38 -- Mutual Alienation -- 38

 

 

HEXAGRAM NUMBER THIRTY-EIGHT –

MUTUAL ALIENATION

Other titles: Opposition, The Symbol of Strangeness and Disunion, The Estranged, Opposites, Polarizing, Alienation, Distant From, Perversion, Disharmony, Separated, Contradiction, Estrangement, Incongruity

 

Judgment

Legge: Despite Mutual Alienation there will be success in small matters.

Wilhelm/Baynes:Opposition. in small matters, good fortune.

Blofeld: The Estranged -- good fortune in small matters.

Liu: Opposition. In small things, good fortune.

Ritsema/Karcher:Polarizing, Small Affairs significant. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of things that are connected but should not join. It emphasizes that putting things in opposition while acknowledging their essential link is the adequate way to handle it...]

Shaughnessy: Perversion: Little affairs are auspicious.

Cleary (1): Disharmony. A small matter will turn out all right.

Cleary (2): Opposition, Etc.

Wu: Incongruity indicates auspiciousness for doing small things.

 

The Image

Legge: The image of fire over a marsh forms Mutual Alienation. The superior man, in accordance with this, accepts the diversities which make up the whole.

Wilhelm/Baynes: Above fire; below the lake: the image of Opposition. Thus amid all fellowship the superior man retains his individuality.

Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes fire above and a marshy lake below. The Superior Man achieves difference through unity.

Liu: Fire above the lake symbolizes Opposition. Living with the people, the superior man distinguishes among them.

Ritsema/Karcher: Fire above, marsh below. Polarizing. A chun tzu uses concording and-also dividing. [Cf. Solve et Coagula—Ed.]

Cleary (1): Above is fire, below is a lake, disparate. Thus are superior people the same yet different.

Cleary (2): Above is fire, below is a lake – opposite. Developed people, etc.

Wu: Fire above and marsh below form Incongruity. Thus the Jun zi take separate paths, but arrive at the same goal.

 

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: In Mutual Alienation we see fire ascending and water descending. We see two sisters living together whose wills move in opposite directions. However, the lower trigram of Cheerfulness is attached to the upper trigram of Clarity, and the magnetic fifth line is responded to by the dynamic second line; these are signs that there can still be good fortune in small matters. Heaven and earth are separate and apart, but the work which they do is the same. Male and female are separate and apart, but with a common will they seek the same object. There is a diversity between the myriad classes of beings, but there is an analogy between their several operations. Great indeed are the phenomena and the results of this condition of disunion and separation.

Legge: Mutual Alienationshows a condition in which disunion and mistrust prevail. The hexagram teaches how this state of affairs may be overcome in small matters and the way prepared for the cure of the whole system. The commentators suggest that the condition symbolized here is a necessary sequel to the regulation of the family in the preceding hexagram.

The K'ang-hsi editors observe that in many hexagrams we have two daughters dwelling together, but that only in this and number forty-nine is attention called to it. The reason is that in these two diagrams the sisters are the second and third daughters, while in the others one of them is the eldest, whose place and superiority are fixed, so that between her and either of the others there can be no division or collision. The lesson in the Confucian commentary is not unity in diversity, but union with diversity.

 

NOTES AND PARAPHRASES

Judgment: In resolving disputes, begin with their least controversial aspects.

The Superior Man respects alternative points of view.

Turn the hexagram of Familyupside-down and you get the hexagram ofMutual Alienation. The opposite of family unity is estrangement, which combined with the idea of polarity, suggests the kind of energetic "pushing away" one feels when two horseshoe magnets are matched to the same poles. Despite this opposition however, every line deals positively with the situation -- there is not one image in the hexagram that doesn't intimate an eventual resolution.

The thirty-eighth hexagram lays even more emphasis than usual on the relationships (polarities) existing between its correlate lines. This suggests that inner connections outrank any superficial estrangement. The Mutual Alienationthen, is not a permanent condition -- it represents more of a challenge than a disaster. All polarity is potential energy to accomplish useful work, and in this hexagram the polarities are more than usually available for this purpose. This doesn't mean that the work here is necessarily easy, just that it offers a major opportunity for growth.

