Long story, really super short version...

Was adopted by a young stray (but not feral) cat this summer with whom I immediately felt a connection and who, uncharacteristically quickly, gave me her full trust. At first, she was on my property, I did not feed her or try to attract her, but the past few weeks she stayed 24/7 on my terrace. I'd taken her to the vet, got her tested, vaccinated and so on. I put off chipping her since I could not adopt her straight off because of my extremely elderly cat, and was in the process of finding a foster home for her. No one was looking for her - and I sure as heck did my due diligence thoroughly.

She was part of my world and my heart for over 3 months.

Yesterday, out of the blue, her owner shows up and takes her. She'd entrusted the cat to her son who is my neighbor and who never once in months went to look for the missing cat (a cat who is happy where it is does not decide to pack up and leave). Both to me are irresponsible...

I am heartbroken.

The story is much stranger and more complicated, but no need to delve into all that here.

I believe things happen for a reason.

I asked the Yi what the chances were that the cat would come back to me. Her "home" is about 5 miles from mine.

25.1.4>61

I am too much looking for a positive and reassuring answer to interpret this....
Thanks for you help

about a cat and a type-o!

Ouch, I of course made a type-o in opening the thread, no wonder it did not seem to inspire anyone!!

it should have read 25.2.4 to 61

sorry about that! 61 is a rather Jungian response about the space-time connection and I'd love your insights about that reading asking what the chances were that the cat would come back.

several friends, who know the whole story, its multiple surprising twists and turns, and who also have had surprising experiences with cats (one whose path crossed a particular cat and four years and hundreds of miles later, the cat managed to find her and is now happily ensconsed in her household..), seem to believe that my story with this cat is not over.

of course, attached as I got and as devastated as I am at the abrupt turn of events two days ago, I would like to believe that, but my logical brain scoffs and thinks that unlikely. In any event, I am not doing anything about it, it is not my place in this material world to interfere, I did all I could and thought was right to help this lost cat for months, now I feel it is up to Cat to decide to stay where it has been taken back to or to choose another path.

but of course, I am curious and my friends' conviction spurred enquiry, especially as the energy of this connection is sill quite palbable in my environment (my animals appear to feel it to, their behaviour has been quite different the last two days).

so i asked "Yi, what makes you think my story with cat is not finished?"

and Yi replied 25.1.4. > 20 --- reaping without sowing, leaving things in the hands of the gods > taking a step back and looking at the whole picture or, another interpretation for 20, seeing and BE SEEN (which I take to suggest literally to go putter outside, i can't be seen if I'm huddled in the house -- same if the Yi is talking about the cat rather than me)

I asked one other question this morning, "please give me an image of the cat's environement today" - I wanted to get a sense whether she was OK, safe, happy. Yi replied 20.1.5 to 27. I'm not sure I'm getting the message here....

If someone could help with these readings, that would be terrific. I am still trying to make sense of 3 months' worth of stories and situations that don't hold up to factual examination, with the sweet cat being the pawn in the middle it seems.
Many thanks :bows:

Your story reminds me of this koan, Is That So?

The Zen master Hakuin was praised by his neighbours as one living a pure life.

A beautiful Japanese girl whose parents owned a food store lived near him. Suddenly, without any warning, her parents discovered she had a child.

This made her parents angry. She would not confess who the man was, but after much harassment at last named Hakuin.

In great anger the parent went to the master. "Is that so?" was all he would say.

After the child was born it was brought to Hakuin. By this time he had lost his reputation, which did not trouble him, but he took very good care of the child. He obtained milk from his neighbours and everything else he needed.

A year later the girl-mother could stand it no longer. She told her parents the truth - the real father of the child was a young man who worked in the fish market.

The mother and father of the girl at once went to Hakuin to ask forgiveness, to apologize at length, and to get the child back.

Hakuin was willing. In yielding the child, all he said was: "Is that so?"

--------------------------
Looking at the answers you've got: two times 25 (Stay innocent, avoid entanglement), 61 Inner truth, 20 Observe, 27 Look at your thoughts; I would say let this cat go. Like Hakuin did.

25.1 Just be innocent
25.2 Don't plan ahead, you will be supported by the life force.
25.4 - two times - Wilhelm:We cannot lose what really belongs to us, even if we throw it away. Therefore we need have no anxiety. All that need concern us is that we should remain true to our own natures and not listen to others.
If you and this cat were really meant to be together - it will be so.

Cat's environment, 20.1.5 → 27:
20.1 → 42 (Increasing), Daniels: You are looking at things superficially.

42.5 → 27 (Nourishment), Richmond:
If you come from the heart and do not question, greatest good fortune.
Genuine involvement is the virtue recognized.

