeavor, it is also the friction needed to polish your project to jewel brilliance.
Learn from these early obstacles.

Take the path of least resistance as you project  your intentions.  Stop trying to enforce your will on everything..

This will make things much easier.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Meditation: LA135-19791029 Resolve Inner Conflict

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “It is a time of standstill and decay. This time demands a person of the highest integrity to lead us into the light”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “Faced with conflict, engage if it can be resolved quickly either by compromise or having the overwhelming advantage of truth.”

See related posts.

43 – Forty-Three.  Kuai / Breakthrough

A Deluge from Heaven:
The Superior Person rains fortune upon those in need, then moves on with no thought of the good he does.

The issue must be raised before an impartial authority.
Be sincere and earnest, despite the danger.
Do not try to force the outcome, but seek support where needed.
Set a clear goal.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

Your iron will must come to the forefront now.
It will take great personal determination to resolve the situation in question.
Your adversary would love to force you into an angry display.
That would legitimize his opposition to you.
Such a berserker rage would drag you down to his level.
You must resolutely take a public stand against what he represents, but refuse to engage him.
Without compromise, you show others the way to higher ground.

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.

In this time we need experienced leadership to guide us in our struggles.  Armed conflict, hatred, even animosity must be deleted from the playbook.  Only a seasoned leader is capable of defusing sentiments of open conflict and molifying dissatisfaction and unrest among the masses.  We must leave the child behind and follow the adult in charge.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 12 – He allows things to come and go. His heart is open as the sky.

Meditation: LA135-19791029 Resolve Inner Conflict

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “It is a time of standstill and decay. This time demands a person of the highest integrity to lead us into the light”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “Faced with conflict, engage if it can be resolved quickly either by compromise or having the overwhelming advantage of truth.”

See related posts.

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?

48 – Forty-Eight.  Ching / The Well

Deep Waters Penetrated and drawn to the surface:
The Superior Person refreshes the people with constant encouragement to help one another.

Encampments, settlements, walled cities, whole empires may rise and fall, yet the Well at the center endures, never drying to dust, never overflowing.
It served those before and will serve those after.
Again and again you may draw from the Well, but if the bucket breaks or the rope is too short there will be misfortune.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

There is a Source common to us all.
Jung named it the Collective Unconscious.
Others hail it as God within.
Inside each of us are dreamlike symbols and archetypes, emotions and instincts that we share with every other human being.
When we feel a lonely separateness from others, it is not because this Well within has dried up, but because we have lost the means to reach its waters.
You need to reclaim the tools necessary to penetrate to the depths of your fellows.
Then the bonds you build will be as timeless and inexhaustible as the Well that nourishes them.

It is a time of standstill and decay.

In a time when most of our wants are provided, there is little need for the heroes, the artists, the great thinkers and innovators.
As they recede into the shadows, Idleness, Apathy, and Lassitude come to the forefront.
Peace has become boring, bland, unchallenging — Stagnant.
Now our attention turns to the quick fix, the instant celebrity, the fad, the one-nighter, the current buzz.
There is no room for depth.

This time demands a person of the highest integrity to lead us into the light: the [person] who is truly called to the task is favored by the conditions of the time, and all those of like mind will share in her blessing.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 11 – We work with being, but non-being is what we use.

Meditation: Drib Dhristi Lochina Karma

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “Faced with conflict, engage if it can be resolved quickly either by compromise or having the overwhelming advantage of truth.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “Though it may seem that everything opposes your endeavors, just ensure that you are on the right path and seek good company. You will triumph.”

See related posts.

12 – Twelve.  P’i / Stagnation

Heaven and Earth move away from each other.
In the ensuing void, the small invade where the great have departed.
There is no common meeting ground, so the Superior Person must fall back on his inner worth and decline the rewards offered by the inferior invaders.

Difficult trials as you hold to your course.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

It is natural to assume that, if Earth above Heaven forms the hexagram for Peace and Paradise, then the opposite configuration, with Heaven over Earth would represent the antithesis of Paradise, Hell.
Not so.
This hexagram is actually the Dark side of Peace, its unsavory byproduct, Stagnation.
In a time when most of our wants are provided, there is little need for the heroes, the artists, the great thinkers and innovators.
As they recede into the shadows, Idleness, Apathy, and Lassitude come to the forefront.
Peace has become boring, bland, unchallenging — Stagnant.
Now our attention turns to the quick fix, the instant celebrity, the fad, the one-nighter, the current buzz.
There is no room for depth.
If you are a passionate soul, you must wait for a better time to find kindred spirits.
In these times, they are only curious legends, bas-relief, dead poets.

