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)

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look to what is pure

fertilizing my bamboo grove with horse manure

Give up religiosity

and knowledge, and the people

will benefit a hundredfold. Discard morality

and righteousness, and the people will return

to natural love. Abandon shrewdness

and profiteering, and there

won’t be any robbers

or thieves.

These are external

matters, however. What is most

important is what happens within:

look to what is pure; hold to what

is simple; let go of self-interest;

temper your desires.

The Tao te Ching of Lao Tzu,

Chapter 19

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brighten your virtue

school of rock and light and air

You progress like the rising sun.

The brighter your virtue,

the higher you rise.

This hexagram announces a time of significant and easy progress. Your influence and understanding grow by leaps and bounds as long as you maintain your alliance with the Sage, for it is from that alliance that the current progress springs. The only limit to growth now is your devotion to higher things: if this is true and complete and steady, there will be great gains now.

The image of the hexagram is that of the sun rising over the earth. To our view, the further it moves away from darkness, the higher the sun rises. The same is true of us: the extent to which we progress is determined by how far we distance ourselves from inferior influences.

It is important, when success comes, not to fall into the traps of the ego: taking credit for gains, resting on laurels, indulging in desires, or plotting towards ambitions. The superior person instead uses times of progress to brighten his virtue, recognizing that it was his commitment to proper principles that brought success in the first place.

Continue to purify your thought, attitudes, and conduct now. The greatest power in this beneficial time accrues to those who serve the Higher Power in every moment.

The I Ching, or Book of Changes

Hexagram 35, Chin / Progress

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