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HEXAGRAM 64 – Wei Chi – Before Completion
Above Li THE CLINGING, FLAME
Below K’AN THE ABYSMAL, WATER
This hexagram indicates
a time when
the transition from disorder to order is not yet completed.
The change is indeed prepared for,
since
all the lines in the upper trigram are in relation to those in the lower (1).
However,
they are not yet in their places.
While
ยท the preceding hexagram offers an analogy to autumn,
o which forms the transition from summer to winter,
ยท this hexagram presents a parallel to spring,
o which leads out of winter’s stagnation into the fruitful time of summer.
With this hopeful outlook the Book of Changes comes to its close.
THE JUDGMENT
BEFORE COMPLETION.
Success.
But if the little fox,
after nearly completing the crossing,
Gets his tail in the water,
There is nothing that would further.
The conditions are difficult.
The task is
ยท great and
ยท full of responsibility.
It is nothing less than that of
leading the world out of confusion
back to order.
But
it is a task that promises success,
because there is
a goal that can unite the forces now tending in different directions.
At first, however,
one must move warily,
like an old fox walking over ice.
The caution of a fox walking over ice is proverbial in China.
His ears are constantly alert to the cracking of the ice,
as
he carefully and circumspectly searches out the safest spots.
A young fox
ยท who as yet has not acquired this caution
ยท goes ahead boldly,
and it may happen that
ยท he
o falls in and
o gets his tail wet
when
ยท he is almost across the water.
Then of course his effort has been all in vain.
Accordingly, in times "before completion,"
ยท deliberation and
ยท caution
are the prerequisites of success.
THE IMAGE
Fire over water: The image of the condition before transition.
Thus the superior man is careful
In the differentiation of things,
So that each finds its place.
When
ยท fire, which by nature flames upward, is above, and
ยท water, which flows downward, is below,
their effects
ยท take opposite directions and
ยท remain unrelated.
If
ยท we wish to achieve an effect,
ยท we must first
o investigate the nature of the forces in question and
o ascertain their proper place.
If
we can bring these forces to bear in the right place,
ยท they will have the desired effect, and
ยท completion will be achieved.
But in order to handle external forces properly,
we must above all arrive at the correct standpoint ourselves,
for only from this vantage can we work correctly.
THE LINES
Six at the beginning means:
He gets his tail in the water.
Humiliating.
In times of disorder there is a temptation to advance oneself
as rapidly as possible
in order to accomplish something tangible.
But
this enthusiasm leads only to
ยท failure and
ยท humiliation
if the time for achievement has not yet arrived.
In such a time
it is wise to spare ourselves the opprobrium of failure by holding back. 2
MOVING HEXAGRAM
HEXAGRAM 38 – K’uei – Opposition
Above LI THE CLINGING, FLAME
Below TUI THE JOYOUS, LAKE
This hexagram is composed of the trigram
ยท Li above, i.e., flame,
o which burns upward, and
ยท Tui below, i.e., the lake,
o which seeps downward.
These two movements are in direct contrast.
Furthermore,
ยท Li is the second daughter and
ยท Tui the youngest daughter,
and although
ยท they live in the same house
ยท they belong, to different men;
hence
their wills
ยท are not the same
ยท but are divergently directed.
THE JUDGMENT
OPPOSITION.
In small matters, good fortune.
When
people live in opposition and estrangement
ยท they cannot carry out a great undertaking in common;
ยท their points of view diverge too widely.
In such circumstances
ยท one should above all not proceed brusquely,
o for that would only increase the existing opposition;
instead,
ยท one should limit oneself to producing gradual effects in small matters.
Here success can still be expected,
because the situation is such that the opposition
does not preclude all agreement.
In general,
opposition appears as an obstruction,
but when
ยท it represents polarity within a comprehensive whole,
ยท it has also its
o useful and
o important functions.
The oppositions of
ยท heaven and earth,
ยท spirit and nature,
ยท man and woman,
when reconciled,
bring about the
ยท creation and
ยท reproduction
of life.
In the world of visible things,
the principle of opposites makes possible the differentiation
by categories through which order is brought into the world.
THE IMAGE
ยท Above, fire,
ยท below, the lake:
The image of OPPOSITION.
Thus amid all fellowship
The superior man retains his individuality.
The two elements, fire and water, never mingle
but even when in contact retain their own natures.
So
ยท the cultured man is never led into
o baseness or
o vulgarity
through
ยท intercourse or
ยท community of interests
with persons of another sort;
regardless of all commingling,
ยท he will always preserve his individuality.