39 – Thirty-Nine. Chien / Obstacle

Ominous roiling in the Crater Lake atop the Volcano:
When meeting an impasse, the Superior Person turns his gaze within, and views the obstacle from a new perspective.

Offer your opponent nothing to resist.
Let a sage guide you in this.
Good fortune lies along this course.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

The Obstacle lies in obstinance.
An insistence on only one way of proceeding has brought things to an impasse.
You may either continue banging your head with irresistible force against this immovable object, or you might step back and survey this situation from a fresh perspective.
Which is immobile here — the obstruction or your attitude?

Faced with conflict, engage if it can be resolved quickly either by compromise or having the overwhelming advantage of truth.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 10 – Can you coax your mind from its wandering and keep to the original oneness?

Meditation: Drib Dhristi Lochina Karma

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “Though it may seem that everything opposes your endeavors, just ensure that you are on the right path and seek good company. You will triumph.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “Rely on your experience, knowledge and wisdom as you venture into unknown territory. Witness all that lies before you with out preconception.”

See related posts.

6 – Six   Sung / Conflict

The high Heavens over a yawning Deep chasm:
An expansive void where nothing can dwell.
Even though he sincerely knows he is right, the Superior Person anticipates opposition and carefully prepares for any incident.

Good fortune if your conflict results in compromise.
Misfortune if your conflict escalates to confrontation.
Seek advice.
Postpone your crossing to the far shore.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

Conflict is a necessary part of life.
Tension upon the strings of a violin can make majestic music.
The critical mass of two hydrogen atoms trying to occupy the same space fuel the sun that nourishes our solar system.
Most conflicts you face in life are the result of your Path converging with another’s.
Your Path is not his, and one Path is not necessarily more right than the other.
Can you work together to remove the blockage?

Six at the beginning [yin at bottom] means:

No quarrel will blossom, unless you let your pride fertilize this budding conflict.
Let the one who insults you expose himself for what he is.
Don’t fight this battle until you’ve already won it.

If one does not perpetuate the affair,
There is a little gossip.
In the end, good fortune comes.

‘Gossip’ – Norman Rockwell

WHILE A CONFLICT is in the incipient stage, the best thing to do is to drop the issue. Especially when the adversary is stronger, it is not advisable to risk pushing the conflict to a decision. It may come to a slight dispute, but in the end all goes well.

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.

Though it may seem that everything opposes your endeavors, just ensure that you are on the right path and seek good company.  You will triumph.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 9 – Better to stop in time than to fill to the brim

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

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “Rely on your experience, knowledge and wisdom as you venture into unknown territory. Witness all that lies before you with out preconception.”

Today: I Ching – Previous previous reading – “You have everything at your disposal to help anyone in need.  Without any challenge or pressure you can be assured that your relations benefit from you as long as you are aware of danger and keep your humility.”  – from the I Ching

See related posts.

38 – Thirty-Eight.  K’uei / Estrangement

Fire distances itself from its nemesis, the Lake:
No matter how large or diverse the group, the Superior Person remains uniquely himself.

Small accomplishments are possible.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

You are working at cross-purposes with another.
The distance between you is very wide.
The gap can be closed, however, with no compromise of your integrity.
You are not adversaries in this case — just two persons addressing individual needs.
Ask yourself: are these needs mutually exclusive?
Is there common ground here?
Must there be one winner and one loser?
Could you become partners in seeking a solution that would allow for two winners?

34 – Thirty-Four.  Ta Chuang / Awesome Power

Thunder fills the Heavens with its awful roar, not out of pride, but with integrity; if it did less, it would not be Thunder:
Because of his Great Power, the Superior Person takes pains not to overstep his position, so that he will not seem intimidating or threatening to the Established Order.

Opportunity will arise along this course.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

The Awesome Power available in this hexagram stems from what the Taoists call your Te, a term not perfectly translated into English.
Roughly, it is your Integrity — not in the Western sense of honor — but more in the psychological definition of a full integration of Who You Are.
This Awesome Power is achieved only by fully embracing both the good and the bad, the strong and the weak, the masculine and the feminine — all polarities within you.
Such self-knowledge spawns a Mastery tempered with the humility necessary to rein in and harness this Awesome Power.

