Today: Focus on creative endeavors.  Use your unlimited power and strength of intention to shape the external flow towards balance.” – from the I Ching

Focus on creative endeavors.  Use your unlimited power and strength of intention to shape the external flow towards balance.

Meditation: NM0420-20011015 – The Power of Memories – Remember the Saint Within

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Today: I Ching – Previous Readings

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

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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.

THE FIRST hexagram is made up of six unbroken lines. These unbroken lines stand for the primal power, which is light-giving, active, strong, and of the spirit. The hexagram is consistently strong in character, and since it is without weakness, its essence is power or energy. Its image is heaven. Its energy is represented as unrestricted by any fixed conditions in space and is therefore conceived of as motion. Time is regarded as the basis of this motion. Thus the hexagram includes also the power of time and the power of persisting in time, that is, duration.
The power represented by the hexagram is to be interpreted in a dual sense—in terms of its action on the universe and of its action on the world of men. In relation to the universe, the hexagram expresses the strong, creative action of the Deity. In relation to the human world, it denotes the creative action of the holy man or sage, of the ruler or leader of men, who through his power awakens and develops their higher nature.1

THE JUDGEMENT

The creative works sublime success,
Furthering2 through perseverance.

ACCORDING to the original meaning, the attributes [sublimity, potentiality of success, power to further, perseverance] are paired. When an individual draws this oracle, it means that success will come to him from the primal depths of the universe and that everything depends upon his seeking his happiness and that of others in one way only, that is, by perseverance in what is right.
The specific meanings of the four attributes became the subject of speculation at an early date. The Chinese word here rendered by “sublime” means literally “head,” “origin,” “great.” This is why Confucius says in explaining it: “Great indeed is the generating power of the Creative; all beings owe their beginning to it. This power permeates all heaven.” For this attribute inheres in the other three as well.
The beginning of all things lies still in the beyond in the form of ideas that have yet to become real. But the Creative furthermore has power to lend form to these archetypes of ideas. This is indicated in the word success, and the process is represented by an image from nature: “The clouds pass and the rain does its work, and all individual beings flow into their forms.”3
Applied to the human world, these attributes show the great man the way to notable success: “Because he sees with great clarity causes and effects, he completes the six steps at the right time and mounts toward heaven on them at the right time, as though on six dragons.” The six steps are the six different positions given in the hexagram, which are represented later by the dragon symbol. Here it is shown that the way to success lies in apprehending and giving actuality to the way of the universe [Tao], which, as a law running through end and beginning, brings about all phenomena in time. Thus each step attained forthwith becomes a preparation for the next. Time is no longer a hindrance but the means of making actual what is potential.

The act of creation having found expression in the two attributes sublimity and success, the work of conservation is shown to be a continuous actualisation and differentiation of form. This is expressed in the two terms “furthering” (literally, “creating that which accords with the nature of a given being”) and “persevering” (literally, “correct and firm”). “The course of the Creative alters and shapes beings until each attains its true, specific nature, then it keeps them in conformity with the Great Harmony. Thus does it show itself to further through perseverance.”
In relation to the human sphere, this shows how the great man brings peace and security to the world through his activity in creating order: “He towers high above the multitude of beings, and all lands are united in peace.”
Another line of speculation goes still further in separating the words “sublime,” “success,” “furthering,” “perseverance,” and parallels them with the four cardinal virtues in humanity. To sublimity, which, as the fundamental principle, embraces all the other attributes, it links love. To the attribute success are linked the mores, which regulate and organise the expressions of love and thereby make them successful. The attribute furthering is correlated with justice, which creates the conditions in which each receives that which accords with his being, that which is due him and which constitutes his happiness. The attribute perseverance is correlated with wisdom, which discerns the immutable laws of all that happens and can therefore bring about enduring conditions. These speculations, already broached in the commentary called Wen Yen, later formed the bridge connecting the philosophy of the “five stages (elements) of change,” as laid down in the Book of History (Shu Ching) with the philosophy of the Book of Changes, which is based solely on the polarity of positive and negative principles. In the course of time this combination of the two systems of thought opened the way for an increasingly intricate number symbolism.
I Ching Online
 

Atlantic sunset

 

Conjuction of Jupiter, Venus and Mercury above the Atlantic Ocean
La Palma – Canary Islands – May 25th 2013 – photo Lex van den Bos

THE IMAGE

The movement of heaven is full of power.
Thus the superior man makes himself strong and (quite) untiring.

