Quote:
I asked the yi what is holding me back in my professional life. (i believe this question is a mix of a inner-self/every day life issues). i got as an answer 60 changing to 27.
If you allow me the inside joke, and without Yi interpretations: IT’S THE PLACE YOU ARE LIVING IN, MAN!! LOL! (For those who don’t know it, him and I come from the same corner of the world…)
Seriously though, here is how I see the Yi replying to you:
60:2,5,6>27
A. 60 is the image of “restriction”; of things that are proyected big but are held back by surrounding circumstances. We have the image of rain falling on a lake; the image of danger and uncertainty over happiness and fulfillment. In the nuclear trigrams we have a mountain over thunder; immobility stumping and precluding mobility. This is where the name of the Hexagram comes from.
In my experience, this hexagram is a call to examine the roadblocks that are holding you back; find their weaknesses and use them to pry them open. This may seem obvious under the light of your question but in reality is very tricky. There are impediments that we deny ourselves to see them as such. In the end, because of this, the resolution to break through the impediments rest in yourself. Try to be as objective in your goals and your personal circumstances as possible.
You should know that I like to play a lot with the imagery of the trigrams (some are reluctant to play like this because it may make it look like a Tarot reading)… I may sound a little like the Yi itself in obscurity but try to play with the metaphors. Threading along this line: I see you as the proverbial crane, the one who loves to live by the water but hates rain. Legend says that cranes fly above the clouds to avoid being rained on. You are shown as being unable to take flight. Perhaps snared by something. Perhaps, it is not that you are unable to take flight but the lake is giving you a false of sense of security; that if you hang on close to your source of nourishment you’ll be able to weather the rain. I guess it is possible, it doesn’t rain forever, but one solution takes longer than the other. Alas, if you don’t move, you are also at the risk of being run down by a flood. Do you know for how long or how much is going to rain? Being complacent in one’s situation also carries many risks. It is better to take your own risks and not to wait for the risks to reach you on their own… The image also shows three brothers and the youngest sister. The elder brother is seeing as protecting the youngest sister (they are both together and have an upward movement and the elder is positioned above her in the direct path of the other two males). Still, protection is not enough to allow for movement at this moment. See if you can use this familiar images in your daily life. Do they apply to actual people in your life? Is it possible that you are impeded to move by family obstacles? Or is it that a couple of small external factors in your life are impeding the move?
Hex 60 is not as bad as it may look at first sight. The balance of upward and downward tendencies of its components is positioned in a similar manner to that of Hex 11, Peace. In the case of Hex 11, the harmony is free flowing and no obstacles are seen. The mating ritual is completed. Hex 60, on the other hand, has a lot of uncertainty built in. This uncertainty may be due to the fact that elder support is not available. The case of Hex 11 shows both parent getting together and supporting in their bosom this team of elder son and youngest daughter, the same one that shows up together in Hex 60. In that case they have advanced one step forward with their support. In Hex 60 the parents are gone (or just not there yet or not called forth to help) and the struggle at the moment seems to be centered around siblings. Are you an elder son married to a youngest daughter? I don’t want to sound like a carnival fortune teller… You can take this either literally or as depicting circumstances that surround you using the imagery attached to the components of your hexagrams. When I say that Hex 60 is not as bad as it looks, I mean that once you realize what your obstacles are, by seriously studying them, you can overcome them.
The Judgement says: 60 intimates that (under its conditions) there will be progress and attainment. (But) if the regulations (which it prescribes) be severe and difficult, they cannot be permanent.
Here is what I think Candid was trying to explain to you about being too hard on yourself. There is only so much you can do by setting goals and charting your future as an abstraction. Be real in your goals. All plans are only guides, and should not be taken as the blinders on a horse. You should be able to bend your own rules when the time is appropriate. Otherwise your goals will not be fully achieved or, if they are, there will be no permanence. Open your heart to flexibility.
Now, passing on to the lines (I will use the Legge’s translation since it is the book I have with me at the moment):
60,2; The second nine shows its subject not quitting the courtyard inside his gate. There will be evil.