A crisis develops when some pressure or event creates a state of uncomfortable disequilibrium which fails to respond to usual defenses and coping mechanisms. It involves danger with both a considerable risk for worsening and opportunity for growth (with enhancement of insight, mastery, and self-esteem) ... The patient should be educated to understand his situation and helped to see that painful episodes may prove to be part of a constructive process, and are not proof of a dire outcome.
R.P. Kluft -- Hypnotherapeutic Crisis Intervention in Multiple Personality

Line-1

Legge: The first line, dynamic, shows that to its subject occasion for repentance will disappear. He has lost his horses, but let him not seek for them -- they will return of themselves. Should he meet with bad men, he will not err in communicating with them.

Wilhelm/Baynes: Remorse disappears. If you lose your horse, do not run after it; it will come back of its own accord. When you see evil people, guard yourself against mistakes.

Blofeld: Regret vanishes! Do not follow the straying horse, for it will return of its own accord. Though he allows evil men to visit him, he remains without error.

Liu: Remorse vanishes. If one loses a horse, one should not look for it; it will return by itself. Even if one sees evil men, no blame.

Ritsema/Karcher: Repenting extinguished. Losing the horse, no pursuit, originating-from returning. Visualizing hateful people. Without fault.

Shaughnessy: Regret is gone; Losing a horse, do not pursue; it will of itself return. Seeing an ugly man; there is no trouble.

Cleary (1): Regret disappears: When you lose the horse, don’t chase it – it will return on its own. Seeing an evil person, there is no blame.

Cleary (2): Regret vanishes. Having lost the horse, do not chase after it – it will come back by itself. Seeing evil people, there is no blame. [Whenever thoughts of gain and loss become serious, or the idea of good and bad is too defined, then what is the same will be differentiated, and what is different cannot be made the same. Only when we follow firm and upright celestial virtue do gain and loss disappear, good and bad merge. Then even if we are in a time of oppositions, we can be free of regret.]

Wu: There will be no regret. He need not look for a lost horse, as it will come back by itself. If he meets with a disagreeable man, there will be no error.

 

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: He communicates with the bad men to avoid the evil of their condemnation. Wilhelm/Baynes: When you see evil people, avoid mistakes. Blofeld: That is to say, his very purpose in receiving them is to avoid error. [We must expect to encounter unlikable people whom it would be impolitic or dangerous to ignore.] Ritsema/Karcher: Using casting-out fault indeed. Cleary (2): Seeing evil people, one avoids blame. Wu: He meets with a disagreeable man to avoid getting into troubles.

Legge: The first line is dynamic in a dynamic place, but his correlate in line four is also dynamic, so disappointment and repentance are likely to ensue. However, through the good services of line four the first line won't have to repent. His condition may be symbolized by a traveler’s loss of his horses, which return to him of themselves.

 

NOTES AND PARAPHRASES

Siu: At the outset, the man slips into avoidable mistakes during times of opposition. When members of his own fold are estranged, he should not run after them; he should let them come back of their own accord. On the other hand, those who do not belong to this group but force their evil presence into the company must be endured. This silences their slanderous tongues; they will withdraw of their own accord.

Wing: There is an estrangement present between elements that naturally belong together. Do not try to reunify the situation with force. Allow things to return to a state of accord naturally, as they will. Do not worry about it. Things will work themselves out. If something inferior is being forced upon you, a cold shoulder will work wonders.

Editor: Psychologically, to lose one's horses is to lose one's power, or to have emotion "run away with itself." The image suggests a temporary loss which one need not worry about. To "communicate with bad men" means to consciously monitor your negative feelings -- to be aware of resentments, fears, hostility, or whatever the situation has called forth, without acting on them. In other words, maintain your will in the face of unstable impulses. The unusual beneficial correlation between two dynamic lines in one and four recalls a similar configuration in hexagram number fifty-five.

Analytic experience has shown that there seems to be a general law which decides between psychic health and psychopathology. The balance is tipped by the ego's strength, capacity and willingness to unbar the doors and windows to the unconscious and to receive the stranger; that is, to confront and channel the inner world of images and affects while, at the same time, retaining its own grasp upon external reality.
E.C. Whitmont --The Symbolic Quest

A. A temporary conflict will soon resolve itself. Endure the inferior elements in the situation without polarizing them to action.

B. For the moment your emotions have run away with you. Confront a harmful or severely limiting attitude or belief.

Line-2

Legge: The second line, dynamic, shows its subject happening to meet with his ruler in a bye-passage. There will be no error.

Wilhelm/Baynes: One meets his lord in a narrow street. No blame.

Blofeld: He encountered his lord in a narrow lane -- no error!

Liu: One meets his superior in an alley. No blame.

Ritsema/Karcher: Meeting a lord, tending-towards the street. Without fault.