SINCE there is only one heaven, the doubling of the trigram Chien, of which heaven is the image, indicates the movement of heaven. One complete revolution of heaven makes a day, and the repetition of the trigram means that each day is followed by another. This creates the idea of time. Since it is the same heaven moving with untiring power, there is also created the idea of duration both in and beyond time, a movement that never stops nor slackens, just as one day follows another in an unending course. This duration in time is the image of the power inherent in the Creative.
With this image as a model, the sage learns how best to develop himself so that his influence may endure. He must make himself strong in every way, by consciously casting out all that is inferior and degrading. Thus he attains that tirelessness which depends upon consciously limiting the fields of his activity.


1. The hexagram is assigned to the fourth month, May-June, when the light-giving power is at its zenith, i.e., before the summer solstice has marked the beginning of the year’s decline. [The German text reads “April-May”; this is obviously a slip, for the first month of the Chinese lunar year extends approximately from the beginning of February to the beginning of March. New Year is a variable date, falling around February 5. Two or three other slips of this sort occurring later in the book have been similarly corrected, but without special mention.]

2. [The German word used here is fördernd, literally rendered by “furthering.” It occurs again and again as a key word in Wilhelm’s rendering of the Chinese text. To avoid extreme awkwardness, the phrase “is favorable” is occasionally used as an alternative.]

3. Cf. Gen. 2: 1 ff., where the development of the different creatures is also attributed to the fall of rain.

Today: “Man and his manners are a very basic situation which we must understand.” Yogi Bhajan

Man and his manners are a very basic situation which we must understand. We must look at things the way God is looking at things. Our purity lies in our originality. Our intuition lies in our innocence.
Yogi Bhajan

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

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Today: Examine your living situation for pressures that trigger tendencies that diminish your character.  Adjust how you relate with the situation.” – from the I Ching

Examine your living situation for pressures that trigger tendencies that diminish your character.  Adjust how you relate with the situation.  You will win more friends.

Meditation: LA057 780928 Change your frequency

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

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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.

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.

Today: “It is the first thankless job of the teacher to create environments which the student cannot understand right away. If the student understands right away, he will just go through it.” Yogi Bhajan

“It is the first thankless job of the teacher to create environments which the student cannot understand right away. If the student understands right away, he will just go through it. The teacher should be intelligent enough to create a problem which the student does not understand and then he should push the student through it and that will bring faith. This faith will move mountains and those mountains will move God. The formless will fade behind form the way cats fade behind cows.” Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: LA589-890412-GoldenGrain

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Today: Justice is seeking balance.  Just realize how delicate the balance is.  Use power wisely.” – from the I Ching

Justice is seeking balance.  Just realize how delicate the balance is.  Use power wisely.

Meditation: M074 – 920423 – Balance the Pineal and Pituitary

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Today: I Ching – Previous Readings

Personal I Ching readings

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63 – Sixty-Three  Chi Chi / Aftermath

Boiling Water over open Flame, one might extinguish The other:
The Superior Person takes a 360 degree view of the situation and prepares for any contingency.

Success in small matters if you stay on course.
Early good fortune can end in disorder.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

Victory at the expense of another is a merciless taskmaster.
The precarious balance here is reflected in the lines of the hexagram: each of the yin lines rests upon a strong yang line — a seemingly perfect arrangement.
But the scales will be tipped with the change of any one line.
And there WILL be change.
Tireless vigilance and an answer to every challenge — that is the uneasy Seat of Power occupied by the conqueror.

Nine in the third place means:

The Illustrious Ancestor
Disciplines the Devil’s Country.
After three years he conquers it.
Inferior people must not be employed.

“Illustrious Ancestor” is the dynastic title of the Emperor Wu Ting of the Yin dynasty.1 After putting his realm in order with a strong hand, he waged long colonial wars for the subjection of the Huns who occupied the northern borderland with constant threat of incursions.
The situation described is as follows. After times of completion, when a new power has arisen and everything within the country has been set in order, a period of colonial expansion almost inevitably follows. Then as a rule long-drawn-out struggles must be reckoned with. For this reason, a correct colonial policy is especially important. The territory won at such bitter cost must not be regarded as an almshouse for people who in one way or another have made themselves impossible at home, but who are thought to be quite good enough for the colonies. Such a policy ruins at the outset any chance of success. This holds true in small as well as in large matters, because it is not only rising states that carry on a colonial policy; the urge to expand, with its accompanying dangers, is part and parcel of every ambitious undertaking.

