I asked if my way of life has depleted my jing(inborn energy)too much to ever be able to recover.Being an M.E.patient for 18 years,the last couple of years have been a downward spiral (my own doing because of an internet sex addiction - now overcome- and due to the stressful circumstance of increasingly having to care for my ageing mother).I Ching answered 13.3.4. changing to 42 .Based on some commentaries I've read,my interpretation is that I should do everything to keep my motives pure and selfless and try to get help ,that things may get better then ; on the other hand,when I look at the nuclear hexagrams 44.2.3.4.5 changing into 23,it doesn't look good at all.Any ideas or comments please.

Eligio said:

Being an M.E.patient. . ."

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What is an M.E. patient?

M.E. or myalgic encephalomyelitis is nowadays also called chronic fatigue syndrome

CFS, to my knowledge , is a very complicate matter and relatively little is know about it. I like tho your 42. it feels like Yi reminds you your own power to change it. Not only I ignored the first warnings but pushed harder myself to do my everyday duties . Many people around me pointed that working 7days a week for more than 12 hours was something not healthy , I honestly couldn't see the relevance, because I didn't want to accept my weakness. I assumed my body was so it reacted. Long story short, after I become aware and observe my self, I could see , almost literary, which things I used to do emptying my stamina and thesre was were I should apply something like hex42's advice and something similar is what 13 advice too " Thus the superior man organizes the clans And makes distinctions between things"

About hex 13 line.... just a feeling... all that climbing must be exhausting !!!

Take care

13's trigrams are fire under heaven, and since it changes to 42/increase, I'd say that your qi depletion is a renewable resource and requires turning up the heat to keep it active, and that your energy is dependent upon heaven (boundless energy), which in this case I think means your mental facilities: possibly depression or a sense of hopelessness.

I don't know how much of your care your aging mother requires, but I do know that being a caregiver can deplete your energy, even when we think we're on top of things; and it is here that receiving some support and fellowship with other caregivers, or with a wise councilor who specializes in this type of thing, can help you to release troubling thoughts and feelings out into the open, thus opening you to regenerate your inner fire.

Line 3 indicates a lack of trust, possibly inhibition or a defensive posture, but once you climb the wall between you (line 4), there's no purpose for weapons.

To sum it up: don't try to handle this alone.

Thank you

Thanks for your comment.Climbing is exhausting indeed.I don't know if you're familiar with the Sabian symbols for each zodiac degree/birth date,but mine is "A mountain pilgrimage",the Capricorn fate of having to climb higher and higher..LiSe on her I Ching site correlates hex.lines with Sabian symbols.

eligio

I understand your concerns. Of course, it is important to remember that we ALL have declining energy. Few people last beyond 100 years, and they not much longer. However, there are things we can do to slow down the process, or in some cases actually reverse it, at least temporarily. I would recommend getting into a good qigong class, from a true master who can guide you. I might also recommend Tai Chi Chuan for help, providing it is a qualified instructor.

Gene

@Gene

Thank you Gene.I've done Tái Chi short yang form in the past but my kidney energy is depleted too much to be able to do standing exercises or to participate in a qigong class now.I'm experimenting with 2 sitting and lying down qigong exercises.If it all works out,then maybe I can join a class again.

Wishing you the best Eligio

If worse comes to worse, you can always try simple breathing exercises, breathing deeply into the dan tien, or lower abdomen, allowing your abdomen to expand and contract with the breathings. Or, if you have access to a master such as Mantak Chia, you might try sitting qigong, and using the microcosmic orbit. Sorry if I don't give out the details, you can get it in his books though, but you really need to have someone certified.

Gene

Eligio said:

Thanks for your comment.Climbing is exhausting indeed.I don't know if you're familiar with the Sabian symbols for each zodiac degree/birth date,but mine is "A mountain pilgrimage",the Capricorn fate of having to climb higher and higher..LiSe on her I Ching site correlates hex.lines with Sabian symbols.

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I know they exist but not very familiar with the specifics, Eligio.

Went out with a friend the other day. He wasn't feeling good and I had some hard times too and decided to go out to a beach taverna , drink some ouzo and talk about his stuff , mine, life , death... and during the chat we kept raising our glasses reminding each other "memento mori".

Even that Capricorn, needs some rest to keep going, he needs to be reminded of that " memento mori"...

The environment we were that day and the discussion brought up the scene of a fav movie , "Zorba the Greek " . What they worked hard to built totally collapsed. But in the end they choose to dance. In this country I live, was appropriate to dance or sing in a funeral , its like celebrating life , i think.

None of the problems per se were solve... but it was nice to have a company in difficult days and dance a bit ... even sitting in our chair

Hope you find those people to stand by you and regain your energy again

Kidney energy is connected with hara, life force, sweetness and fun ...My astrological training with another type of astrology says that its the circulation and energizing between Aries and Libra that opens and replenishes that energy/lifeforce. That means initiative's and will's "dance" with receptiveness and balance within you to feel joy, laugh have fun.Its not about the causeless joy of enlightenment but the playful joy of fun with playmates, imagined or real..socializing, circulating, sleep overs.... like dancing..giving and receiving.. anything that allows you to enjoy..While you are so ill it might mean eating something you really want and receiving the taste and joy and smell of the food, really enjoying it...watching funny movies best with a child/ friend/ loose and warm person by your side and sharing the laughs with each other ..a nephew , nabourchild or similar..or cat/dog .. maybe getting a puppy or borrowing, one in between ..they are so cute and one easily forgets pain and tiredness for a moment with that company..lying in the sun at an open space enjoying the voices and laughters around you... think sweetness of life ...Tai chi is so serious and i would wait until my heart and mind is giggeling before taking on such a deep task.
Is this thinking in balance with the advice given by the yi?

o maybe this came into another thread..sorry

Hi Eligio,

Your question is if you are too depleted to recover. In 13 we have lessons on harmonizing with others, for the purpose of keeping one's energy hidden and refined within, even as we engage with others. Your previous difficulties can both be taken as loss through how one reacts to others, so here may be your advice on how to change in regards to others and bring yourself to an increase in healing your own self, and, ultimately benefiting others.

