27.1

[clarissa]

I recently got in touch with an old friend. This is someone I haven't seen in maybe 10 years or more. We're just friends but I always knew that he perhaps liked me for more than a friend. Out of curiousity I asked "How does he feel about me?" and received 27.1:

This seems to be talking about someone who is feeling a bit down...someone who gave up their nourishment? Does he perhaps feel that he should have pursued me?

[matt]

Hi Clarissa,

I do not participate in personal readings for individuals, there are far better qualified people on this site to offer you these insights, but may I offer you some advice on this one?

This is my personal perspective and I fully understand if you feel differently, diversity is a beautiful thing. Its been my experience that the I Ching is best used to understand our own relation to the universe, rather than someone elses. If we look within ourselves, the answers to our questions are sometimes flying high in the heavens in full view or a little harder to see, submerged below waters we have not yet dived into.

Theres a saying I have, "If we are within we are never without, and if we are without we are never within". When a situation is confusing to us, this is indeed great substance. The confusion serves the purpose to help us remember our own connection, this is its inherent value and message. So I feel the I ching, will always provide us with answers to view our own situation rather than someone elses, and in understanding our own, we understand theirs also.

[clarissa]

YAWN. I swear, this is one boring crowd.

[hilary]

Maybe things are a little quiet because there is a less pleasant interpretation of that reading available, and no-one wants to be the first to say it...

The thing with 'how does he feel about me?' as a question is it's not 100% clear whether the answer is meant to talk about a) what he feels about himself when he thinks about you or b) what he feels about you when he thinks about you.

You've taken 27.1 as being maybe 'a'. But with that question it might just as well be version 'b'. (Did you have one or the other in mind?) He might feel that you are metaphorically-speaking gazing at him with your jaw hanging down - looking to him to provide for you something (like direction or self-respect) that you should really be providing for yourself.

Where is the emoticon for sticking my neck out?

[clarissa]

Hilary,

Unpleasant interpretations don't phase me. I just can't stand "therapy" talk. I'm interested in the Yi and I ask questions. How else am I supposed to learn?

Don't worry about sticking your neck out. This is someone I haven't seen in years...and I asked out of curiousity after we chatted on the phone for a bit. He invited me to visit anytime I want and was quite friendly. HOWEVER, I'm pretty sure it's option b)...given what I was talking about. That's why I'm trying to understand the meaning of the line. I'm still very fuzzy with it. It looks like someone who sort of well...is in a bad mental state...because they put themselves there.

I see your point regarding the ambiguity of the question. I'm not asking it that much anymore. Instead, I'm asking questions like, "How is my relationship with X? or "What is the nature of my relationship with X?" etc. However, in this case...I asked it. When I asked, "How is my relationship with X"...X being this person I received a very puzzling answer:

41 -> 6

I'm not even going to try to make sense out of that. None of the moving lines strike a chord with me and the resulting hexagram doesn't make sense either. We haven't seen each other in years and had a simple phone conversation that went well. This is also a platonic relationship....so there isn't that much emotional involvement here.

I'm finding that when I ask the Yi a question about an issue that's not that important for me..or an issue that I'm not emotionally involved in...it often gives me confusing answers. It's as if a burning desire to know has to be there. I think you mentioned that as well somewhere on this board.

[hilary]

Probably I did - I wouldn't be the first. Need and desire to know makes a big difference for me.

Another reason why 'how does he feel about me?' can lead to confusion. When you get an 'option b' answer, you can get an accurate picture of his picture of you, but it doesn't follow that his picture of you is accurate.

I think I just remembered why I don't get on with that kind of question: it's the sentence structures I have to get into trying to write about them! Argh!

Well, if you're not trying to make sense of 41->6, far be it from me... http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif
It's possible that if you're really not that bothered about the question you asked, Yi is giving you some direct advice instead. Perhaps.