Shaughnessy: Meeting the ruler in an alley; there is no trouble.

Cleary (1): Meeting the master in an alley, there is no blame. [When yin and yang have gotten out of harmony, aberrant energy is strong and true sane energy is weak – the mind of Tao is not easy to meet. However, if firmness is applied with flexibility, advancing by way of a small path, using the human mind to produce the mind of Tao, this is like “meeting the master in an alley.” The formerly blameworthy can then be blameless. This is setting disharmony right when it is in full force.]

Cleary (2): Meeting the ruler, etc.

Wu: He meets his master in a lane. There will be no error.

 

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: He has not deviated for this meeting from the proper course. Wilhelm/Baynes: If one meets his lord in a narrow street, one has not lost his way. Blofeld: He was not in error for he had not strayed from his path. Ritsema/Karcher: Not-yet letting-go tao indeed. Cleary (2): Does not deviate from the right way. Wu: He has not gone beyond the bounds.

Legge: The fifth-line correlate of the second line is magnetic and the two might meet openly if it weren't for the separation and disunion of the time. A casual, as it were a stolen interview, as in a bye-lane or passage, will be useful however, and may lead to better understanding.

 

NOTES AND PARAPHRASES

Siu: Misunderstanding prevents people who share an inner affinity from meeting together in the normal way. A casual meeting between the man and his master under informal circumstances proves useful.

Wing: An unexpected or accidental encounter with an important idea or person will benefit you. There is a natural attraction at work here, although a direct approach would have been inconceivable or impossible.

Wilhelm (from Lectures on the I Ching): (Man)...accepts his karma, his fate, which from within the situation has been given him and which he affirms. The image of the narrow street indicates that this is not a simple transaction. A counterpart is, for example, found in the Bible, when a prophet receives his calling. Prophets are such men who have met their masters in narrow streets. How the prophet Jeremiah rages and complains! All his life he reproaches God for having burdened him with too heavy a load, but nonetheless accepts his destiny and completes the task.

Editor: The image is one of a meeting (union) between high and low in a tight place, or under restricted circumstances. This "narrow passage," pinched circumstances, or rough-going, could refer to the discipline of the Work. An ego/Self connection is implied.

The aim of the ordinary man is to live his life avoiding all difficulties, discomforts and unpleasantness within the bounds of his conscience. The esoteric student should be a man with a very demanding conscience and so his life is more difficult. This does not mean that he goes about seeking for or making difficulties for himself, but he meets all obstacles as a challenge, and the greater the obstacle the greater the opportunity it is for him to overcome the weaker aspects of his nature.
Gareth Knight -- Qabalistic Symbolism

A. Truth or duty is encountered in a tight spot or limited situation.

B. Restricted circumstances evoke their own dynamics for growth. Stress is a great teacher.

C. "A tough row to hoe." A difficult (fated) co-incidence of some kind.

Line-3

Legge: In the third line, magnetic, we see one whose carriage is dragged back, while the oxen in it are pushed back, and she is herself subjected to the shaving of her head and the cutting off of her nose. There is no good beginning, but there will be a good end.

Wilhelm/Baynes: One sees the wagon dragged back, the oxen halted, a man's hair and nose cut off. Not a good beginning, but a good end.

Blofeld: He watched them dragging at his axle and striking his oxen. As for himself, his topknot and nose were sliced off -- not much of a beginning, but there was an end to his troubles. [This is a frighteningly inauspicious line. We must expect severe trouble; the only comfort we can take is the knowledge that it will not be permanent.]

Liu: When the ox stopped, the cart moved back. He sees a man whose hair and nose have been cut off. Misfortune in the beginning, good fortune later.

Ritsema/Karcher: Visualizing the cart pulled-back. One's cattle hampered.

One's person stricken, moreover nose-cut. Without initially possessing completion.

Shaughnessy: Seeing the cart with one horn upturned, its cow dragging, its man branded on the forehead and with his nose cut off; there is no beginning, there is an end.

Cleary (1): One sees the vehicle dragged back, the ox halted; the person’s hair and nose are cut off. There is no beginning, but there is an end.

Cleary (2): Having the vehicle dragged back, the ox halted, the person is punished by heaven. There is no beginning, but there is an end.

Wu: He sees a cart pulled back, its ox led away, and its carter’s forehead tattooed and his nose cut off. He has a bad beginning that ends well.

