Whenever we see
that goodness is lacking,
we may add to it from our own heart
and so complete the nobility of human nature.
This is done by patience, tolerance, kindness, forgiveness.
The lover of goodness loves every little sign of goodness.
He overlooks the faults and fills up the gaps by
pouring out love and supplying that
which is lacking. This is real
nobility of soul.
Forget the body.
Let go of sensations
and obsessions and objects.
Do non-doing to the point that thoughts
cease to arise. Releasing mental constructs and
emotional entanglements, you’ll begin
to flow as a sage. Then let go
of that notion on top
of everything
else.
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Things fundamentally
have no origin and presently have
no extinction; there is no more to speak.
As soon as you speak, this is origination;
and if you don’t speak, this
is extinction.
This is a time for
disengagement and retreat.
In stillness you are out
of the reach of
danger.
It is inherent in the design of life that forces of darkness and disruption come into prominence from time to time. This hexagram indicates that this is such a time and advises you to respond by quietly retreating. To struggle or resist in anger now is to add fuel to the fire of negativity which threatens to consume you.
The superior person accepts that there is a natural ebb and flow between the forces of light and dark in the world. Wisdom lies not in resisting these movements but in responding to them appropriately. Just as a plant which sprouts in the dead of winter is doomed, and one which sprouts in spring flourishes, so it is with us. Success and prosperity accrue to those who advance in times of light and retreat in times of darkness. To retreat now is to benefit, in the end, from the changing tides.
Retreat is not the same thing as surrender, capitulation, or abandonment, which are desperate and unsatisfying measures. Neither is it characterized by a hardening into angry or punitive emotions. It is instead an acceptance and a choice: we calmly accept that the energies of the moment are against us, and we wisely choose to withdraw into the safety of stillness. In this dignified and balanced manner we protect ourselves from negative influences and arrive rested in a more beneficial hour.
from The I Ching, or Book of Changes
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It is foolish
to think about attaining
realization by any technique.
Make habits of courage, virtue,
and absolute emptiness, and
simply realize what is
already always
present.
You
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Wei wu Wei Ching as part of a
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book.