[matt]

Clarissa, I wasnt aware I was engaging in "therapy talk". I apologise if this is how it was portrayed to you. You post many questions on these boards, and receive many answers from the people kind enough to respond. And I can understand that my own personal views on the I Ching may not agree with you, but I certainly wouldnt go as far as saying "this is one boring crowd". Just call me boring http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif lol

[lightangel]

Matt,

Thanks for your post. Don't forget that there are other people reading these threads, not just the originator. So, there is never a need to apologize for being generous with your wisdom. Some of us sure appreciate it! http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif

[clarissa]

Matt,

I ask questions trying to get responses...because I'm curious and want to know more. I learn via talking about the hexagrams..what they might mean...what they meant for someone else etc. In order to do this I have to ask questions of the Yi. Believe me...I have many readings which I haven't shared here because I don't feel that I'm confused about them. I really do find the Yi interesting(I'm especially captivated by Chris' approach...fascinating..even though I'm only barely able to scratch the surface of it)...and I'm somewhat disappointed that there isn't more activity on the board. Oh well. That's OK.

I'm sorry if I was rude.

Hilary,

Right. I understand that their feelings/perceptions may be incorrect. In this case...they may not be though http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif I probably have been acting a bit like someone who lost her magic tortoise.

About need and desire to know...

I just asked how a reasonably good friend feels about me and I received an answer that does seem to make sense...22.2.3 -> 41. The reason it makes a lot of sense is this friend of mine IS VERY concerned with appearance...so it seems very reasonable that her feelings about me would revolve around appearance. So, here again...it does seem that some emotional involvement makes the answer far more understandable.

Btw, remember the man I was asking about earlier...the one who disappeared and never contacted me again? Feeling very exasperated, I finally asked in a very just-tell-it-to-me-straight tone..."What exactly IS the nature of the relationship between X and myself?" I thought....well, I can take it. The answer was 41.5 -> 61 OK http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif I guess I'll just be sitting here waiting.

[hilary]

Seconding that!!

I thought Clarissa just meant boring as in 'not enough replies'. Hm...

Matt, did you mean that Clarissa's answer might be talking to her direct, not about what X thinks of her? I'd say that's unlikely, but possible. Many would agree with you, I know - really not a pleasant prospect with this line.

[bradford_h]

why doesn't anybody talk about the tortoise and how quickly it wanders away?

[hilary]

Seconding Lightangel, that was. I need to write posts faster!

Er, Brad... you lost me.

[clarissa]

"I thought Clarissa just meant boring as in 'not enough replies'."

That's what I meant.

Brad, I don't even understand the tortoise. What does it represent?

[bruce]

I?ve always thought the term ?eat with your mouth closed? was conflicting. If the lizard waited past the moment, he wouldn?t have caught and eaten the spider.

Maybe your friend only thinks about something he lacks the belief or courage to act on.

http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/messages/6331/5048.jpg

[clarissa]

Hi Bruce,

Thanks for giving it a whirl...but I don't think we're going to figure this one out http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif

I thought some more about what Hilary said regarding this particular question and yes...I can see how it's very difficult to determine what the Yi is really answering.

[bruce]

LOL! Have to open to eat, Clarissa. I sure don't need the practice. http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif

[stuart]

This is a possible take on the 27 -1
presuming you are both in relationships that are satisfying-Then adding more when perhaps less is benificial- would not be the right sort of nourishment.The more is maybe someone who perhaps would like something more than friendship!.
Well i wouldnt know if you are both in relationships so maybe this does not help.

[bradford_h]

Hilary
How could I lose you?
The Ling Gui, Spirit Tortoise or Medicine Tortoise is half the image of the line. Then there's the mouth hanging open, while the turtle roars away in a cloud of dust.

[hilary]

As turtles do?
I rather thought it would be for divining with, and a bit past its 'wandering off' phase?

[peace]

In my experience, asking about someone else never comes back with a clear answer.

I find it's best to ask about my own heart.

Susan

[bruce]

Oddly, the Yi seems to have more endurance and patience than we do, sometimes. I'm not fond of the "what's he/she thinking of me" question, either, but I'm pretty sure Yi answers it, regardless.