58 – Fifty-Eight  Tui / Empowering

The joyous Lake spans on and on to the horizon:
The Superior Person renews and expands his Spirit through heart-to-heart exchanges with others.

Success if you stay on course.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

This is the sign of true companionship.
The principals in this situation exchange energy, ideas and feelings, constantly invigorating and encouraging each other to new heights of Spiritual achievement and Self-discovery.
This exchange is not for the glory of the Team, but for furthering the process of each individual’s ‘Te’, or pure potentiality.


1. [Wu Ting reigned from 1324 to 1266 B.C.]
The Shang dynasty in its later stages is also called the Yin dynasty.
It is believed to have been founded by a rebel leader who overthrew the last Xia ruler. Its civilization was based on agriculture, augmented by hunting and animal husbandry. Two important events of the period were the development of a writing system, as revealed in archaic Chinese inscriptions found on tortoise shells and flat cattle bones (commonly called oracle bones), and the use of bronze metallurgy. A number of ceremonial bronze vessels with inscriptions date from the Shang period; the workmanship on the bronzes attests to a high level of civilization.

Today: Support strong  measures to hold to account those who have spawned chaos by their greed and corruption and bring some stability to the situation.. – from the I Ching

Support strong  measures to hold to account those who have spawned chaos by their greed and corruption and bring some stability to the situation.

Meditation: NM0336 – For Inner Strength

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Tao Te Ching – Verse 52 – In the beginning was the Tao. All things issue from it; all things return to it.

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49 – Forty-Nine  Ko / Revolution

Fire ignites within the Lake, defying conditions that would deny it birth or survival:
The Superior Person reads the Signs of the Times and makes the Season apparent to all.

The support you need will come only after the deed is done.
Renewed forces, however, will provide fresh energy for exceptional progress.
Persevere.
All differences vanish.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

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.

Nine in the fourth place means:

Your honor is redeemed.
All impediments fall away and the path ahead is clear.

Remorse disappears. Men believe him.
Changing the form of government brings good fortune.

Bastille

Storming the Bastille 14 July 1789

Radical changes require adequate authority. A man must have inner strength as well as influential position. What he does must correspond with a higher truth and must not spring from arbitrary or petty motives; then it brings great good fortune. If a revolution is not founded on such inner truth, the results are bad, and it has no success. For in the end men will support only those undertakings which they feel instinctively to be just.

63 – Sixty-Three  Chi Chi / Aftermath

Boiling Water over open Flame, one might extinguish The other:
The Superior Person takes a 360 degree view of the situation and prepares for any contingency.

Success in small matters if you stay on course.
Early good fortune can end in disorder.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

Victory at the expense of another is a merciless taskmaster.
The precarious balance here is reflected in the lines of the hexagram: each of the yin lines rests upon a strong yang line — a seemingly perfect arrangement.
But the scales will be tipped with the change of any one line.
And there WILL be change.
Tireless vigilance and an answer to every challenge — that is the uneasy Seat of Power occupied by the conqueror.

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

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Today: Regulate your compulsive and chaotic tendencies with discipline.  Don’t over do it. – from the I Ching

Regulate your compulsive and chaotic tendencies with discipline.  Don’t over do it.

Meditation: LA101 790419-Faith In Our Self And Our Own Discipline

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Tao Te Ching – Verse 49 – The Master has no mind of her own. She works with the mind of the people.

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60 – Sixty  Chieh / Limitations

Waters difficult to keep within the Lake’s banks:
The Superior Person examines the nature of virtue and makes himself a standard that can be followed.

Self-discipline brings success; but restraints too binding bring self-defeat.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

Cultivating the proper disciplines and the proper degree of discipline are the concerns of this hexagram.
By limiting options, you may give more attention to priorities.
One who is all over the map is no less lost than one without a map.
Avoid asceticism, however.
Deprivation is not wise discipline.
The key here is regulation, not restriction.

A lake occupies a limited space. When more water comes into it, it overflows. Therefore limits must be set for the water. The image shows water below and water above, with the firmament between them as a limit.
The Chinese word for limitation really denotes the joints that divide a bamboo stalk. In relation to ordinary life it means the thrift that sets fixed limits upon expenditures. In relation to the moral sphere it means the fixed limits that the superior man sets upon his actions- the limits of loyalty and disinterestedness.

THE JUDGEMENT

LIMITATION. Success.
Galling limitation must not be persevered in.