1. Cutting off of the hair and nose was a severe and degrading punishment.

Rely on your experience, knowledge and wisdom as you venture into unknown territory.  Witness all that lies before you with out preconception.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 7 – The Tao is infinite, eternal.

Meditation: LA004 780109 Experience the Experience

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “You have everything at your disposal to help anyone in need. Without any challenge or pressure you can be assured that your relations benefit from you as long as you are aware of danger and keep your humility.”

See related posts.

26 – Twenty-Six.  Ta Ch’u / Recharging Power

Heaven’s motherlode waits within the Mountain:
The Superior Person mines deep into history’s wealth of wisdom and deeds, charging his character with timeless strength.

Persevere.
Drawing sustenance from these sources creates good fortune.
Then you may cross to the far shore.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

There are important precedents in this situation.
Others have trodden this Path before you, overcoming the same obstacles facing you now, and making crucial decisions at the same crossroads.
Study their journals, watch for their trail markings.
Gain inspiration and wisdom from the heroes and learn from the mistakes of those who chose a sidepath.
All were Seekers, explorers whose daring mapped a course you can follow.
The words and deeds of the finest can imbue you with the courage necessary to face what lies before you.

		above: Kên / Keeping Still, Mountain
		below: Ch’ien / The Creative,

Cloud in the crater of the volcano Caldera de Taburiente, La Palma – Canary Islands, May 2013 Mirador de Los Roques (La Cumbrecita) – photo Lex van den Bos

THE IMAGE Heaven within the mountain: The image of THE TAMING POWER OF THE GREAT. Thus the superior man acquaints himself with many sayings of antiquity And many deeds of the past, In order to strengthen his character thereby. Heaven within the mountain points to hidden treasures. In the words and deeds of the past there lies hidden a treasure that men may use to strengthen and elevate their own characters. The way to study the past is not to confine oneself to mere knowledge of history but, through application of this knowledge, to give actuality to the past.

You have everything at your disposal to help anyone in need.  Without any challenge or pressure you can be assured that your relations benefit from you as long as you are aware of danger and keep your humility.

See Yogi Bhajan’s quote for today

Tao Te Ching – Verse 6 – The Tao is called the Great Mother: empty yet inexhaustible, it gives birth to infinite worlds.

Meditation: NM345- Strengthen and enhance the radiant body

Today: I Ching – Previous Reading – “Persevere in what you are doing, yet remain mindful of the danger in every action.”

Today: I Ching – Previous Previous Reading – “Enhance your durability beyond strength. Apply yourself to a firm commitment to your aspirations and intentions. Be both firm and flexible as required.”

See related posts.

14 – Fourteen.  Ta Yu / Great Treasures

The Fire of clarity illuminates the Heavens to those below:
The Superior Person possesses great inner treasures — compassion, economy, and modesty.
These treasures allow the benevolent will of Heaven to flow through him outward to curb evil and to further good.

Supreme success.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

You have become an instrument of Heaven’s will, offering a balance in the world around you.
It is not swashbuckling prowess or uncanny talent that qualifies you for this office, but your simplest gifts — your modesty, your compassion, your economy.
Because you can see clearly who most needs a miracle, Heaven’s bounty is being put at your disposal.

Nine at the beginning [yang at bottom] means:

No mistakes if you stay out of harm’s way.
Remain conscious of dangers and difficulties, and you will have no regrets.

No relationship with what is harmful;
There is no blame in this.
If one remains conscious of difficulty,
One remains without blame.

Great possession that is still in its beginnings and that has not yet been challenged brings no blame, since there has been no opportunity to make mistakes. Yet there are many difficulties to be overcome. It is only by remaining conscious of these difficulties that one can keep inwardly free of possible arrogance and wastefulness, and thus in principle overcome all cause for blame.

50 – Fifty   Ting / The Caldron

Fire rises hot and bright from the Wood beneath the sacrificial caldron:
The Superior Person positions himself correctly within the flow of Cosmic forces.

Supreme Accomplishment.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

Your needs are coming into harmony with the requirements of the Cosmos.
Blending brilliantly with the Dance of Life, you are becoming an actual element of Cosmic Law.
Your goals will now be realized because you no longer cut against the Cosmic grain; you are no longer swimming against the flow of the Tao.
You are acquiring an intuitive sense of what can and cannot be, and aligning your efforts accordingly.