I view the magic tortoise as providence, source of answers and nourishment - the oracle itself. But if not acknowledged, or at least pondered, it moves on, leaving the perplexed and drooping jaw behind.

[bradford_h]

Hi Hilary
To me the word She, to let go, has always implied a living tortoise. The word is used in three other places in the Yi. In 22.1 one lets the carriage go to travel on foot. In 8.5x the king lets go of those who escape out the open side of the hunt. In 03.3 it's just quitting one's purpose.
If it is going off on its own, it's not going very far or fast. Besides longevity and prophesy, I think the tortoise also symbolized self-containment or self-sufficiency, the opposite of the neediness symbolized by the drooping jaw, which might even be drooling, expecting to be fed.
The simple things and needs in life are easily fulfilled. But because of that, it's easy to take them for granted. Bruce has a good interpretation here. Perhaps it's the value of what the relationship was that wants acknowledgement. And perhaps it hasn't wandered far from a potential recovery.

[jte]

"...I think the tortoise also symbolized self-containment or self-sufficiency, the opposite of the neediness symbolized by the drooping jaw..."

Brad, FWIW that view fits well with my own experiences with 29.1 - I've always seen "letting go of the tortoise" as a symbol of giving up or losing one's independence. (This also matches what little I've read about the mythology of the tortoise creature referred to in the line - it was supposedly self-sustaining without food and water, per Wilhelm.)

So, inappropriate or overly intense emotional attachment might be one situation the line describes - one way of giving up independence...

- Jeff

[bruce]

fan yao 23.1: Losing footing, grounding or basis for.

In plain English, I think this guy is afraid to approach for fear of being dismissed or shot down. It doesn?t mean the attraction and desire isn?t there, just that it?s easier to get down in the mouth about it than to rely on his own and do something about it.

[clarissa]

Brad and Jeff,

The idea that this is about giving up one's independence does indeed makes sense here. Thanks.

Bruce,

I don't know. I haven't seen this person in several years and we've always been just friends. However, who knows....you could be right. It could also reflect the fact that he feels *I* have lost my footing...which would tie in with the loss of independence. Several times during the conversation he said, "You need to get outta there."...so I have the feeling that he feels I'm the one who has lost the magic tortoise.

[bruce]

http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif

[annietyme]

wow, I posted mine (http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/messages/48/5018.html?1124768875) in the wrong forum it seems http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/crazy.gif

Annie

[brian]

Yi;Bo

Some might come to consider this to be one of the more bitter and humbling places to be shown.

The rain rarely falls gently on that which is most dependant upon it.

Going on up to what is above with what one feels to be genuine concern, seeking an answer to a question, being admonished and scorned, turning oneself away, the heavens staring through ones own intentions and harshly revealing the askers own short comings as a means of addressing a careless question.

A woman approaching the high court dressed like a queen, made to feel naked, the courts attendants look past her garments, the council offends her with its honesty, enticing her to ridicule herself with her anger--she excuses herself from their presence, without being asked to leave.

Having to do with ones true motives, specifically where one is seeking to go behind the back of another, prying eyes looking out from behind a mask of concern. The sun asking the moon about the night as a means of avoiding the dark.

Yi becoming Bo is seen by some to be strongly tied to a very old and once popular riddle regarding lions and honey. As the story involving the riddle goes, those who answered the riddle failed to do so fully, plowing their fields with a calf they stole.

[clarissa]

I think I may now have some insight now on that puzzling 41 -> 6 reading. I just received an email from this friend and he was apparently worried that he had cut me off during our phone conversation...had behaved badly. He went on to tell me about some trouble he's having there etc. So, lines 1 and 4 seem to make sense now...

Line 1 was his current state of affairs...very chaotic.

Line 4 was perhaps how he felt about what he perceived was bad behavior on his part.

Line 5....I have no real idea. Perhaps the Yi is simply saying that we do indeed have a good friendship?

The resulting 6 was obviously the fact that he felt a conflict might be present due to his behavior.

