Today: “Rely on more than just your power to resolve a difficult situation.  Use intuition and your intellect with compassion.” – from the I Ching

Rely on more than just your power to resolve a difficult situation.  Use intuition and your intellect with compassion.

A quote from Yogi Bhajan

Tao Te Ching – Verse 68 – The best athlete wants his opponent at his best. The best general enters the mind of his enemy. The best businessman serves the communal good. The best leader follows the will of the people.

Meditation: LA721-920325: for the Intuitive Intellect

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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.

Six at the top means:

If the ram butts into the hedge, the entangling thorns will prevent both advance and retreat.
It is best to recognize this danger and avoid it.

A goat butts against a hedge.
It cannot go backward, it cannot go forward.
Nothing serves to further.
If one notes the difficulty, this brings good fortune.

Goat in hedge

If we venture too far we come to a deadlock, unable either to advance or to retreat, and whatever we do merely serves to complicate things further. Such obstinacy leads to insuperable difficulties. But if, realizing the situation, we compose ourselves and decide not to continue, everything will right itself in time.
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.

Today: “The difference between you and an animal is that the animal has limited compassion and you can have unlimited compassion.” Yogi Bhajan

“The difference between you and an animal is that the animal has limited compassion and you can have unlimited compassion.” Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: NM142 19940615 – Bless the Planet Earth and Let the Heavens Descend in You

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Meditation: NM327-990930 Know Your Heart

Tao Te Ching – Verse 68 – The best athlete wants his opponent at his best. The best general enters the mind of his enemy. The best businessman serves the communal good. The best leader follows the will of the people.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 68

The best athlete
wants his opponent at his best.
The best general
enters the mind of his enemy.
The best businessman
serves the communal good.
The best leader
follows the will of the people. Continue reading “Tao Te Ching – Verse 68 – The best athlete wants his opponent at his best. The best general enters the mind of his enemy. The best businessman serves the communal good. The best leader follows the will of the people.”

Today: “Join in with others with what you are mutually attracted to.  Do something together.” – from the I Ching

Join in with others with what you are mutually attracted to.  Do something together.

A quote from Yogi Bhajan

Tao Te Ching – Verse 67 – Some say that my teaching is nonsense.

Meditation: LA847-19950816-Unity-Your Magnetic Field of the Total Self Will Become One

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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.

yin
yang above: Tui / The Joyous, Lake
yang
yin
yin below: K’un / The Receptive, Earth
yin

 

This hexagram is related in form and meaning to Pi, HOLDING TOGETHER (8). In the latter, water is over the earth; here a lake is over the earth. But since the lake is a place where water collects, the idea of gathering together is even more strongly expressed here than in the other hexagram. The same idea also arises from the fact that in the present case it is two strong lines (the fourth and the fifth) that bring about the gathering together, whereas in the former case one strong line (the fifth) stands in the midst of weak lines.

THE JUDGEMENT

GATHERING TOGETHER. Success.
The king approaches his temple.
It furthers one to see the great man.
This brings success. Perseverance furthers.
To bring great offerings creates good fortune.
It furthers one to undertake something.

The gathering together of people in large communities is either a natural occurrence, as in the case of the family, or an artificial one, as in the case of the state. The family gathers about the father as its head. The perpetuation of this gathering in groups is achieved through the sacrifice to the ancestors, at which the whole clan is gathered together. Through the collective piety of the living members of the family, the ancestors become so integrated in the spiritual life of the family that it cannot be dispersed or dissolved.
Where men are to be gathered together, religious forces are needed. But there must also be a human leader to serve as the centre of the group. In order to be able to bring others together, this leader must first of all be collected within himself. Only collective moral force can unite the world. Such great times of unification will leave great achievements behind them. This is the significance of the great offerings that are made. In the secular sphere likewise there is need of great deeds in the time of GATHERING TOGETHER.

Sultan Keldi lake - Kazakhstan

Sultan Keldi lake, Kazakhstan

THE IMAGE

Over the earth, the lake:
The image of GATHERING TOGETHER.
Thus the superior man renews his weapons
In order to meet the unforeseen.

If the water in the lake gathers till it rises above the earth, there is danger of a break-through. Precautions must be taken to prevent this. Similarly where men gather together in great numbers, strife is likely to arise; where possessions are collected, robbery is likely to occur. Thus in the time of GATHERING TOGETHER we must arm promptly to ward off the unexpected. Human woes usually come as a result of unexpected events against which we’re not forearmed. If we’re prepared, they can be prevented.

Today: “Is anybody under his own control? Are you here because of me? And am I here because of you? No.” Yogi Bhajan

“Is anybody under his own control? Are you here because of me? And am I here because of you? No. It is the Will of the One to be one with everyone and so He wills and so He desires and so He gets and prevails. Nobody belongs to anybody and nobody doesn’t belong to anybody. All belong to the One.” Yogi Bhajan

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

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Tao Te Ching – Verse 67 – Some say that my teaching is nonsense.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 67

Some say that my teaching is nonsense.
Others call it lofty but impractical.
But to those who have looked inside themselves,
this nonsense makes perfect sense.
And to those who put it into practice,
this loftiness has roots that go deep.
I have just three things to teach:
simplicity, patience, compassion.
These three are your greatest treasures. Continue reading “Tao Te Ching – Verse 67 – Some say that my teaching is nonsense.”

