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HEXAGRAM 50 – Ting – The Caldron

Above    LI    THE CLINGING, FIRE

Below    SUN    THE GENTLE, WIND, WOOD

1. The six lines construct the image of Ting, THE CALDRON;
   

• at the bottom are the legs,
  
• over them the belly,
  
• then come the ears (handles), and
  
• at the top the carrying rings.
  

At the same time,

1. the image suggests the idea of nourishment.
   

The Ting, cast of bronze, was the vessel that

held the cooked viands

• in the temple of the ancestors and
  
• at banquets.
  

The head of the family served the food

• from the Ting
  
• into the bowls of the guests.1
  

THE WELL (48) likewise has the secondary meaning of

giving nourishment, but rather more in relation to the people.

The Ting, as a utensil pertaining to a refined civilization, suggests the

• fostering and nourishing of able men, which
  
• redounded to the benefit of the state. (2)
  

• This hexagram and
  
• THE WELL
  

are the only two in the Book of Changes that represent

• concrete,
  
• man-made objects.
  

Yet here too the thought has its abstract connotation.

• Sun, below, is wood and wind;
  
• Li, above, is flame.
  

Thus together they stand for the flame kindled by wood and wind,

which likewise suggests the idea of preparing food.

 

THE JUDGMENT

THE CALDRON.

Supreme good fortune.

Success.

While

THE WELL relates to

• the social foundation of our life, and
  
• this foundation is likened to
  
• the water that serves to nourish growing wood,
  

the present hexagram refers to

• the cultural superstructure of society.
  

Here

• it is the wood that serves as nourishment for the flame, the spirit.
  

All that is visible must

• grow beyond itself,
  
• extend into the realm of the invisible.
  

Thereby

it

• receives its true consecration and clarity and
  
• takes firm root in the cosmic order.
  

Here

we see civilization as it reaches its culmination in religion.

The Ting serves in offering sacrifice to God.

The highest earthly values must be sacrificed to the divine.

But

the truly divine does not manifest itself apart from man.

The supreme revelation of God appears in

• prophets and
  
• holy men.
  

To venerate them is true veneration of God.

The will of God, as revealed through them, should be accepted in humility;

• this brings inner enlightenment and true understanding of the world, and
  
• this leads to great good fortune and success.
  

 

THE IMAGE

Fire over wood: The image of THE CALDRON.

Thus

the superior man

consolidates his fate

By making his position correct.

The fate of fire depends on wood;

• as long as there is wood below,
  
• the fire burns above.
  

It is the same in human life;

• there is in man likewise a fate that
  
• lends power to his life.
  

And if

• he succeeds in assigning the right place
  
  • to life and
    
  • to fate,
    

thus bringing the two into harmony,

• he puts his fate on a firm footing.
  

These words contain hints about the fostering of life

as handed on by oral tradition in the secret teachings of Chinese yoga,

 

THE LINES

 

Six in the fifth place means:

The Ting has yellow handles, golden carrying rings.

Perseverance furthers.

Here we have, in a ruling position,

a man who

• is approachable and
  
• modest in nature.
  

As a result of this attitude

he

• succeeds in finding strong and able helpers
  
• who complement and aid him in his work.
  

Having achieved this attitude,

which requires constant self-abnegation,

it is important for him

• to hold to it and
  
• not to let himself be led astray.
  

 

Nine at the top means:

The Ting has rings of jade.

Great good fortune.

Nothing that would not act to further.

In the preceding line

• the carrying rings are described as golden, to denote their strength;
  

here

• they are said to be of jade.
  

Jade is notable for its combination of hardness with soft luster.

This counsel, in relation to the man who is open to it,

• works greatly to his advantage.
  

Here

• the counsel is described in relation to the sage who imparts it.
  

In imparting it,

• he will be mild and pure, like precious jade.
  

Thus

the work finds favor in the eyes of the Deity, who

• dispenses great good fortune, and
  
• becomes pleasing to men,
  

wherefore all goes well.

 

 

MOVING HEXAGRAM

 

 

HEXAGRAM 28 – Ta Kuo – Preponderance of the Great

Above    TUI    THE JOUYOUS, LAKE

Below    SUN    THE GENTLE, WIND, WOOD

This hexagram consists of

• four strong lines inside and
  
• two weak lines outside.
  

1. When
   

• the strong are outside and
  
• the weak inside,
  
  • all is well and
    
  • there is
    
    • nothing out of balance,
      
    • nothing extraordinary in the situation.
      

1. Here, however, the opposite is the case.
   

• The hexagram represents a beam that is
  
  • thick and heavy in the middle but
    
  • too weak at the ends.
    
    • This is a condition that cannot last;
      
    • it must be changed, must pass, or misfortune will result.
      

 

THE JUDGMENT

PREPONDERANCE OF THE GREAT.

The ridgepole sags to the breaking point.

It furthers one to have somewhere to go.

Success.

The weight of the great is excessive.

The load is too heavy for the strength of the supports.

The ridgepole, on which the whole roof rests, sags to the breaking point,

because its supporting ends are too weak for the load they bear.

It is an exceptional time and situation;

therefore

extraordinary measures are demanded.

It is necessary

• to find a way of transition as quickly as possible, and
  
• to take action.
  

This promises success.

For although the strong element is in excess,

it is in the middle, that is, at the center of gravity, so that

a revolution is not to be feared.

Nothing is to be achieved by forcible measures.

The problem must be solved by

gentle penetration to the meaning of the situation

(as is suggested by the attribute of the inner trigram, Sun);

then

the change-over to other conditions will be successful.

It demands real superiority;

therefore

the time when the great preponderates is a momentous time.

 

THE IMAGE

The lake rises above the trees:

The image Of PREPONDERANCE OF THE GREAT.

Thus the superior man,

• when he stands alone, Is unconcerned, And
  
• if he has to renounce the world, He is undaunted.
  

• Extraordinary times when the great preponderates are like
  
• flood times when the lake rises over the treetops.
  

But such conditions are temporary.

The two trigrams indicate the attitude proper to such exceptional times:

• the symbol of the trigram Sun is the tree,
  
  • which stands firm even though it stands alone, and
    
• the attribute of Tui is joyousness,
  
  • which remains undaunted even if it must renounce the world.
    

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