[lightofdarkness]

27.1

Line 1
"One surpresses one's spirit to see only what is necessary. Unfortunate."

A missed opportunity? ;-) - in furnishing the 'new', despite an opportunity to 'splash out' through one's spirit, we stick to basic, practical, furnishings and so miss the opportunity to set-up a comfortable, dynamic, environment from which to work from/live in/grow into.

The overall focus of 27 is in adding meat and muscle to the skeletal form - and to do that in a discerning manner (mountain in top position reflects a focus on quality control - but this develops from mountain's more raw nature of self-restraint (more common when in the bottom position) - thus the traditional warning re what you take in as 'food')

We can interepret this as an opportunity to 'transcend' the current relational status but the discernment/self-restraint element was/is too strong.

The XOR of 27 with 27 gives us 02 - indicating a focus on POTENTIALS as being the skeletal form of 27 - IOW the core sense, the skeletal form, of 27 is about possibilities. - something common to the sense of devotion to others/another a la what could be.

[clarissa]

Thanks Chris. One question about something else..briefly: You say that with hex 39 the blockage is from within. Which hex is blockage from without?

[lightofdarkness]

hex 39 has a mountain base and so a focus on dealing with blocks/stops and so self-restraint. The TOP part of the hexagram is water - water in the top position reflects issues of control (as compared to water in the base position reflecting containment - thus containment doubled gives us control (hex 29))

39 reads "with self-restraint comes control". If we XOR it with 27 we get 37 - a focus on the benefits etc of rigid structure enabling tension release. Thus the skeletal form of 39 is concerned with rigid structure.

The main focus in 39 is of experiencing obstructions but also being obstructive - it covers (a) going AGAINST the flow, standing up against mindless flow, but also (b) Going WITH the flow by BYPASSING obsticles in a structured way (we go around with intent, we do not surrender to the flow, just use it)

Context therefore determines (a) or (b).

The opposite of 39 is 38. Here we deal with oppositions from OUTSIDE - we are not like others and so put on a facade (fire top).

Lake in LOWER position represents self-reflection, not just as metaphor, as focusing on issues of being etc, but also literally in the form of presentation of self (self promotion etc - gets very showbiz ;-) - by putting on a facade so people deal with that and leave us alone 'behind' the mask. - thus 38 reads "with self-reflection comes direction/an ideology" - and that will also generate oppositions! ;-))

A showbiz persona is reflected here, as is the sexual vibe of self-replication, be it literally through sex or figuratively through becoming a 'pop star' and so everyone wants to be 'like' you!

Xor 27 with 38 gives us hex 40 and so a focus on tension release by relaxing structure (done in 38 through presenting a mirror to 'out there' and so others see themselves in that mirror and that reduces the tension of the opposition etc)

Thus the skeletal form of 38 and 39 are both about tension release, 39 through rigid form, 38 through a more relaxed form.

In turn, XORing 27 with 40 and 37 will elicit 38 and 39 respectively as THEIR generic, skeletal forms. Thus the skeletal form of 37 is described by analgy to a rigid structure, as the skeletal form of 40 is described by analogy to 38.

The common ground of lake and mountain is their focus on BONDING - issues on sharing space with another/others. Mountain is contractive, within, Lake is expansive, without.

Dont confuse properties of mountain with properties of 39. Mountain is the BASE trigram and in that position elicits a sense of blocking/stopping/self-restraining.

With the water top so we have a sense of issues of CONTROL operating in this mountain context.

Blocking/Stopping DOUBLED in described by mountain at the top (and in particular hex 52) where the reactive blocking has been converted to being proactive, we use it to be discerning etc.

Mountain associates with Buddhist perspectives - we learn from our suffering ;-) (it maps to the emotion of sadness/grief that when made proactive become discernment and so quality control).

When we use emotions, water maps to issues of rejection/rejecting so in 39 we have a context of sadness/grief in which is operating issues of rejection/rejecting and so 'obstructions' etc

In 38 we are dealing with issues of the emotion of acceptance in a context of love(sex).

Chris.

