Novavax NVAX UNDER CEO Stanley Erck

Novavax NVAX UNDER CEO Stanley Erck

 

 

HEXAGRAM 15 – Ch’ien – Modesty

Above    K´UN    THE RECEPTIVE, EARTH

Below    KEN    KEEPING STILL, MOUNTAIN

This hexagram is made up of the trigrams

• Ken, Keeping Still, mountain, and
  
• K’un.
  

The mountain is the youngest son of the Creative, the representative of heaven on earth.

It

• dispenses the blessings of heaven, the clouds and rain that gather round its summit, and thereafter
  
• shines forth radiant with heavenly light.
  

This shows

• what modesty is and
  
• how it functions in great and strong men.
  

K’un, the earth, stands above.

Lowliness is a quality of the earth:

this is the very reason why it appears in this hexagram as exalted,

by being placed above the mountain.

This shows how modesty functions in lowly, simple people: they are lifted up by it.

 

THE JUDGEMENT

MODESTY creates success.

The superior man carries things through.

It is the law of heaven

• to make fullness empty and
  
• to make full what is modest;
  

• when the sun is at its zenith,
  
  • it must, according to the law of heaven, turn toward its setting, and
    
• at its nadir
  
  • it rises toward a new dawn.
    

In obedience to the same law,

the moon

• when it is full begins to wane, and
  
• when empty of light it waxes again.
  

This heavenly law works itself out in the fates of men also.

It is the law of earth

• to alter the full and
  
• to contribute to the modest.
  
• High mountains are worn down by the waters, and
  
• the valleys are filled up.
  

It is the law of fate

• to undermine what is full and
  
• to prosper the modest.
  

And men also

• hate fullness and
  
• love the modest.
  

The destinies of men are subject to immutable laws that must fulfill themselves.

But

man has it in his power to shape his fate,

according as his behavior exposes him to the influence of benevolent or of destructive forces.

When

• a man holds a high position and is nevertheless modest,
  
• he shines with the light of wisdom;
  

if

• he is in a lowly position and is modest,
  
• he cannot be passed by.
  

Thus the superior man

• can carry out his work to the end
  
• without boasting of what he has achieved.
  

 

THE IMAGE

Within the earth, a mountain: The image Of MODESTY.

Thus the superior man

• reduces that which is too much, And
  
• augments that which is too little.
  

He

• weighs things and
  
• makes them equal.
  

The wealth of the earth in which a mountain is hidden is not visible to the eye,

because the depths are offset by the height of the mountain.

Thus

high and low complement each other, and

the result is the plain.

Here an effect that it took a long time to achieve,

but that in the end seems easy of accomplishment and self-evident,

is used as the image of modesty.

The superior man does the same thing when he establishes order in the world;

he

• equalizes the extremes that are the source of social discontent and thereby
  
• creates just and equable conditions. 1
  

 

THE LINES

 

Six in the second place means:

Modesty that comes to expression.

Perseverance brings good fortune.

“Out of the fullness of the heart the mouth speaketh.”

When a man’s attitude of mind is so modest

that this expresses itself in his outward behavior,

it is a source of good fortune to him.

For the possibility of exerting a lasting influence arises of itself, and

no one can interfere.

 

Six at the top means:

Modesty that comes to expression.

It is favorable to set armies marching

To chastise one’s own city and one’s country.

A person who is really sincere in his modesty must make it show in reality.

He must proceed with great energy in this.

When enmity arises nothing is easier than to lay the blame on another.

A

• weak man takes offense perhaps, and draws back, feeling self-pity;
  
• he thinks that it is modesty that keeps him from defending himself.
  

Genuine modesty sets one to creating order and inspires one to begin by disciplining one’s own ego and one’s immediate circle.

Only through

• having the courage to marshal one’s armies against oneself,
  
• will something forceful really be achieved. 2
  

1.    This hexagram offers a number of parallels to the teachings of the Old and the New Testament, e.g., “And whosoever shall exalt himself shall be abased; and he that shall humble himself shall be exalted” [Matt. 23:1!21]; “Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain” [Isa. 40 : 41] “God resisteth the proud, but giveth grace unto the humble” [Jas. 4: 6]. The concept of the Last Judgment in the Parsee religion shows similar features. The Greek notion of the jealousy of the gods might be mentioned in connection with the third of the biblical passages here cited.

2.    There are not many hexagrams in the Book of Changes in which all the lines have an exclusively favorable meaning, as in the hexagram of modesty. This shows how great a value Chinese wisdom places on this virtue.

 

 

MOVING HEXAGRAM

 

 

HEXAGRAM 18 – Ku – Work on What Has Been Spoiled (Decay)

Above    KEN    KEEPING STILL,     MOUNTAIN

Below    SUN     THE GENTLE, WIND

The Chinese character Ku represents a bowl

in whose contents worms are breeding.

This means decay.

It has come about because

• the gentle indifference of the lower trigram has come together with
  
• the rigid inertia of the upper, and
  

the result is stagnation.

Since this implies guilt,

the conditions embody a demand for removal of the cause.

Hence the meaning of the hexagram is

• not simply “what has been spoiled”
  
• but “work on what has been spoiled.”
  

 

THE JUDGMENT

WORK ON WHAT HAS BEEN SPOILED

Has supreme success.

It furthers one to cross the great water.

Before the starting point, three days.

After the starting point, three days.

What has been spoiled through man’s fault can be made good again through man’s work.

• It is not immutable fate, as, in the time of STANDSTILL,
  

  that has caused the state of corruption,
  

• but rather the abuse of human freedom.
  

Work toward improving conditions promises well,

because it accords with the possibilities of the time.

We

• must not recoil from work and danger –
  

  symbolized by crossing of the great water – but
  

• must take hold energetically.
  

Success depends, however, on proper deliberation.

This is expressed by the lines,

• “Before the starting point, three days.
  
• After the starting point, three days.”
  

We must first know the causes of corruption

before we can do away with them;

hence it is necessary to be cautious during the time before the start.

Then

we must see to it that the new way is safely entered upon, so that

a relapse may be avoided;

therefore

we must pay attention to the time after the start.

• Decisiveness and
  
• energy
  

must take the place of the

• inertia and
  
• indifference
  

that have led to decay,

in order that the ending may be followed by a new beginning.

 

THE IMAGE

The wind blows low on the mountain: The image Of DECAY.

Thus the superior man

• stirs up the people And
  
• strengthens their spirit.
  

• When the wind blows low on the mountain,
  
• it is thrown back and spoils the vegetation.
  

This contains a challenge to improvement.

It is the same with

• debasing attitudes and
  
• fashions;
  

they corrupt human society.

To do away with this corruption,

the superior man must regenerate society.

His methods likewise must be derived from the two trigrams,

but in such a way that their effects unfold in orderly sequence.

The superior man

• must first remove stagnation by stirring up public opinion,
  
  • as the wind stirs everything, and
    
• must then strengthen and tranquilize the character of the people,
  
  • as the mountain gives tranquility and nourishment to all that grows in its vicinity.
    

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