 

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: The carriage is drawn back because of the inappropriateness of the line's position. The good end arises from her meeting with the strong topmost line. Wilhelm/Baynes: The place is not the right one. This happens through meeting one that is firm. Blofeld: The first part of this passage is indicated by the unsuitable position of the line. That, despite this poor beginning, there is an end to his troubles -- or ours -- can be deduced from this line's meeting with a firm one immediately above it. Ritsema/Karcher: Situation not appropriate indeed. Meeting a solid indeed. Cleary (2): Out of place. Having firmness. Wu: His place is out of order. He engages in strength.

Legge: Line three is magnetic where it ought to be dynamic. Her correlate line six is dynamic, and the relation between them might be correct if the magnetic three wasn't sandwiched between the dynamic second and fourth lines. Because it is a time of disunion, these two check and repulse her. At the same time, line six inflicts upon three the punishments mentioned. It is thus bad for three at first, but in the end it will go well with her, and this will be due to the strength of the sixth line. What is right and good is destined to triumph over what is wrong and bad. Disorder shall eventually give place to order, and disunion to union.

 

NOTES AND PARAPHRASES

Siu: Things look completely hopeless. The man is opposed and dishonored. But if he clings to what he believes to be right, the ending will be good.

Wing: Difficulties will pile on difficulties and you will be opposed at every turn. Although this is a bad beginning, there is a possibility of a good ending. Cling to what you know is right or align yourself with a strong helper and the matter will end well.

Wilhelm (from Lectures on the I Ching): A complete change is taking place. This, however, is connected with utmost difficulty... This is the time of battles. Often, just after receiving the call, one makes no progress. And even if one succeeds for a short time, obstructions soon develop. One's own person is seen as weak among so many strong persons, and the movement, which is still governed by opposition that must be overcome, has at every step internal as well as external obstructions.

Editor: This is a very difficult line. Carriage: Vehicle, forward motion, ability to advance. Oxen: Castrated bulls used as draft animals: an image of inexorable power or motive force. Hair: Energy, power, (Samson lost his strength when his hair was cut off.) Nose: Subtle discrimination, intuition. The line is an image of (usually undeserved) interference that impedes development. Sometimes it can be a reminder that humiliation and impotence in the service of the Work do not last forever.

The news from France is very bad, and I grieve for the gallant French people who have fallen into this terrible misfortune. We shall defend our island, and, with the British Empire around us, we shall fight on unconquerable until the curse of Hitler is lifted from the brows of men. We are sure that in the end all will be well.
Winston Churchill, June 17, 1940

A. It seems all but impossible to succeed now. However, if you keep the faith, the prognosis is for victory.

Line-4

Legge: The fourth line, dynamic, shows its subject solitary amidst the prevailing disunion. But he meets with the good man represented by the first line, and they blend their sincere desires together. The position is one of peril, but there will be no mistake.

Wilhelm/Baynes: Isolated through opposition, one meets a like-minded man with whom one can associate in good faith. Despite the danger, no blame.

Blofeld: After suffering estrangement and loneliness, she met an admirable husband and mutual confidence grew between them -- unpleasantness, but no error! [For those to whom the literal interpretation does not apply, the last six words of the commentary are all that matter.]

Liu: Isolated owing to opposition, he meets a strong man and they associate sincerely. Even though there is danger, no blame.

Ritsema/Karcher: Polarizing alone. Meeting Spring, husbanding. Mingling conforming.

Shaughnessy: Perverse solitude; meeting the prime fellow and interacting returning; danger; there is no trouble.

Cleary (1): Disharmony in solitude; meeting good people, associate sincerely, and though it be trying, there will be no fault.

Cleary (2): The solitude of opposition. Meeting good people, associate sincerely, work hard, and there will be no blame.

Wu: He is isolated because of incongruity. He meets with a man of strength. With mutual trust, there will be no error despite difficult situations.

 

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: Their common aim is carried into effect. Wilhelm/ Baynes: The will effects its purpose. Blofeld: What is said about mutual confidence and freedom from error indicates the fulfillment of what is willed. Ritsema/Karcher: Adversity, without fault. Mingling conforming, without fault. Purpose moving indeed. Cleary (2): Associate sincerely, and there will be no blame, for the aim will be carried out. Wu: With mutual trust there will be no error, because his wishes prevail.

Legge: Line four has no proper correlate, and might seem to be solitary. But, as we saw on line one, in this hexagram, correlates of the same class help each other. Hence lines four and one meet together and work with good will and success.