[annietyme]

Wow, that was a lot more interpretation of the same hex[s] I was given in my message thread.

different viewpoints can give so much different interpretations/insights.

Thank you Chris, even though I know that was not directly for me ;)

Annie

[lightofdarkness]

To add another aspect - in the binary sequence 39 pairs with 53 - the only difference is the top line. This line covers the notion of unconditional vs conditional. 39 is unconditional in its manner, 53 is conditional.

Thus 53 reflects a focus on maturing, a general relationship that gets increasingly particular, increasingly entangled. There is a conditional 'bent' at work when compared to 39 that has a developemental aire but is unconditional, one goes against the flow absolutely - inflexible, rigid etc. (even bypassing obstructions is done 'rigidly')

53 has ITS skeletal form described by hexagram 63 - IOW the generic nature of 53 is described by analogy to 63 and so a focus on a vague sense of completion, getting a sequence of events 'correct' - a sense that is then refined to give us 53.

At the other end of the dimension, 38 shares space with 54. 54 is the unconditional of the two and focuses on issues of the 'premature' or 'immature' . The energy expended is at the beginning either due to immature behaviour or out of some necessity out of one's control - one has to do their best in difficult circumstances and so the issues of high energy expenditure at the start.

54 has ITS skeletal form described by analogy to properties of 64 - a focus on getting a sequence of events 'out of order' but also a focus on remaining open, avoiding closure too soon etc.

38 is more particular about its energy use, more focused etc., and so more conditional.

Since the universal IC is what we can call a 'regular' network so all is linked together - so there is a LOT of material available to flesh out a hexagram, trigram, or even a line.

Chris.

[hilary]

Strictly speaking, Annie, you did post in the wrong forum. Like it says on the page - 'divination discussion' is for talking about divination in general; 'Friends area' is the reading exchange. But in practice a lot of people ignore the distinction, so it's probably just pot luck...

[annietyme]

Thanks Hilary,

yeah I mistook divination discussion the wrong way. I'll be better at posting in the correct forum from here on out. ;)

Annie

[clarissa]

Annie,

What I like about Chris' approach is that he just gives you the information about the hexagrams...and lets you decide how it fits your situation. (I'm not saying that there aren't others here who mainly stick to this approach) I DO appreciate hearing ideas about what something may mean...but I don't like people giving me their views counselor-style.

[jesed]

In the Tratitional Teachings:

You never try to understand a line alone; always in the context of the entire hexagram.

In 27: the top line is yang, has enough energy to food himself and anothers; lines 5-2 are yin: they don't have enough energy, so they need to be nourishing by top line.

So, the bottom line is yang. One can expect that he can food by himself. But he doesn't: he is expecting to be nourishing by top line; and felling envy of line 5-2. That's not honorable. (In the Commentaries of the line, is saying that expression: "not honorable")

Plus: the magic tortoise is a mythical simbol of self-nourishment. So, you drop the self-nourishment expecting someone else do it for you.

Plus: in Yi Jing, some times you have "toirtoise shells". When it happens, you don't need to ask the Oracle. So, one of the various meanings of 27.1 is: "you are asking the Oracle something you don't need to ask, but find out by yourself"

Now, in Traditional Teachings, there are several levels of interpretation: practical, wisdom, esoteric, the relation between you and the Oracle, etc.

Another thing. 23 has several meanings. In relationship matters, is breaking-up. But another level, refering to the relationship whit the Oracle, is that someone injust is abusing of the Oracle.

So, in this case, you have 2 possible levels:
a) In Practical level: he sees you as someone that dropped her self-nourishment by envy, and that's why he is breaking-up the relationship
b) In your relation whit the Oracle level: The Oracle is claimming: "Asking me something you have to find out by yourself is not honorable but an abuse"

I'm not preching you; just showing the traditional interpretation of your answer. Of course, I honor your own way and freedom.

Best wishes

[annietyme]

Clarissa,

Ooh I understand! Conselor style interpretations or whatever you want to call it can seem a bit condesending in a way.