Here we go, this is what I told you about being too complacent in your current situation, even if there is a want to change it. However, wanting and not acting, takes you nowhere. Like saying “it is better a known bad thing than an unknown good thing” (I know you’ll be thinking about this in Spanish because we have the perfect saying for it… ) In the symbolism of the line it is added: “There will be evil: He loses the time (for action) to and extreme degree”. I believe this should be obvious to you, but just in case: START MOVING. If you don’t you may miss your window of opportunity. And the call to action is not just for the sake of movement; it is for you to start placing the pieces on the board so that when the moment comes to take decisive action, other things are in place. Time is of essence and you don’t want to be taken by surprise and be stuck by not being ready when the window opens.
60,5; The fifth Nine shows is subject sweetly and acceptably enacting his regulations. There will be good fortune. The onward progress with them will afford ground for admiration
This line couples perfectly with what I said about the “second nine”. Here, it shows you as having taken the action suggested there. This is your show and your future; if possible you should set the steps to take to achieve as much of a good fortune for yourself as possible. Take in consideration advise given in good spirit, including this one, but don’t be guided blindly by them. Take only what rings true to you in that advise and take charge of your future. It is yours. By being assertive on this point you will cause admiration in those who surround you.
60,6; The topmost six, shows its subject enacting regulations severe and difficult. Even with firmness and correctness there will be evil. But though there will be cause for repentance, it will (by and by) disappear
Here is a warning. Top lines are almost always difficult in nature. It shows, among other things, people that is in position to help but consider themselves above such endeavors. Mundane affairs are below them. It is also a transition point. A jump into the unknown. The end of a situation. Uncertainty for the future. In this case, I lean towards what Candid said about being too hard on yourself. Be real with the goals you set for yourself and know your limits. It will save you a lot of pain. You cannot carry out your goals by blunt force of conviction. It is more like navigating shallow and rocky waters. It takes patience, dexterity and a keen eye for obstacles. Being firm for the sake of firmness will crash you against a wall. You must be flexible and adapt your course according to what the course brings with the flow. A lot of difficulties are shown ahead and although you may feel many times like turning around (cause for repentance) steady yourself on the board and those feelings will go away. The goal will finally be achieved.
B. All this brings you to Hex 27, The Nourishment.
Let’s play with the imagery for a while… Here we have a mountain (unmovable, steady, patience and contemplation) on top of thunder (very much moving and inpatient, almost the antithesis of the other one). All empty inside with two limiting firm lines on the outside. Not a better image of an open mouth can be found… In this case though, the thunder will not be stopped by the mountain. It will move upwards not matter what obstacles are put forth in front of him. However, it will not be by force that he will achieve his success but by chipping away, little by little those boulders. At the same time, the mountain will eventually show a passage to the subject and the integration of the two will be complete: the mountain will not completely lose its integrity while at the same time the thunder will be able to pass thru to the other side. The inside shows a double image of the Receptive, the mother, having a very strong presence between the two brothers. An intermediary between the two. It also shows by example to be open to new things and ideas. This ideas are the Creative and they will hatch inside the Creative. Both trigrams show a tendency similar to that of Hex 60 and Hex 11: they call for gradual integration. It may be difficult and full of problems but integration and achievement is the end.
The Judgement says: 27 indicates that with firm correctness there will be good fortune (in what is denoted by it). We must look at what we are seeking to nourish, and by exercise of our thoughts seek for the proper aliment
There are many ways to see or interpret a complementary hexagram. In this case I will chose to see it and take it in a couple of different ways: 1. as a conclusion to the events depicted in the original hexagram (Hex 60); and 2. as a reality check for the goals set forth. In the first case, it shows a subject that by staying his course, have reached the goals he set for himself (nourishment) and now is feeding from its fruit.
In the second case, however, it calls for self-knowledge. By finding your center and knowing precisely what you are trying to accomplish is that you will reach the goals that will fulfill your real inner desires. Until such a time the warning is that you may be feeding the wrong part of your Self and, even if you reach “a goal”, it may not be what actually feeds your soul. You are at risk of selling your real happiness to the wrong goal. At the risk of sounding like a cliche, money is not everything in life.
I see Hex 27, within the context of your question, as both a before the facts of Hex 60 and an after the facts. The before is the reality check described in the paragraph above. Like a sandwich where Hex 27 is the bread and Hex 60 is the meat. The after is the accomplishment and reaping of the fruits of hard work.
Well, that was my very humble opinion. I honestly hope and wish that all this tirade makes some sense to you.
Un abrazo, (yes, we hug and kiss a lot in my country, even between same sexes)
Luis