Today: “Let go.  Whatever you are holding on to, clinging to, let go.  Grief, power, control, even hope.  It’s all fantasy.” – from the I Ching

Let go.  Whatever you are holding on to, clinging to, let go.  Grief, power, control, even hope.  It’s all fantasy.

Just be yourself and live.

A quote from Yogi Bhajan ha something to say about this.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 66 – If you want to govern the people, you must place yourself below them.

Meditation: M0512-19890312 – For Mastery of Time and Space

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59 – Fifty-Nine. Huan / Dissolution

Wind carries the Mists aloft:
Sage rulers dedicated their lives to serving a Higher Power and built temples that still endure.

The King approaches his temple.
Success if you stay on course.
You may cross to the far shore.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

Walls meant to protect have instead separated and isolated.
Your defenses have kept you apart from those whom you most need to touch.
Whatever the reason for discord between you, it is time to lay down your arms.
Dispel the inflexible demands and fears of the Mind so that you may reunite in the Heart.
If you have begrudged, forgive.
If you have torn down, repair.
If you have injured, heal.
If you have judged, pardon.
If you have grasped, let go.

yang
yang above: Sun / The Gentle, Wind
yin
yin
yang below: K’an / The Abysmal, Water
yin

 

Wind blowing over water disperses it, dissolving it into foam and mist. This suggests that when a man’s vital energy is dammed up within him (indicated as a danger by the attribute of the lower trigram), gentleness serves to break up and dissolve the blockage.

THE JUDGEMENT

DISPERSION. Success.
The king approaches his temple.
It furthers one to cross the great water.
Perseverance furthers.

The text of this hexagram resembles that of Ts’ui, GATHERING TOGETHER (45). In the latter, the subject is the bringing together of elements that have been separated, as water collects in lakes upon the earth. Here the subject is the dispersing and dissolving of divisive egotism. DISPERSION shows the way, so to speak, that leads to gathering together. This explains the similarity of the two texts.
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.

 

Dispersion

‘Dispersion’ – Ryan Bliss, 2007

THE IMAGE

The wind drives over the water:
The image of DISPERSION.
Thus the kings of old sacrificed to the Lord
And built temples.

Yang coin        Yin coin

In the autumn and winter, water begins to freeze into ice. When the warm breezes of spring come, the rigidity is dissolved, and the elements that have been dispersed in ice floes are reunited. It is the same with the minds of the people. Through hardness and selfishness the heart grows rigid, and this rigidity leads to separation from all others. Egotism and cupidity isolate men. Therefore the hearts of men must be seized by a devout emotion. They must be shaken by a religious awe in face of eternity – stirred with an intuition of the One Creator of all living beings, and united through the strong feeling of fellowship experienced in the ritual of divine worship.

Today: “It’s the time to be. Do not juggle with time and space. Time and space is of the Earth, it doesn’t belong to the Heavens.” Yogi Bhajan

“It’s the time to be. Do not juggle with time and space. Time and space is of the Earth, it doesn’t belong to the Heavens.” Yogi Bhajan.” Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: Breath to Conquer Time Space and Destiny

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Tao Te Ching – Verse 66 – If you want to govern the people, you must place yourself below them.

Tao Te Ching – Verse 66

All streams flow to the sea
because it is lower than they are.
Humility gives it its power.

If you want to govern the people,
you must place yourself below them.
If you want to lead the people,
you must learn how to follow them.

Continue reading “Tao Te Ching – Verse 66 – If you want to govern the people, you must place yourself below them.”

Today: “Be who you are, not what you have acquired.” – from the I Ching

Be who you are, not what you have acquired.

No entanglements.

A quote from Yogi Bhajan

Tao Te Ching – Verse 65 – The ancient Masters didn’t try to educate the people, but kindly taught them to not-know.

Meditation:  LA372 831212 Corruption and character

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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 in the third place means:

He stands on his integrity, no matter what ill winds may blast him.
Stand or fall, in the end he will remain exactly who he is.

To nourish oneself on ancient virtue induces perseverance.
Danger. In the end, good fortune comes.
If by chance you are in the service of a king,
Seek not works.

 

Medieval Tapestry

Medieval Tapestry – The King’s Court

This is a warning of the danger that goes with an expansive disposition. Only that which has been honestly acquired through merit remains a permanent possession. It can happen that such a possession may be contested, but since it is really one’s own, one cannot be robbed of it. Whatever a man possesses through the strength of his own nature cannot be lost. If one enters the service of a superior, one can avoid conflict only by not seeking works for the sake of prestige. It is enough if the work is done: let the honor go to the other.

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.