I appreciate any and all interpretations and insight. But to each their own! ;)

Annie

[hilary]

Hi Jesed,
Those were two possibilities that came to my mind, also. What tradition are you referring to?

[jesed]

Hi Hilary

Whilelm was part of a Tradition, related to Taoism; and he introduced this tradition to Occidental Culture. Not only by his books but by an inner circle of study (including Jung and others).

That is the traditional teachings I'd been learning.

Best wishes

[kevin]

Wilhelm - To whom I will be ever grateful, was part of a late Chinese tradition of the Yijing... Heavily influenced by a few thousand years of Confucian thought.

Daoism was perhaps rather smothered in the Yijing by this time.

It is a book of Changes as well as the Book of Change

;)

--Kevin

[jesed]

Hi Kevin

That is, in deed, the usual point of view... but...

Someone said that Confucionism is just a branch of Taoism. (More explicit on the social consequences of The Way that Lao Tze; but even there things are not what they seem ;) )

For some of us Taoism exist before Confucio and before Lao Tze. http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif

Best wishes

[hilary]

I came to the Yijing via the Eranos translation - a very different route from Wilhelm. So it's all the more striking when ideas converge like this. (Or when I find an interpretation or 'best fit' translation I'd spent forever working out is already there in Wilhelm's version...)

[kevin]

Hi Jessed

Received view?! - It is indeed fact.http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/biggrin.gif

Sure there are ideas in neo Confucian thought which relate to Daoism... But the moral and social imperatives in Confucian thought are not reflected in Lao Tsu... I think.

"More explicit"... I can see what you mean - sort of... But, for me, the directness and the imperative nature, of Neo Confician thought, speaks of a concrete social reality far removed from the dynamic space that Daoism invites me into.

The history... Wang Bi onwards is pretty self evident...

Role of Women in later Chinese thought?

Though... I agree, I like my Daoism pretty raw too... Pre Lao Tsu works.

(Please let no-one challenge me on 'was that Daoism then?'

http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/biggrin.gif

We are perhaps of a mind here http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif

--Kevin

[bruce]

My ideas of Yi have grown so many new branches since I arrived here, just a few short years ago. The work of folks like Brad, LiSe, Hilary, Chris and several others have opened up new understanding for me, and I am grateful.

I understand better why the Yi's foresight didn't always pan out for me. I misinterpreted readings. It's that simple.

[jesed]

Thinking Taoism is just Lao Tze (so, if you don't find some idea in Lao Tze is not Taoism) is anti-taoism http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif

[hilary]

To define 'pre Laozi' first date Laozi http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/mischief.gif

I've been reading the notes in the back of my Penguin edition. It seems this is not such an easy thing to do - but the book of that name is most likely a bit later than Confucius.

[kevin]

Jessed

Yes.

Daoism is not Daoism by definition.

Daoism is anti Daoism by definition too...

And when we understand Lao Tsu... trash it - for that is not Lao Tsu or Daoism either.

http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/I_Ching_community/clipart/happy.gif

--K

[jesed]

Hi Hillary

Yes. Acoording whit tradition, the Tao Te King was writting in the last years of Lao Tze; after Confucio. But Confucio and Lao Tze had meet each other once (acording whit tradition).

Hi Kevin
Some usual misunderstanding on Tao te King (acording whit tradition): The "Great Tao" is the only one we can't understand; not the "Microcosmical Tao" neither the "Minor Tao". This 2 are "understandables" (and Yi Jing is a way to understanding them). Of course, acording whit that, Taoism is "understandable".. and Lao Tze is "undestandable".

Now, maybe I must stop here... the important thing is: the traditional interpretation posted is usefully to Clarissa?

Best wishes

[bradford_h]

Hilary-
They're still guessing.
Sima Qian, the historian, puts Laozi together with Confuse Us, but Laozi likely came 2 centuries later, fl. circa 375, shortly before Zhuangzi. There was a movement placing Laozi in the 200's or even the Han, but the Guodian discovery shut those guys right up.
Then there's those who say that the DDJ wasn't written by Laozi at all, but by someone else of the same name :-)

[lightofdarkness]

The differences between the universal IC I deal with vs the traditional IC most others deal with is that the universal IC is like pure mathematics and the traditional IC is like applied mathematics - IOW universal vs local dynamics.

