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HEXAGRAM 31 – Hsien – Influence ( Wooing)
Above TUI THE JOYOUS, LAKE
Below KEN KEEPING STILL, MOUNTAIN
The name of the hexagram means
· "universal,"
· "general,"
and in a figurative sense
· "to influence,"
· "to stimulate."
· The upper trigrams is Tui, the Joyous;
· the lower is Ken, Keeping Still.
By its persistent, quiet influence,
the lower, rigid trigram stimulates
the upper, weak trigram, which
responds to this stimulation cheerfully and joyously.
· Ken, the lower trigram,
o is the youngest son;
· the upper, Tui,
o is the youngest daughter.
Thus the universal mutual attraction between the sexes is represented.
In courtship,
the masculine principle must
· seize the initiative and
· place itself below the feminine principle.
Just as
· the first part of book I begins with the hexagrams of heaven and earth,
o the foundations of all that exists,
· the second part begins with the hexagrams of courtship and marriage,
o the foundations of all social relationships.
THE JUDGMENT
Influence.
Success.
· Perseverance furthers.
· To take a maiden to wife brings good fortune.
· The weak element is above,
· the strong below;
hence
· their powers attract each other,
· so that they unite.
This brings about success,
for all success depends on the effect of mutual attraction.
· By keeping still within
· while experiencing joy without,
one can
· prevent the joy from going to excess and
· hold it within proper bounds.
This is the meaning of the added admonition, "Perseverance furthers," for
it is perseverance that makes the difference between
· seduction and
· courtship;
in the latter
the strong man
· takes a position inferior to that of the weak girl and
· shows consideration for her.
This attraction between affinities is a general law of nature.
· Heaven and earth attract each other
and thus
· all creatures come into being.
Through such attraction
· the sage influences men’s hearts,
and thus
· the world attains peace.
From the attractions they exert
we can learn the nature of all beings
· in heaven and
· on earth.
THE IMAGE
A lake on the mountain: The image of influence.
Thus the superior man
encourages people to approach him
By his readiness to receive them.
A mountain with a lake on its summit is stimulated
by the moisture from the lake.
It has this advantage because its summit
· does not jut out as a peak
· but is sunken.
The image counsels that
the mind should be kept
· humble and
· free,
so that it may remain receptive to good advice.
People soon give up counseling
a man who thinks that
he knows everything better than anyone else.
THE LINES
0 Nine in the fifth place means:
The influence shows itself in the back of the neck.
No remorse.
The back of the neck is the most rigid part of the body.
When the influence shows itself there,
· the will remains firm and
· the influence does not lead to confusion.
Hence remorse does not enter into consideration here.
What takes place in the depths of one’s being, in the unconscious, can
· neither be called forth
· nor prevented by the conscious mind.
It is true that if
· we cannot be influenced ourselves,
· we cannot influence the outside world.
MOVING HEXAGRAM
HEXAGRAM 62 – Hsiao Kuo – Preponderance of the Small
Above CHEN THE AROUSING, THUNDER
Below KEN KEEPING STILL, MOUNTAIN
While in the hexagram Ta Kuo, PREPONDERANCE OF THE GREAT (28),
the strong lines
· preponderate and
· are within inclosed between weak lines at the top and bottom,
the present hexagram
· has weak lines preponderating,
though here again
· they are on the outside,
the strong lines being within.
This indeed is the basis of the exceptional situation indicated by the hexagram.
When
strong lines are outside,
we have the hexagram I, PROVIDING NOURISHMENT (27), or Chung Fu, INNER TRUTH (61);
neither represents an exceptional state.
When
strong elements within preponderate,
they necessarily enforce their will.
This creates
· struggle and
· exceptional conditions
in general.
But in the present hexagram
it is the weak element that perforce
must mediate with the outside world.
If
· a man occupies a position of authority
for which
· he is by nature really inadequate,
extraordinary prudence is necessary.
THE JUDGMENT
PREPONDERANCE OF THE SMALL.
Success.
Perseverance furthers.
· Small things may be done;
· great things should not be done.
The flying bird brings the message:
· It is not well to strive upward,
· It is well to remain below.
Great good fortune.
Exceptional
· modesty and
· conscientiousness
are sure to be rewarded with success;
however,
if
a man is not to throw himself away,
it is important that
they
· should not become empty form and subservience
· but be combined always with a correct dignity in personal behavior.
We must understand the demands of the time
in order to find the necessary offset for its
· deficiencies and
· damages.
In any event
· we must not count on great success,
since
· the requisite strength is lacking.
In this lies the importance of the message that
one
· should not strive after lofty things
· but hold to lowly things.
The structure of the hexagram
gives rise to the idea that this message is brought by a bird.
In Ta Kuo, PREPONDERANCE OF THE GREAT (28),
the four strong, heavy lines within,
supported only by two weak lines without,
give the image of a sagging ridgepole.
Here
the supporting weak lines are both
· outside and
· preponderant;
this gives the image of a soaring bird.
But
· a bird should not try to surpass itself and fly into the sun;
· it should descend to the earth, where its nest is.
In this way
it gives the message conveyed by the hexagram.
THE IMAGE
Thunder on the mountain: The image of PREPONDERANCE OF THE SMALL.
Thus
· in his conduct
o the superior man gives preponderance to reverence.
· In bereavement
o he gives preponderance to grief.
· In his expenditures
o he gives preponderance to thrift.
· Thunder on the mountain
is different from
· thunder on the plain.
· In the mountains,
o thunder seems much nearer;
· outside the mountains,
o it is less audible than the thunder of an ordinary storm.
Thus
the superior man derives an imperative from this image:
he must always fix his eyes
· more closely and
· more directly on duty
than does the ordinary man,
even though
this might make his behavior seem petty to the outside world.
He is exceptionally conscientious in his actions.
In bereavement emotion means more to him than ceremoniousness.
In all his personal expenditures he is
· extremely simple and
· unpretentious.
In comparison with the man of the masses,
all this makes him stand out as exceptional.
But
the essential significance of his attitude
lies in the fact that
in external matters
he is on the side of the lowly.