 

NOTES AND PARAPHRASES

Siu: The man finds a like-minded person among the opposition. They blend their honest desires and achieve a common goal.

Wing: In the midst of opposition and isolation you will find someone with whom you have an inner affinity. A mutual trust can now develop and dangers can be overcome together. This cooperation can lead to significant accomplishments.

Editor: The image is one of an alliance with a kindred spirit during troubled times. Wilhelm and Blofeld render the Confucian commentary in terms of willpower achieving its goal. Psychologically, the image of this line suggests a strong connection between ego and Self during a period of general psychic polarization.

Man's free will arises from the fact that he feels the life in himself as his own, and that God leaves him so to feel in order that conjunction may be effected -- which is not possible unless it be reciprocal, and it becomes reciprocal when man acts from freedom altogether as from himself.
Swedenborg -- True Christian Religion

A. Forces in opposition create estrangement and isolation. Association with a strong unifying force creates conditions for resolving the conflict. Despite estrangement and disunion, one has an ally.

Line-5

Legge: The fifth line, magnetic, shows that to its subject occasion for repentance will disappear. With her relative and minister she unites closely and readily as if she were biting through a piece of skin. When she goes forward with this help, what error can there be?

Wilhelm/Baynes: Remorse disappears. The companion bites his way through the wrappings. If one goes to him, how could it be a mistake?

Blofeld: Regret vanishes! The head of the clan bites through the flesh (or meat). What is there to prevent him proceeding (with his plans)? [This just means that all will go well with our plans. The head of the clan is our mind; the flesh is the difficulty we shall succeed in overcoming.]

Liu: Remorse vanishes. The member of the clan bites the skin. Going. No blame.

Ritsema/Karcher: Repenting extinguished. Your ancestor gnawing flesh. Going wherefore faulty?

Shaughnessy: Regret is gone. Climbing up the ancestral temple and biting flesh; in going what trouble is there?

Cleary (1): Regret vanishes; the ally bites through the skin. What fault is there in joy?

Cleary (2): Regret vanishes. With the ally in close cooperation, what is wrong with proceeding?

Wu: There will be no regret. His association with his relative is close like biting into a piece of skin. If he chooses to proceed, what error can there be?

 

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: Her going forward will afford ground for congratulation. Wilhelm/Baynes: If one goes to him, it brings blessing. Blofeld: To proceed with current plans will result in blessings. [I.e. unexpected good fortune.]Ritsema/Karcher: Going possessing reward indeed. Cleary (2): With the ally in close cooperation, to proceed will result in celebration. Wu: This means to proceed is to have celebration.

Legge: The place of five is dynamic, but the line itself is magnetic, so that there might arise occasion for repentance. But the dynamic second line is a proper correlate. Because five is in the ruler's place, line two is seen as a relative of the same surname and head of some branch of the royal house. It is as easy for five, so supported, to deal with the disunion of the time as to bite through a piece of skin.

 

NOTES AND PARAPHRASES

Siu: The true nature of the companion is revealed by looking beneath the surface. The man joins with him to deal effectively with the disunion.

Wing: Because of a general atmosphere of Contradiction and opposition you may fail to recognize someone who can sincerely help you. This person may reveal himself in spite of the mistrust that clouds your perspective. Working together on current plans will now bring good fortune.

Editor: Biting: Differentiation, discernment, "cutting through the red tape," etc. (cf., Hexagram number twenty-one: Differentiation.) Skin:The outer layer, protective surface, facade, persona, superficial appearances, etc. To bite through the skin is to get to the meat of the matter.Relative and minister: An allied power, the Self. (Ritsema/Karcher mention the "ancestor," and Shaughnessy, the "ancestral temple" -- further clues that we are dealing with inner powers: i.e., the Self.)

The God of the Macrocosm and the God of the Microcosm act upon each other, and both are essentially one, for there is only one God and one law and one Nature, through which wisdom becomes manifest.
Paracelsus -- De Fundamento Sapientiae

A. Cut through surface appearances to reach a deeper level of understanding.

B. Image of an ego/Self connection. Proceed with your plans.

Line-6

Legge: The sixth line, dynamic, shows its subject solitary amidst the prevailing disunion. In the subject of the third line, he seems to see a pig bearing on its back a load of mud, or fancies there is a carriage full of ghosts. He first bends his bow against her, and afterwards unbends it, for he discovers that she is not an assailant to injure, but a near relative. Going forward, he shall meet with the genial rain, and there will be good fortune.

