proper nourishment for self and others

Give proper nourishment

to yourself and

others.

The image of this hexagram is that of an open mouth. It comes to remind us that the nourishment of our bodies and spirits is important and merits our conscientious attention.

The I Ching teaches us that if we wish to gauge someone’s character, we should notice what he nourishes in himself and in others. Those who cultivate inferior behaviors and relationships are inferior people; those who cultivate superior qualities in themselves and others are superior people. This is a test that we should apply to ourselves as well as to others.

What you put into your body is obviously important. Because it determines your fundamental physical well-being, it is wise to be moderate and thoughtful about the food you eat. What you put into your mind is even more significant, and regulating it is a more subtle art. This hexagram gives us three-part advice on that subject.

The first counsel is that we should not feed our minds on desire. When we forego our equanimity and begin to desire something or someone, a host of other inferior influences comes into play: we become ambitious about obtaining the object of our desire; we become fearful that we will not; if we do achieve it our ego is gratified and strengthened and it soon issues another demand for us to meet. A self-reinforcing cycle of negativity is thus created. Therefore it is wise to hold yourself free from desire.

The second counsel is that we begin and continue in a regular practice of meditation. Sitting quietly with our eyes closed for even as little as ten or fifteen minutes a day begins to “clear the waste” out of our hearts and minds, making room for the nourishment of peace and wisdom to enter in. To sit in meditation is tune your ear to the voice of the Sage, and it is the most powerful way of gaining his assistance.

The final counsel is that we observe tranquility in speech, thoughts, and actions. By cultivating calm and equanimity in all that you say, think, and do, you nourish your superior self and that of those around you. One who follows these three counsels now will meet with good fortune.

The I Ching, or Book of Changes

Hexagram 27 / Providing Nourishment

a long-awaited change is at hand

tjitske kamphuis

A breakthrough.

Do not be drawn back

into bad habits.

The arrival of the hexagram Kuai indicates that a long-awaited change is at hand. A difficulty that has oppressed you over a long period is now about to dissolve. It is important to respond in the proper way.

There is a temptation on obtaining relief to fall into the traps of the ego: pride at having dispersed the trouble, self-righteousness about having triumphed through correctness, anger at one who we think was the source of the problem, or a desire to remain free of all difficulty in the future. None of these responses is appropriate to the situation at hand.

What is needed now is resoluteness: a firm commitment to continuing the battle for good and to the self-examination that makes all good things possible. This is not a time to lapse back into negative mental habits and enjoy the “vacation” provided by the breakthrough. Do not rest on your laurels, but push forward, deepening your inner strength and your resistance to the influence of inferiors, both in yourself and others.

Strengthen those around you by setting an example of self-improvement and self-correction. Great progress and good fortune are available now to one who makes proper use of the opening.

The I Ching, or Book of Changes

Hexagram 43, Kuai / Breakthrough (Resoluteness)

Forget all ideas

of accomplishing something —

in your practice and everywhere

else. Everything is already

accomplished.

If this sounds

like a tricky idea to you,

the flaw is in your understanding

of reality, not in reality

itself.

Allowing nature

to manifest is the way

of the Way. By setting aside

our ambitions and leaving

the Way to the Way,

we perfect the

Way.

Wei wu Wei Ching, Chapter 43

Paperback / Kindle here

iPad/iPhone

iBooks

brian browne walker taoist app bundle ios ipad iphone

You

can now buy

Wei wu Wei Ching as part of a

five-app bundle of Taoist classics

for iPhone or iPad for less than

the cost of one hardcover

book.

the sage has no set mind

melt and let go and rest

The sage has no set mind.

She adopts the concerns

of others as her own.

She is good to the good.

She is also good to the bad.

This is real goodness.

She trusts the trustworthy.

She also trusts the untrustworthy.

This is real trust.

The sage takes the minds

of the worldly and spins them around.

People drop their ideas and agendas,

and she guides them like

beloved children.

The Tao te Ching of Lao Tzu,

Chapter 49

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

Hua hu Ching, and Art of War for

iPad, Phone, Kindle, Nook,

or Android

☯️

You

can now buy

Tao te 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

a period of increase

now you have everything you need

Powerful improvements

are underway.

The coming of the hexagram I signifies a period of increase when the power of heaven descends to surround and invigorate our lives. Like all phases, this too will come to an end, but if “we make hay while the sun shines,” tremendous progress can be made at this time.

It is in the nature of human beings to relax and become careless when things begin to go well. The I Ching teaches us that we should not do this if we desire the fullest blessings of the beneficial hour. Indeed, our rewards are multiplied if we increase our conscientiousness in auspicious times, rather than decrease it. There are two ways in which the I Ching especially encourages us to do this.

Our first task is to make sacrifices for others. In all of your interactions now, embody generosity in thought and action. Forgive what is inferior in others and seek out the good. By giving, encouraging, and assisting, you will draw the superior person in everyone into devoted action.

Your second task in this time of increase is to go on strengthening yourself “as thunder and wind strengthen each other.” This means that if you see something good in another, you imitate it, and when you discover something inferior in yourself, you eliminate it.

These simple practices, if continued conscientiously over time, will improve your character and fortunes immeasurably. Through service and self-improvement you assure yourself of great progress in the days ahead.

from The I Ching, or Book of Changes

Hexagram 42, I / Increase

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