Limitations are troublesome, but they are effective. If we live economically in normal times, we are prepared for times of want. To be sparing saves us from humiliation. Limitations are also indispensable in the regulation of world conditions. In nature there are fixed limits for summer and winter, day and night, and these limits give the year its meaning. In the same way, economy, by setting fixed limits upon expenditures, acts to preserve property and prevent injury to the people.
But in limitation we must observe due measure. If a man should seek to impose galling limitations upon his own nature, it would be injurious. And if he should go too far in imposing limitations on others, they would rebel.
Therefore it is necessary to set limits even upon limitation.

 

Lake Louise

Lake Louise

THE IMAGE

Water over lake: the image of LIMITATION.
Thus the superior man
Creates number and measure,
And examines the nature of virtue and correct conduct.

A lake is something limited. Water is inexhaustible. A lake can contain only a definite amount of the infinite quantity of water; this is its peculiarity. In human life too the individual achieves significance through discrimination and the setting of limits. Therefore what concerns us here is the problem of clearly defining these discriminations, which are, so to speak, the backbone of morality. Unlimited possibilities are not suited to man; if they existed, his life would only dissolve in the boundless. To become strong, a man’s life needs the limitations ordained by duty and voluntarily accepted. The individual attains significance as a free spirit only by surrounding himself with these limitations and by determining for himself what his duty is.

Today: “Poke, provoke, confront, and elevate. That is how your life must be.” Yogi Bhajan

“Poke, provoke, confront, and elevate. That is how your life must be. If one aspect of these four is missing, you are handicapped. That’s the gist of my Ph.D. on the psychology of communication. Regardless of what we understand or do not understand, we are what we speak. That’s how we are known.” Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: KWTC 19970630 – For Faculty of Self Engagement

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Today: You are not finished yet.  You must offer others the benefit of your experience and teach them. – from the I Ching

You are not finished yet.  You must offer others the benefit of your experience and teach them.

The Teacher

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Tao Te Ching – Verse 49 – The Master has no mind of her own. She works with the mind of the people.

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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.

Six at the top means:

 

Greathearted approach.
Good fortune. No blame.

Supper at Emmaus

‘Supper at Emmaus’ (Luke 24) – Caravaggio

A sage who has put the world behind him and who in spirit has already withdrawn from life may, under certain circumstances, decide to return once more to the here and now and to approach other men. This means great good fortune for the men whom he teaches and helps. And for him this greathearted humbling of himself is blameless.
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.

Today: “You have to learn the art and science of giving yourself your own excellence.” Yogi Bhajan

“Nobody will give you anything. You have to learn the art and science of giving yourself your own excellence. That’s the purpose of life. Life is a lie if the truth is not found. Prayer is the power for which you must reach your excellence.” Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: NM0413 – Intuition and the Strength of Excellence

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Today: When you are called to lead, step up to the challenge.  Everything will be provided.  You will be a great inspiration to your followers. – from the I Ching

When you are called to lead, step up to the challenge.  Everything will be provided.  You will be a great inspiration to your followers.

Meditation: LA747 921231 Fear 6, to command yourself

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Tao Te Ching – Verse 49 – The Master has no mind of her own. She works with the mind of the people.

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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.

Six in the third place means:

He is chosen unanimously to carry out the will of the people.
All self-doubt vanishes.

All are in accord. Remorse disappears.

Blackbeard battle

Blackbeard battle

A man strives onward, in association with others whose backing encourages him. This dispels any cause for regret over the fact that he does not have enough independence to triumph unaided over every hostile turn of fate.
30 – Thirty  Li / Igniting

Fire sparks more Flames:
The Superior Person holds an inner Fire that ignites passion in every heart it touches, until all the world is enlightened and aflame.

With so searing a flame, success will not be denied you.
Take care to be as peaceful and nurturing as the cow in the meadow; you are strong enough to be gentle.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

A Promethean flame is delivering light and heat to the situation at hand.
This radiance will cause such an alchemical transformation of circumstances that the changes will seem magical, miraculous.
Yet they are only shifts of perspective and attitude that bring clarity.
The passions kindled by this fire must be harnessed and used judiciously, or they threaten to consume your hopes and dreams.

