The Mysteries of the Method
Here are the 9 'Mysteries' of the above method summarized, with some initial thoughts on what their meaning could be. This is where I would appreciate any ideas, reflections, or knowledge from forum members - wher things basically get interesting.
Mystery 1: Once the astral bodies have been plotted in a circle, any associations with the trigrams are dropped, and only the Yin/Yang division between the sectors is recognised.
This remaining Yin/Yang division that forms the 'Yin/Yang Passage' for the numbers to be allocated to the bagua positions appears to be of more significance than the the gradations of Yin/Yang manifestation around the Taiji.
Mystery 2: Earth is an anomaly between Water and Wood in the 8 sector plotted Wu Xing arrangement.
The water must go through Earth to some degree in order to reach Wood (in nature), so this can be given a logical foundation. Maybe the extra Earth was dropped when the cycle was used alone from astronomy, in order to balance out the elements properly.
Mystery 3: The 8 directions/sectors and 1 central region diagram can be calibrated with the Lo Shu (3x3 Magic Square ).
Why use the Lo Shu to calibrate the sectors? - Is it because the Lo Shu has a profound equation locked within it that gives the model some kind of link to the 'fundamental mathematics' of the Tao/universe?
Mystery 4: Rotate the Planet circle by 135 degrees clockwise in order to match up the Yin/Yang axes indicated by the numbers on the Taiji and Lo Sho diagrams.
Why rotate? And why this specific angle? Is this rotation relative to some movement of the stars as they move in the heavens? Why is this a logical step?
Mystery 5: While keeping the planets where they are in the 8 sectors, introduce the Sun, Earth, and Moon again by placing them outside of the diagram.
This seems to suggest that a new astronomical 'reading' is being taken, requiring the Sun, Earth, and Moon to be used as a kind of benchmark.
Here Wikipedia says:
"...traditional Yin and Yang philosophy. The interrelationships of this philosophy were described by Fuxi in the following way:
The Limitless (Wuji) produces the delimited, and this is the Absolute (Taiji)
The Taiji produces two forms, named yin and yang
The two forms produce four phenomena, named lesser yang, great yang (taiyang also means the Sun), lesser yin, great yin (taiyin also means the Moon)."
So it seems that in my formation of the Planet Circle, my allocation of the Moon to Little Yang may have been wrong - maybe it should have swapped places with the planet Earth so that it can be in a Yin location. Consequently, this would make no difference to the general procedure, anyway, because both the Moon and Earth are removed along with the Sun to leave the 5 visible planets. Fuxi's comments show us clearly the role that the Sun and Moon play with regards to the bagua in general, and thus the link with Celestial Bodies as a phenomena. Reintroducing the Sun and Moon outside of the 5 visible planets sequence may be hinting at a system using nested concentric annotated circles - something which has been popular in Chinese culture when one considers the carved spheres within spheres.
Mystery 6: Reintroduce the default Taiji trigrams to the sectors of the diagram, including the central Taiji and the default Yin/Yang passage line.
This appears to infer that the gradients of Yin/Yang relative to the default Taiji position now have some importance within the process. At first it was the Yin/Yang Passage axis, but now it is all about how much yin and yang are present relative to the now rotated and balanced positions of the Planets/Elements. Why?
Mystery 7: Lock the reintroduced default Taiji trigrams to their planetary associations (which have been rotated and balanced).
Why is there not a flexibility of interaction between the Elements and the Bagua - like the planets moving through the fixed Bagua sectors akin to Western Astrological 'Houses'? The shuffling of the bagua from the Early Heaven into the Later Heaven Sequence positions shows that the planets are fixed to their Early Heaven bagua associations, even though there seems to have been some dislocation at the beginning of the Later Heaven formation process when the Planet Circle is rotated along with the Taiji. The bagua associations that could be atributed upon creating the Planet Circle were not carried around with the Planets/Elements as they rotated.
Mystery 8: For the Later Heaven Sequence, this time rotate by 135 degrees anticlockwise to calibrate with the Lo Shu axis, in order to counteract the previous clockwise motion for the Early Heaven sequence.
The balancing, counteracting movement seems to make sense because we must always balance Yin and Yang. However, this suggests that the rotation of the Planet Circle when calibrated with the Lo Shu is not always following the movement of the heavens as is caused by the rotation of our planet. It appears that the Planet Circle rotation may have it's root in a more abstract procedure. It may be interesting to note that in Feng Shui, as a rule, Yang moves in a clockwise direction and Yin moves in an anti-clockwise direction. This means that we could say the Early Heaven's calibration was Yang, and the Later Heaven calibration was Yin.
Mystery 9: When allocating the trigrams from the Early Heaven Sequence to the Later Heaven Elements, there is sometimes a choice of 2 possible trigrams to allocate, so one must keep Earth trigrams the same as when the Early and Later Heaven sequences are calibrated using the Fire-Water Axis, but all others must change from any such calibrated correspondences.
