Month: January 2019

#38
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.
A kindred spirit cuts through the barriers that separate you.
Can you cross the small distance remaining?
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.
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.

#8
WHAT IS required is that we unite with others, in order that all may complement and aid one another through holding together. But such holding together calls for a central figure around whom other persons may unite. To become a centre of influence holding people together is a grave matter and fraught with great responsibility. It requires greatness of spirit, consistency, and strength. Therefore let him who wishes to gather others about him ask himself whether he is equal to the undertaking, for anyone attempting the task without a real calling for it only makes confusion worse than if no union at all had taken place.
But when there is a real rallying point, those who at first are hesitant or uncertain gradually come in of their own accord. Late-comers must suffer the consequences, for in holding together the question of the right time is also important. Relationships are formed and firmly established according to definite inner laws. Common experiences strengthen these ties, and he who comes too late to share in these basic experiences must suffer for it if, as a straggler, he finds the door locked.
If a man has recognized the necessity for union and does not feel strong enough to function as the centre, it is his duty to become a member of some other organic fellowship.

#38, line 5, #1
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.
A kindred spirit cuts through the barriers that separate you.
Can you cross the small distance remaining?
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.
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.

#49, line 1, #31
A revolutionary Change must be made forcibly.  There is no negotiating with the Established Order.  Perfect timing is essential.
Let the abuse of power become apparent and oppressive to those around you before making your move.  Lay the groundwork, sow the seeds for Revolution without tipping your hand prematurely. You will need a strong foundation, because you will have to bring about this necessary change alone.  You cannot count on popular support, so you must wait until there is massive dissent.  Then the avenue for your assault will be cleared.
Changes ought to be undertaken only when there is nothing else to be done. Therefore at first the utmost restraint is necessary. One must become firm in one’s mind, control oneself — yellow is the color of the mean, and the cow is the symbol of docility — and refrain from doing anything for the time being, because any premature offensive will bring evil results.
There is no greater natural law in the Cosmos than Attraction.
From the magnetic pull of an atom’s nucleus to the centrifugal force that spirals a galaxy, the face of the universe is shaped by Attraction.
On a human scale, it is Attraction that fuels procreation and furthers our species.  Yet it is also Attraction that spawns greed and covetousness, threatening our extinction.  Attraction is the underlying force of the situation in question.  You are refined or debased by the objects of your desire.

#7, line 2, #2
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. You must gain support from others.  Find a way to make others want to see your objectives met as badly as you want it.
The general marches with his soldiers, sharing their fate, good or bad, facing the consequences of his own decisions.  For this he is loved and trusted by all.
Earth above and Earth below:
The Earth contains and sustains.
In this situation, the Superior Person should not take the initiative; he should follow the initiative of another.
He should seek receptive allies in the southwest; he should break ties with immovable allies in the northeast.
Responsive devotion.  Receptive influence.  Sublime Success if you keep to your course.  This is a time for dealing with reality as it is, not as you would have it be.
If you realize that in this situation you are the receptor, not the transmitter of the stimulus, you will find yourself reaching goals that seemed unattainable under your own steam.  If you persist in futile efforts to be the Shaper rather than the Shaped, you will completely miss this unique opportunity.

#52
Above this Mountain’s summit another more majestic rises:
The Superior Person is mindful to keep his thoughts in the here and now.
Stilling the sensations of the Ego, he roams his courtyard without moving a muscle, unencumbered by the fears and desires of his fellows.
This is no mistake.  There is a higher vantage point available to you, but it is obscured by the visible peak of personal ambition.  To climb to this higher plane, you must shake off the desires and fears of the conscious, visible world around you. 
To make this journey you must quiet the Ego, empty your mind of past and future, and dwell totally in the moment at hand.
Thorough mindfulness of what is before you is the only tranquility.
Be. Here. Now.

#59, line 4, #6
Religious forces are needed to overcome the egotism that divides men. The common celebration of the great sacrificial feasts and sacred rites, which gave expression simultaneously to the interrelation and social articulation of the family and state, was the means employed by the great rulers to unite men. The sacred music and the splendor of the ceremonies aroused a strong tide of emotion that was shared by all hearts in unison, and that awakened a consciousness of the common origin of all creatures. In this way disunity was overcome and rigidity dissolved. A further means to the same end is co-operation in great general undertakings that set a high goal for the will of the people; in the common concentration on this goal, all barriers dissolve, just as, when a boat is crossing a great stream, all hands must unite in a joint task.
But only a man who is himself free of all selfish ulterior considerations, and who perseveres in justice and steadfastness, is capable of so dissolving the hardness of egotism.
When we are working at a task that affects the general welfare, we must leave all private friendships out of account. Only by rising above party interests can we achieve something decisive. He who has the courage thus to forego what is near wins what is afar. But in order to comprehend this standpoint, one must have a wide view of the interrelationships of life, such as only unusual men attain.
CONFLICT DEVELOPS when one feels himself to be in the right and runs into opposition. If one is not convinced of being in the right, opposition leads to craftiness or high-handed encroachment but not to open conflict.
If a man is entangled in a conflict, his only salvation lies in being so clear- headed and inwardly strong that he is always ready to come to terms by meeting the opponent halfway. To carry on the conflict to the bitter end has evil effects even when one is the right, because the enmity is then perpetuated. It is important to see the great man, that is, an impartial man whose authority is great enough to terminate the conflict amicably or assure a just decision. In times of strife, crossing the great water is to be avoided, that is, dangerous enterprises are not to be begun, because in order to be successful they require concerted unity of focus. Conflict within weakens the power to conquer danger without.

#39, line 4, #62
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.
The Obstacle lies in obstinance.
An insistence on only one way of proceeding has brought things to an impasse.
Advance alone against insurmountable odds, or remain in place, gathering strength and allies.
Thunder high on the Mountain, active passivity:
The Superior Person is unsurpassed in his ability to remain small.
In a time for humility, he is supremely modest.
In a time of mourning, he uplifts with somber reverence.
In a time of want, he is resourcefully frugal.

When a bird flies too high, its song is lost.
Rather than push upward now, it is best to remain below.
This will bring surprising good fortune, if you keep to your course.
There is no profit to striving here.
To be content with oneself is the greatest success imaginable.
The enlightened person has nothing to prove to himself or others, and thus may always operate from a position of sincerity, with no pretense or posturing.
His humility is guileless simplicity.
His mourning is selfless compassion.
His frugality is an unshakeable faith that he is but a conduit, letting what is needed flow through him to others, with no loss to himself.

#14, line 3, #27
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.
You have become an instrument of Heaven’s will, offering a balance in the  world around you.  Because you can see clearly who most needs a miracle, Heaven’s bounty is being put at your disposal.
A Prince gives his treasures freely to those who can better use them.
A lesser man could not do this.
Beneath the immobile Mountain the arousing Thunder stirs:
The Superior Person preserves his freedom under oppressive conditions by watching what comes out of his mouth, as well as what goes in.
Endure and good fortune will come.  Nurture others in need, as if you were feeding yourself.  Take care not to provide sustenance for those who feed off others.  Stay as high as possible on the food chain.