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HEXAGRAM 24 – Fu – Return (The Turning Point)
Above K’UN THE RECEPTIVE, EARTH
Below CHEN THE AROUSING, THUNDER
The idea of a turning point arises from the fact that
· after the dark lines have pushed all of the light lines
o upward and
o out of the hexagram,
· another light line enters the hexagram from below.
The time of darkness is past.
The winter solstice brings the victory of light.
This hexagram is linked with the eleventh month,
the month of the solstice (December-January).
THE JUDGMENT
RETURN. Success.
· Going out and
· coming in without error.
Friends come without blame.
To and fro goes the way.
On the seventh day comes return.
It furthers one to have somewhere to go.
After a time of decay comes the turning point.
The powerful light that has been banished returns.
There is movement, but
it is not brought about by force.
The upper trigram K’un is characterized by devotion; thus
the movement
· is natural,
· arising spontaneously.
For this reason the transformation of the old becomes easy.
· The old is discarded and
· the new is introduced.
Both measures
· accord with the time; therefore
· no harm results.
Societies of people sharing the same views are formed.
But
since these groups
· come together in full public knowledge and
· are in harmony with the time,
· all selfish separatist tendencies are excluded, and
· no mistake is made.
The idea of RETURN is based on the course of nature.
· The movement is cyclic, and
· the course completes itself.
Therefore
· it is not necessary to hasten anything artificially.
· Everything comes of itself at the appointed time.
This is the meaning of heaven and earth.
All movements
· are accomplished in six stages, and
· the seventh brings return.
Thus
· the Winter solstice, with which the decline of the year begins,
o comes in the seventh month after the summer solstice;
so too
· sunrise
o comes in the seventh double hour after sunset.
Therefore
· seven is the number of the young light, and
· it arises when six, the number of the great darkness, is increased by one.
In this way
the state of rest gives place to movement.
THE IMAGE
Thunder within the earth: The image of THE TURNING POINT.
Thus the kings of antiquity closed the passes
At the time of solstice.
· Merchants and strangers did not go about, And
· the ruler Did not travel through the provinces.
The winter solstice has always been celebrated in China as
the resting time of the year –
a custom that survives in the time of rest observed at the new year.
In winter the life energy, symbolized by thunder,
the Arousing is still underground.
Movement is just at its beginning; therefore
· it must be strengthened by rest, so that
· it will not be dissipated by being used prematurely.
This principle, i.e.,
of allowing energy that is renewing itself to be reinforced by rest,
applies to all similar situations.
· The return of health after illness,
· the return of understanding after an estrangement:
everything must be treated
· tenderly and
· with care
at the beginning,
so that the return may lead to a flowering.
THE LINES
Six in the second place means:
Quiet return.
Good fortune.
Return always
· calls for a decision and
· is an act of self-mastery.
It is made easier if a man is in good company.
If he
· can bring himself to put aside pride and
· follow the example of good men,
good fortune results.
Six in the fifth place means:
Noblehearted return.
No remorse.
When the time for return has come, a man
· should not take shelter in trivial excuses, but
· should look within and examine himself.
And if
· he has done something wrong
· he should make a noblehearted resolve to confess his fault.
No one will regret having taken this road.
MOVING HEXAGRAM
HEXAGRAM 60 – Chieh – Limitation
Above K’AN THE ABYSMAL, WATER
Below TUI THE JOYOUS, LAKE
A lake occupies a limited space.
When more water comes into it,
it overflows.
Therefore limits must be set for the water.
The image shows
· water below and
· water above,
with the firmament between them as a limit.
The Chinese word for limitation really denotes
the joints that divide a bamboo stalk.
· In relation to ordinary life
o it means the thrift that sets fixed limits upon expenditures.
· In relation to the moral sphere
o it means the fixed limits that the superior man sets upon his actions –
§ the limits of
· loyalty and
· disinterestedness.
THE JUDGMENT
LIMITATION.
Success.
Galling limitation must not be persevered in.
· Limitations are troublesome,
but
· they are effective.
If
· we live economically in normal times,
· we are prepared for times of want.
To be sparing saves us from humiliation.
Limitations are also indispensable in the regulation of world conditions.
In nature there are
· fixed limits for summer and winter, day and night, and
· these limits give the year its meaning.
In the same way,
economy, by
· setting fixed limits upon expenditures,
· acts to
o preserve property and
o prevent injury to the people.
But in limitation
we must observe due measure.
If
· a man should seek to impose galling limitations upon his own nature,
o it would be injurious.
And if
· he should go too far in imposing limitations on others,
o they would rebel.
Therefore
it is necessary to set limits even upon limitations
THE IMAGE
Water over lake: the image of LIMITATION.
Thus the superior man
· Creates number and measure, And
· examines the nature of
o virtue and
o correct conduct.
A lake is something limited.
Water is inexhaustible.
· A lake can contain only a definite amount of the infinite quantity of water;
o this is its peculiarity.
· In human life too the individual achieves significance through
o discrimination and
o the setting of limits.
Therefore what concerns us here is
the problem of clearly defining these discriminations,
which are, so to speak,
the backbone of morality.
Unlimited possibilities are not suited to man;
· if they existed,
· his life would only dissolve in the boundless.
To become strong,
· a man’s life needs the limitations
o ordained by duty and
o voluntarily accepted.
The individual attains significance as a free spirit only
· by surrounding himself with these limitations and
· by determining for himself what his duty is.