Wilhelm/Baynes: Isolated through opposition, one sees one's companion as a pig covered with dirt, as a wagon full of devils. First one draws a bow against him, then one lays the bow aside. He is not a robber; he will woo at the right time. As one goes, rain falls; then good fortune comes.

Blofeld: Wandering estranged and lonely, he saw a boar covered with mud and a wagon loaded with demons. First he stretched his bow, but then put it aside. It is not an obstacle but a matter of betrothal which causes delay or hesitation. If rain is encountered during the conduct of affairs, good fortune will ensue. [The first two sentences imply that we shall meet with unpleasant and frightening things; that, at first, we shall think to fend them off, but then decide to let them be. The sentence about betrothal means only that there will be some delay or hesitation for very good reasons. The last sentence may or may not mean exactly what it says. If we decide that it is not to be taken literally, then we must take it to mean that a slight setback on the way is a good omen.]

Liu: Isolated due to opposition, one sees a dirty pig by the roadside, and many devils in a cart. First he draws his bow against him, then he puts it down. He is not a robber, he will propose marriage. If he meets the rainfall, there will be good fortune.

Ritsema/Karcher: Polarizing alone. Visualizing pigs bearing mire. Carrying souls, the-one chariot. Beforehand stretching's bow. Afterwards stimulating's bow. In-no-way outlawry, matrimonial allying. Going meeting rain, by- consequence significant.

Shaughnessy: Perverse solitude; seeing a pig with mud on its back and one cart carrying ghosts; the first drawn bow is later released into the jar; it is not robbers who in the evening have intercourse; going and meeting rain then it will be auspicious.

Cleary (1): Disharmony results in isolation; see a pig covered with mire, a wagon carrying devils. First you draw the bow, later you put the bow down. It is not an enemy but a partner. Going on, it is fortunate if you encounter rain.

Cleary (2): … Encountering rain, then there is good fortune.

Wu: He is isolated because of incongruity. He sees a pig hoarding mud on its back and a cart loaded with ghosts. At first he draws his bow, but soon after laying it down, he realizes what he sees is not a transgressor, but a suitor. It will be auspicious if he goes ahead and encounters rain.

 

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: The good fortune of the rain symbolizes the passing away of all doubts. Wilhelm/Baynes: All doubts disappear. Blofeld: The last sentence implies the dispersal of all doubt. [Coupling this commentary with what is said about rain, we may suppose that, if rain (or an unexpected setback) occurs, then we shall no longer have any reason to doubt the successful outcome of our plans.] Ritsema/Karcher: The flock doubt extinguished indeed. Cleary (2): Doubts disappear. Wu: The dissolution of all doubts.

Legge: Line six is a magnetic place, yet this line is dynamic -- what can he do? He looks at the magnetic three, his proper correlate, with the mistrustful eye of disunion. The third line appears no better than a filthy pig, no more real than an impossible carriage-load of ghosts. He bends his bow, then unbends it when he discovers that three is his friend, as did one in four, and five in two. He acts with good luck, comparable to the falling rain which results from the happy union of the yang and yin in nature.

 

NOTES AND PARAPHRASES

Siu: The man misjudges his friend unfairly because of misunderstandings. But he realizes his mistake and relieves the tension.

Wing: Misunderstandings and mistrust have caused you to lose all perspective. You see your true friends as enemies and become defensive. You will, however, see your mistakes, and the tensions will be relieved. Just when Contradictions are at their worst they begin to ebb. Good fortune.

Editor: The image is quite clear -- through misperception one initially rejects something valuable which appears to be either repugnant or fantastic. Psychologically, this suggests the idea of projection -- the assignment of our own unconscious material to external phenomena. To "go forward to meet the rain” is to make the proper connection -- to unite with the truth. In the I Ching rain always means the union between heaven and earth, above and below, Self and ego, thought and feeling, etc. The supreme union is a holy marriage, as described in hexagram number eleven. Here it simply refers to making a connection -- getting the message.

These psychic elements lying behind the ego in the individual's unconscious are projected, that is, they are reflected or mirrored externally, in persons and things and situations which therefore acquire for him a significance and power of attraction borrowed from the unknown aspects of his own psyche.
M.E. Harding -- Psychic Energy

A. What you perceive as evil circumstances will in time reveal themselves as fortunate.

B. Disparate elements in the psyche are about to come together. You perceive disunion where none exists.

May 26, 2001, 4/25/06, 9/30/10