Universals dynamics is associated with the concept of a 'regular' network - all is connected as POTENTIALS (genotype focus). Exposure to local context then ACTUALISES things (phenotype) but due to local dynamics so the actualisation will

(a) not select the whole regular network immediately, things are built ad-hoc, and so a 'small world' network develops;

(b) relabel universals to reflect their association with local perspectives - iow each specialisation will generate its own language to ensure differentiation from all other specialist languages.

This gets into isomorphism, where specialisations show the same generic qualities, different labels.
(and so my examples in IDM of the IC, the MBTI, categories of emotions, and number types in Mathematics - as well as the elements of Chinese Five-Phase theory and the elements of basic Western categories of socioeconomic and political perspectives)

Traditional perspectives have lacked access to how we derive meaning from our neurology and so is more dependent on making local analogies/metaphors to describe the feelings, the meanings - and so a rich assocation in the traditional texts to ancient china's history/myth etc.

By understanding how 'in here' categorises FREE of any specialisation (and so of sensory data) we come up with the species IC - blending, bonding, bounding, and binding (and their composites). These patterns work for ANY sense, ANY specialisation, in that they are sourced in the one network of communications/representations we cannot do without - the neurology (and so the brain). It is these qualities that elicit the sense of isomorphism across specialisations and so allow us to make analogies/metaphors VERY easily (and so we see the IC in 'everything' and 'everything' in the IC!)

By fleshing-out the links in the regular network so we have better perspectives on any particulars in that network. The traditionalist view does NOT make any reference to a hexagram's "spectrum" other than to vague notions re line position characteristics (and that done without reference to actualisations - e.g. mapping line position 5 to hex 08/14 dynamics or line position 6 to 23/43 dynamics etc. The basic nature is to the line as yang and all else as yin - e.g. line 5 is mapped to 08 as 'ground' and its exaggerated form is described by 14 etc etc)

Given the universal IC, so all we can do is present what the hexagram covers universally - whereas the LOCAL dynamics, what the individual is doing etc is up to the individual to interpret, IOW the focus is to guide, to set a generic direction where the individual fills in the details.

This approach reflects the analogy/metaphor focus of the IC. However, there is also the 'deterministic' perspective where belief in some external force etc means a belief in all is determined and so getting a hexagram describes the situation 1:1 - a literal mapping rather than figurative. Here the tossing of coins recruits the external force to determine the fall of the coins 'in tune' with the current context and so reflect that context.

The neurosciences suggest that rather than one hexagram being applicable to the moment, they ALL are, where we end-up sorting the 64 into a sequence of bestfit/worstfit and our consciousness focuses attention on the bestfit, ignoring all else.

Our consciousness is an agent of mediation and with it comes imagination as well as probabilistic reasoning. The particular nature of consciousness is such that it will exclude a lot from its perceptions and in doing so can lose sight of the organic whole, working only on a mechanistic whole.

The advantage here is in PRECISION, we work with 64 hexagrams, not the whole IC undifferentiated. We can then use LOCAL dynamics to validate/refine the universals and so develop a feedback loop of positive and negative forms - thus our small world network approaches the regular form as we identify more universals but in doing so still uses its own language to describe things!

However, once a universal is identified in full so we can make it create its own context - and we move into the realm of 'pure' forms such as 'pure' mathematics where there is no association to 'out there' actuals, only to POTENTIALS - be they objects or relationships. We then use these universals as guides in that all we can ever know is made-up of patterns of differentiating/integrating with representation/mediation being the consciousness element. LOCAL context will then label things and build its own context, its own language (if left alone, each individual or generation will create their own languages 'instinctively' to describe reality (creole type languages) but education systems ensure a degree of consensus spanning generations)

Chris.