a challenge to improvement

A challenge to improvement:

that which has been spoiled through neglect

can be rejuvenated through effort.

Receiving this hexagram is a sign that there is a defect in the attitude of oneself, another, or one’s society that should be corrected. Your task now is to bring conscientious thought and action to an area where stagnation has set in. Perhaps you engage in continual doubt about the wisdom of behaving according to proper principles. Perhaps you indulge in greed, or vengeful thinking, or a harsh manner. In any case, the time has come to root out the decay.

The I Ching counsels us to work energetically at this task, but only after proper deliberation. We are advised to spend three full days in understanding the defect; another day in resolving sincerely to remove it; and then three more days watching carefully to insure that it does not return. This steady application of attention to the matter is the wind that carries away stagnation and brings new life in its place.

It is likely that the problem is an old one, and equally likely that no solution will be immediately evident. We are cautioned not to abandon the cause; only perseverance will reveal the great reward that is concealed within the problem.

Whether the fault lies in yourself, another, or your community, the requirement is the same. Watch closely while remaining quiet, innocent, and sincere. After you have clearly identified the problem, act unswervingly to eliminate it without abandoning gentleness and inner balance in the process. When this course is completed, good fortune will be met.

SIXTH CHANGING LINE

A withdrawal from

the affairs of the world is appropriate

if you use this time not to condemn, but to further

your own development. By improving

yourself you improve

the world.

from The I Ching, or Book of Changes

Hexagram 18, Ku / Decay (Work On What Has Been Spoiled)

ebooks & apps of the Tao the Ching, I Ching,

Wei wu Wei Ching, Hua hu Ching, and

Art of War for iPad/Phone, Kindle,

Nook, or Android

You

can now buy

the I Ching as part of a

five-app bundle of Taoist classics

for iPhone or iPad for less than

the cost of one hardcover

book.

facing trials and challenges

In times of war it is desirable

to be led by a cautious

and humane

general.

The hexagram Shih is a guide to proper conduct in the face of adversity. It is inevitable that we sometimes face trials and challenges in life. How we prepare ourselves, by whom we are led, and how we conduct ourselves during these “wars” determines whether we are victorious or not. The I Ching counsels us to follow the example of a first-rate army.

A truly powerful army always consists of a number of devoted soldiers who discipline themselves under the leadership of a superior general. If he has achieved his position through force, the general will not last for long and he will lose the support of his army when he needs it most. If on the other hand he has become a leader through superior conduct and even-handed treatment of this fellow soldiers, then his power is well consolidated and it endures.

So it is with us. Only by conducting ourselves humanely and with persevering balance can we have a genuine influence in trying times. There is always the temptation to be led into battle by our egos, but we are guaranteed a humiliating defeat if we turn our inferiors loose in this way. A superior person achieves victory in the same fashion as a superior army: by putting his inferior emotions under the guidance of his superior emotions, and by proceeding cautiously, modestly, and with the continual goal of achieving peace and detachment.

You are advised to prepare for a trial now. Your chances of success will be determined by how you conduct yourself within and without. If you remain alert, modest, just, and independent, all will go well. If you are gentle and humane, you will have the allegiance of those around you. Advance cautiously when the time is right, and when it is not, do not allow your ego to stand in the way of retreat and disengagement.

Remember that the ultimate victory in any battle comes when we regain our inner independence, our neutrality, and our equanimity. These can only be won by placing our inferiors under the leadership of our superiors. Do this now, and success will be yours.

The I Ching, or Book of Changes

Hexagram 7, Shih / The Army

ebooks & apps of the Tao the Ching, I Ching,

Hua hu Ching, Wei wu Wei Ching ,

Art of War for iPad, Phone,

Kindle, Nook, or

Android

You

can now buy

the I Ching as part of a

five-app bundle of Taoist classics

for iPhone or iPad for less than

the cost of one hardcover

book.

brian browne walker taoist app bundle ios ipad iphone

buddha has gotten into your nostrils

here is what a buddha is

Master Ciming said to an assembly, “The body of reality is formless; it manifests forms in response to beings.”

(Dahui holds up his staff.) This is a staff — what is the reality body? Leaving this complication aside, the communal hall and Buddha shrine have gotten into your nostrils, the waters of the four great oceans are on your heads, the dragon kings are under your fingernails — do you feel them?

If you feel them, you go three thousand by day, eight hundred by night, smoke rising under your feet, fire rising on your heads. If you don’t know, eat when hungry, sleep when tired.

(Dahui planted his staff once.)

Dahui