Why should Earth trigram associations remain the same when the Sequences are calibrated using the Fire-Water axis, but all other trigram associations always change when ever there is a reflection between the Early and Later Heaven Sequences? The Fire (離Li 火 Fire) and Water (坎Kan 水 Water)trigrams of course remain the same, and so does the calibrated Earth (艮Gen 山 Mountain) Element trigram. What is significant about this is that, out of the 8 bagua trigrams, 2 of these 3 relate directly to the Wu Xing Elements by way of their meanings; the others are: 兌Dui 泽 Lake, 乾Qian 天 Heaven, 坤Kun 地 Earth, 震Zhen 雷 Thunder, and 巽Xun 風 Wind. One other Wu Xing Element; Earth, is present in the bagua: 坤Kun 地 Earth, but in the Later Heaven Sequence this has been swapped across the Yin/Yang Passage - was this a 'balancing out' step taken when allocating the trigrams? - Created to ensure that Fire and Water were in fact the only 'locked' trigram meaning and Element/Planet combination present between the Early and Heaven Sequences ?
If, when allocating the trigrams from the Early Heaven to the later Heaven Sequence, one used the same rule of changing any calibrated trigram correspondences to it's possible counterpart, then 艮Gen 山 Mountain would have been changed to the other Earth Element trigram 坤Kun 地 Earth. This would have created an apparent imbalance with regards to the Elemental positions when the trigram meanings are taken in to consideration - as if the trigram meanings outside of any planetary Element associations hold value and can give extra weight to the overall Wu Xing Element balance in the Later Heaven Sequence.
Could the three raw Elements allocated to the trigrams before planetary associations have been created be rooted in some different origin to the heavens? Why have Wood and Metal been left out of these pre-planet trigram associations? It is interesting to note that: "The Chândogya Upanisad contains the earliest Indian view of the elements. There are three: 1) fire (agni), 2) water (ap), & 3) earth (prithivi). These emanate in sequence from each other. Fire is associated with oil, butter, and fat, while earth is associated with all other kinds of food. Each, as food, gives rise to three bodily subdivisions: Fire into bone, marrow, and speech; water into urine, blood, and prâna (breath); and earth into faeces, flesh, and mind. ...
Later other elements are added. Fire itself comes to be seen as emanating from air (vâyu), which is later seen to emanate from "aether" (âkâsha). These are similar enough to the Greek elements, and their introduction occurs late enough, that Greek influence cannot be discounted. " THE GREEK, INDIAN, & CHINESE ELEMENTS. So the early Indian Elements model shares the isolated Fire, Water, and Earth with the basic bagua trigram associations - a common link?
Is there any profundity in the Sun and Mercury remaining in the same calibrated locations between the Early Heaven and Later Heaven Sequences as represented by the Fire-Water axis in both? What about the metaphysical opposition betwen Fire and Water? - Indeed, this opposition is unified via meditation practice, as is often mentioned in the chinese secular meditation manual attributed to the immortal Lu Dongbin: 'The Secret of the Golden Flower'. The alchemical marriage is the union between Fire and Water effected by meditation. In the 'Secret of the Golden Flower', "the poetic imagery essentially conveys ideas and perceptions better suited to imagining than reasoning, with the hope that in time a convergence of imagery and reason will take place in a manner that is informative." Such was the way in those times, as the first chapter of the Tao Te Ching says:
"The way that becomes a way
is not the Immortal Way
the name that becomes a name
is not the Immortal Name
the maiden of Heaven and Earth has no name
the mother of all things has a name
thus in innocence we see the beginning
in passion we see the end, two different names
for one and the same
the one we call dark
the dark beyond dark
the door to all beginnings."
- Lao-Tzu, TaoTeChing (translated by Red Pine).
It seems that due to the essence of truth being beyond 'names', one must be ambiguous when describing worlds beyond mundane analysis, lest someone thinks the description is an exact representation of the territory described - the TaoTeChing seems to infer it is best to remain innocent and go on instinct, uniting duality while controlling the passions. From a Tarot card perspective, this alchemy is present in the Temperance Card; An angel (often female or genderless), a pool or river of water. Two cups or beakers, a fluid flowing between them. "How can you mix fire and water?" the Fool whispers. Never pausing the Angel answers, "You must have the right vessels and the right proportions." The Fool watches with wonder. "Can this be done with all opposites?" he asks. "Indeed," the Angel replies, "Any oppositions, fire and water, man and woman, thesis and anti-thesis, can be made to harmonize. It is only a lack of will and a disbelief in the possibility of unity that keeps opposites, opposite." And that is when the Fool begins to understand that he is the one who is keeping his universe in twain, holding life/death, material world and spiritual world separate. In him, the two could merge, as in the vessels that the Angel uses to pour the elements, one to the other. All it takes, the Fool realizes, is the right proportions....and the right vessel. "
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So how is anyone getting along with the above main procedure? Frank? Any problems?
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Originally Posted by erime
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