For 44 into 23, I might read that as a phase relationship - yin beginning to rise to yin nearly risen. This the just after the summer solstice to just before the winter solstice, or just after the full moon to the balsamic moon. A period of time to apply and manifest the energies of creation into the world. For you perhaps a period of nourishing depleted yin energy.

13.3 is a lesson in harmonizing oposites. One finds it easier to harmonize with those of a similar nature, but clashes with those of an opposite nature. Perhaps this could be a case of gender roles, where in your case energy is lost when it comes to maintaining harmony women? Just a possibility!

13.4 is a strong line which may easily clash with other strongly fixed people. Here one needs a blend of firmness and flexibility to create harmony when possible, and the wisdom to stop rather than forcing an issue. Is it possible this could apply to your relationship with your mother? Just a guess, could be anything.

Maybe my specifics are off, but I thing the changes is trying to tell you how you lose your energy, and that through correction here you may find the way back to cultivating your energy, which of course is another set of challenges.

In 42 one works hard to purify one's self, increasing good through decreasing bad. Thunder at the bottom represents a flash of inspiration causing one to let go of all else, working hard to manifest benefit for one's own situation, and from there bringing this increase and benefit to others as well. Even as one may be depleted at the expense of others, increase should be undertaken for the benefit of others too.

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In my own experience with jing depletion, it takes time and patience to nurture ones self back into balance. In chinese medicine there are 5 elemental spirits balancing the organs, each connected energetically to a type of sense. The liver spirit of hun, is connected to decision, and is seen in the eyes. It is nurtured by the kidney spirit of zhi, connected to confidence and the ears. When the eyes fixate on something with desire the liver hun is sent out to the subject (and thus women know when men are looking at them), and when the jing is depleted the kidney zhi not only doesn't have a healthy home, but also cannot nurture the liver hun. In sexual addictions the liver hun is repeated attached to objects of desire.

In the end, both of these spirits don't have much of a home inside the body. One's confidence and decision making are greatly affected, and others will see a softness when looking in the eyes. Even when the habit of sexual addition is curbed and the jing begins to build again, the spirits are still out of the body, not doing their work to bring the energy back into balance.

So I would recommend some acupuncture for a proper diagnoses of the organs, and perhaps a diet change to help strengthen whatever is weak. But in addition to these types of treatments I would recommend some deliberate (it can be playful too!) work on coaxing your spirits back into your body.

For the kidney zhi, I think this can be helped by working out tightness in the neck and spine, then do some standing meditation, barefoot, outside on the earth around healthy nature. Being barefoot will help you draw in yin qi from the ground through the bubbling spring point of the kidney channel, the only point on the bottom of the foot, near the center of the ball of the foot. Just relax and breathe naturally, deeply. Listen with your ears and relax the mind, especially the cerebral cortex at the base of the spine. Try to feel a sensation of relaxed energy coming in to the ears, to the back of the head/neck and down the spine to your kidneys. As you develop this practice you can build an awareness of your kidney hun energy - you will feel a sense of returning to your center, relaxing into yourself yet at the same time a return of confidence. Maintaining this sense of relaxed confidence in social situations will allow you to respond more naturally to people without reacting.

To nouish the liver hun, explore your eyes! Spend some time meditating with your eyes open and closed, work towards feeling a difference. Go somewhere where you can gaze a long distance away, like a sunset over the horizon. Gently look as far away as you can for a while, then bring intention and awarness of your gaze back to in front of the eyes (you don't have to move the eyes), and then towards the back of the head, towards the visual cortex where actually "see" from. Play with awareness and looking far, looking near, and developing a sense for bringing the energy of the eyes back into the body. I like putting my face under the shower water and feeling my eye-lids sealed closed, but without squinting. Try with cold water - cold water helps close the pores and seal the energy back into the body. Drinking won't help the liver much, so stop that, and maybe try sleeping on your left side, to lighten pressure on your liver as you sleep. Be mindful of how much you look at every day - our vision is absolutely bombarded by things trying to catch our attention. Sitting in front of a computer can really draw out the hun, even as thinking too much tightens the neck and shoulders. But with a bit of awareness and time for healing we can return to strength. As you nurture the liver hun you will develop a sharper decision making process and a brighter sparkle to your eyes - people will notice.

Just taking some time for gentle and playful exploration of yourself may do wonders for nourishing and rebalancing yourself. In time you may feel up to doing more qi gong - if you're called to a master all the better! Ultimately we all have our own paths to healing. Whatever resonates deeply with our inner heart is likely better for us than what the conventional norm may advise, especially when one is working on nourishing and listening to what is inside.

Gosh this is probably very long. I hope I may be helpful in some way, and best of luck to you!