Today: “All your soul is promised by God is one chance.” Yogi Bhajan

“All your soul is promised by God is one chance. When the soul took the body and saw the karma and the domain, and it was coming to the planet Earth for practice, the soul resisted. He said, “No, I’m not going.” God said, “Why? What’s the problem? It’s a test. Don’t you want to pass it?” He said, “I want to pass it, but I don’t have the tools.” So God gave the mind. She said, “What is this damn thing?” He said, “Well, this is something. Like a swing, it can take you towards me or away from me 180 degrees. Take it, but be its master.” Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: LA041-780525- Control the Mind

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Today: You have the power to choose your relationship with the world.  You may go the way of the hero or that of the holy sage who seeks seclusion. – from the I Ching

You have the power to choose your relationship with the world.  You may go the way of the hero or that of the holy sage who seeks seclusion.  Should you choose to share your wisdom and grace, you will be long remembered and revered.

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

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Tao Te Ching – Verse 48 – In pursuit of knowledge, every day something is added. In the practice of the Tao, every day something is dropped.

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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.

Nine in the fourth place means:
Wavering flight over the depths.
No blame.

Nils Holgersson

Nils Holgersson

A place of transition has been reached, and free choice can enter in. A twofold possibility is presented to the great man: he can soar to the heights and play an important part in the world, or he can withdraw into solitude and develop himself. He can go the way of the hero or that of the holy sage who seeks seclusion. There is no general law to say which of the two is the right way. Each one in this situation must make a free choice according to the inner law of his being. If the individual acts consistently and is true to himself, he will find the way that is appropriate for him. This way is right for him and without blame.
57 – Fifty-Seven  Sun / The Penetrating Wind

Wind follows upon wind, wandering the earth, penetrating gently but persistently:
The Superior Person expands his influence by reaffirming his decisions and carrying out his promises.

Small, persistent, focused effort brings success.
Seek advice from someone you respect.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

Gentle persuasion is the key in this instance.
Though the words are soft, their speaker must be firm, calm and confident.
Gentle words are worthless if spoken with trepidation.
Wordless influence by example is also effective in this situation.
All persuasion should be almost unfelt, yet consistent and persistent.
Ask for feedback from someone you know to be an effective persuader.

Today: “It’s great to have and not to have—that’s the principle. ” Yogi Bhajan

“It’s great to have and not to have—that’s the principle. Poverty is a curse. You have to have. But have to have, and then not to have, is tiaagaa, renunciation, abandonment. To have the body and not to have the body, and become humble into shuniaa, zero, to become nobody, is the highest body. You become the highest being. So the rules are very simple.” Yogi Bhajan

Meditation: Contemplate in Shuniya from the Spine

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Today: Enjoy things as they are.  Do not try to defend against what has not threatened yet. – from the I Ching

Enjoy things as they are.  Do not try to defend against what has not threatened yet.

Meditation: LA769-19930415 – Development of Self Control

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Tao Te Ching – Verse 47 – Without opening your door, you can open your heart to the world

Read the text from Richard Wilhelm's, Thomas Cleary's, Brian Arnold's and other translations of the I Ching
11 – Eleven  T’ai / Peace

Heaven and Earth embrace, giving birth to Peace.
The Superior Person serves as midwife, presenting the newborn gift to the people.

The small depart; the great approach.
Success.
Good fortune.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

It doesn’t get any better than this.
Everything is in harmony, all obstacles are cleared from your Path, anything you could ask for is right at hand.
This is the Elysian Fields, the Garden of Eden.
The only thing wrong with Peace is that it, too, must change.
Whether you are in this state of harmony now or it is predicted for your future, recognize it as your greatest opportunity to build your resources against less harmonious times.

Six at the top means:
The wall falls back into the moat.
Use no army now.
Make your commands known within your own town.
Perseverance brings humiliation.

The change alluded to in the middle of the hexagram has begun to take place. The wall of the town sinks back into the moat from which it was dug. The hour of doom is at hand. When matters have come to this pass, we should submit to fate and not try to stave it off by violent resistance. The one recourse left us is to hold our own within our intimate circle. Should we persevere in trying to resist the evil in the usual way, our collapse would only be more complete, and humiliation would be the result.

9 – Nine  Hsiao Ch’u / Gentle Restraint

Winds of change high in the Heavens:
Air currents carry the weather.
Dense clouds blow in from the West, but still no rain.
The Superior Person fine tunes the image he presents to the world.

Small successes.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

No matter what you do, the fruit of your labors never seems to ripen.
Your reward remains just out of reach.
Men have gone mad from such anticipation.
Don’t lose your balance lunging for the brass ring.
While the Fates continue to restrain you, go them one better and display a self-generated restraint and grace.
Look for the humor in the situation.