It is a time when we are well advised to look within ourselves to know what is going on rather than trying to make sense of what we read from the external world. That world has ended the year engulfed in chaos and delusion. The perception of its image ceases to serve us in any useful way. It is the memory of our life and the choices made that inform us of who and where we are and where we are going. Not only must we examine every corner of the self. Our vision must include the example we set for others by our very existence. We must become aware of our impact in the lives of others. We must see our self in others as clearly as we see ourselves. This type of inquiry will of itself will make us more visible and provide the exemplary model for others to adopt and align with.
The text reads:
“This is the place of transition. We no longer look outward to receive pictures that are more or less limited and confused, but direct our contemplation upon ourselves in order to find a guideline for our decisions. This self-contemplation means the overcoming of naïve egotism in the person who sees everything solely from his own standpoint. He begins to reflect and in this way acquires objectivity. However, self-knowledge does not mean preoccupation with one’s own thoughts; rather, it means concern about the effects one creates. It is only the effects our lives produce that give us the right to judge whether what we have done means progress or regression.”
To accomplish this we must find silence within our self that is free of all affectations and use it to know the nature of the mind in stillness and movement. Be still like the mountain and all will be revealed.
The text reads:
“KEEPING STILL. Keeping his back still
So that he no longer feels his body.
He goes into his courtyard
And does not see his people.
No blame.
“True quiet means keeping still when the time has come to keep still, and going forward when the time has come to go forward. In this way rest and movement are in agreement with the demands of the time, and thus there is light in life.
The hexagram signifies the end and the beginning of all movement. The back is named because in the back are located all the nerve fibres that mediate movement. If the movement of these spinal nerves is brought to a standstill, the ego, with its restlessness, disappears as it were. When a man has thus become calm, he may turn to the outside world. He no longer sees in it the struggle and tumult of individual beings, and therefore he has that true peace of mind which is needed for understanding the great laws of the universe and for acting in harmony with them. Whoever acts from these deep levels makes no mistakes.”