Today: “In my consciousness there is a support and in the support there is an equal negative and an equal positive.” Yogi Bhajan

“In my consciousness there is a support and in the support there is an equal negative and an equal positive. There are always two balances in each personality which balances the very rhythm of life.” Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: The Neutral Mind

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Today: “Steady and balanced.  Refine your path  and relations with others before making any bold moves.” – from the I Ching

Steady and balanced.  Refine your path  and relations with others before making any bold moves.

No entanglements.

A quote from Yogi Bhajan

Tao Te Ching – Verse 64 – Prevent trouble before it arises. Put things in order before they exist.

Meditation: NM374 – 20001128 – Patience and Intuition

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

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

A man of modest independence treads a smooth and level path.
Good fortune if you stay on course.

Treading a smooth, level course.
The perseverance of a dark man
Brings good fortune.

Dark man

The situation of a lonely sage is indicated here. He remains withdrawn from the bustle of life, seeks nothing, asks nothing of anyone, and is not dazzled by enticing goals. He is true to himself and travels through life unassailed, on a level road. Since he is content and does not challenge fate, he remains free of entanglements.
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.

Today: “It is a universal law that one follows the other; but what we want is one, and what we don’t want is the other.” Yogi Bhajan

“It is a universal law that one follows the other; but what we want is one, and what we don’t want is the other. As rain is followed by sunshine, tragedy is followed by blessings, and blessings are followed by tragedy. It is a cycle. If you don’t want blessings, don’t want tragedies. If you want tragedies, want blessings also, because each must follow the other.” Yogi Bhajan

See Today: “Your life always changes in seven years-Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: LA097-790327-Yoni Kriya

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Today: “In most high profile conflicts, one side is trying to usurp the rightful position of the other.  When this happens, everyone loses.  It is better for the aggressor to wait for a proper opening for change to happen.” – from the I Ching

In most high profile conflicts, one side is trying to usurp the rightful position of the other.  When this happens, everyone loses.  It is better for the aggressor to wait for a proper opening for change to happen.

A quote from Yogi Bhajan

Today: “Look at yourself.  Recognize your own faults.  This invites people to come together for mutual benefit.” – from the I Ching

Meditation: NM374 – 20001128 – Patience and Intuition

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2 – Two  K’un / Receptive Force

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.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

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.

Six at the top means:

The battling dragons are too evenly matched.
Each spills black and yellow blood to the soil below.

Dragons fight in the meadow.
Their blood is black and yellow.

Green dragonGreen dragon

In the top place the dark element should yield to the light. If it attempts to maintain a position to which it is not entitled and to rule instead of serving, it draws down upon itself the anger of the strong. A struggle ensues in which it is overthrown, with injury, however, to both sides. The dragon, symbol of heaven, comes to fight the false dragon that symbolised the inflation of the earth principle. Midnight blue is the color of heaven; yellow is the color of earth. Therefore, when black and yellow blood flow, it is a sign that in this unnatural contest both primal powers suffer injury.1

Battling dragons

52 – Fifty-Two. Kên / The Mountain

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.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

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.

Today: “How can your Creator and how can Mother Nature who created you make you lonely?” Yogi Bhajan

“How can your Creator and how can Mother Nature who created you make you lonely? There are beautiful trees, there are beautiful times; everywhere around you beauty is in such abundance that if you look ahead, you can enjoy and enjoy forever and ever. Why do you feel lonely? And why do you want to be recognized? And why do you overextend yourself and make yourself weak?” Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: LA049 780901 Homeh Bandana Kriya: takes away self-pride and vanity

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Today: “Look at yourself.  Recognize your own faults.  This invites people to come together for mutual benefit.” – from the I Ching

Look at yourself.  Recognize your own faults.  This invites people to come together for mutual benefit.

A quote from Yogi Bhajan

Tao Te Ching – Verse 62 – The Tao is the center of the universe, the good man’s treasure, the bad man’s refuge.

Meditation: NM0394 – Live Above Denial

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41 – Forty-one. Sun / Decrease

The stoic Mountain drains its excess waters to the Lake below:
The Superior Person curbs his anger and sheds his desires.

To be frugal and content is to possess immeasurable wealth within.
Nothing of value could be refused such a person.
Make a portion of each meal a share of your offering.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

This is an occasion for downsizing to fighting trim.
Simplicity and economy are strong defenses against the slings and arrows of Outrageous Fortune.
Whether this is a time of want or a time of plenty, it is an auspicious time to shed a dependency.

Six in the fourth place means:

Once he recognizes and admits his wound, walls tumble down and others can get through to offer the balm he needs for healing.

If a man decreases his faults,
It makes the other hasten to come and rejoice.
No blame.

Rejoice

‘Rejoice’ – Daphne Stammer

A man’s faults often prevent even well-disposed people from coming closer to him. His faults are sometimes reinforced by the environment in which he lives. But if in humility he can bring himself to the point of giving them up, he frees his well-disposed friends from an inner pressure and causes them to approach the more quickly, and there is mutual joy.

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?