Again a feeling of - let it go, don't ask. Just be glad you got to express your love, even for a little while.
You've proved to be a very kind and loving person. Look at your thoughts (20, 27), don't let them overwhelm you, calm down.

The whole theme of 25 is non-manipulation, no goal-seeking. Activity just for the fun of it.


p.s. I've got a chance to care for one cat at my house, while the owner was away for 2 months. He was slightly ill and I took him to a vet every week, and also gave him some pills.
And in another instance I've lived at my friends apartment for a month and took care of two cats.
Both times I've grown very close to the cats and I can feel your disappointment. But it does pass rather quickly, in a week or two.

. . . all he said was: "Is that so?"

Click to expand...

Indeed, we are often accused by the false ideas of others.

Is that so, Ashteroid?

Thanks for posting,and thank you for the story

I am in a tiny hamlet deep in the countryside, where I am the only outsider (ergo, don't think my neighbors praise me, rather they probably think I come from Mars). Animals here, even household pets, don't get a lot of consideration - they are 'things' and disposable. Taking good care of a pet means leaving food out, period. If it vanishes, no one goes to look for it; if it is injured, it gets to heal (or not) on its own. Some even consider running down a dog or cat with a car great fun and of no consequence. The mere idea that an animal could have thoughts or emotions just doesn't get on their radar. By nature and having worked in animal welfare, I come from a very different place, as you can imagine.

Oddly enough given this "who cares about 4 paws" attitude are the several stories surrounding this cat that evolved all summer long. Today, I still don't know if any one of them has any truth to it. I can only believe what I know to be fact and what I see. The only "truth" in the past 3+ months is how this cat lived, what it chose to do and how it reacted when this person forcibly came to take her out of the blue. I will remain true to my own nature and not be swayed by stories or other's perception of me. The only possible response to any of these stories is indeed "Is that so?" -spot on there Ashteroid.

There was an obvious connection to the spirit of this cat.
Given circumstances, I am of course concerned about how the cat is doing (happy, healthy, tranquil), which is what i was asking about in speaking of its environment.
I can't and wouldn't do anything to find out - I am not even on speaking terms with the people involved and they are rather the type of people to keep very much at arms'length.
I let go of the cat when the woman forcibly grabbed her from me.
I seek not to possess the cat (in terms of ownership).
But i can't shake the feeling that my friends have that there is a reason all this happened and that this cat may well again seek solace and safety here.
Sometimes, beyond facts and logic, intuition or energy speaks - and here it is not just mine. I have let go but I am very much in 20 mode -- seeing beyond sight and at times being myself visible.

PS As you, I have been a cat or dog sitter for friends. Of course one gets attached to these critters! But this is not a situation where one has been entrusted with the care of an animal by a responsible human, knowing the animal would then return to a good and happy home. This cat was abandonned for three months, chose where it wanted to be, and was forcibly taken back.

Oh wow, and I thought country dwellers love animals and are more in tune with nature.
Run down a cat just for fun - horrible!

That changes the context of the story quite a bit, and I'm rooting for the cat's return now

Thank goodness, not all engage in road kill as sport, but yes, it does happen. I won't tell you my nearly-tamed baby Bambi story....

But in fine, what is the difference between irresponsibility and neglect -such as limiting the care to an animal one has taken steps to adopt at a shelter (not free!) to feeding, forget the rest with the excuse one doesn't have the money for it (then you don't adopt!) or, as in this case, doing nothing at all to find an animal entrusted in your care that has disappeared for months on end -- and outright cruelty?

Country folks are more in tune with nature and animals, but what that means to them is quite different to what that means to city folks or those who recognize animals are also living beings, doted with intelligence, emotions and their own form of consciousness. Example, a neighbor I am friendly with raises rabbits. I refuse to go see them (I had a rabbit as a kid), because I know next week or the one after, she will go pick one of them she's taken care of, slash its neck, bleed it and serve it for lunch. She cannot understand how that absolutely breaks my heart and I cannot physically fathom the thought. It is incoherent on my part, as on occasion I can buy rabbit at the supermarket. But I did not have a relationship with it, I did not have responsibility for it, I did not kill it...

If this cat had my cat's temperment -- an escape artist, skilled at opening doors unless bolted shut; super courageous and willfull -- I'm certain the cat would be back and quickly. But this cat is gentle, peaceful, not a bone of agression in her body, she will passively submit instead of fighting her way out unless one day, she finds an open door or window and no one around. By that time, would she be able to find her way here and would I still be here then (I am not here full time)? I'd gotten a 36 when asking where she was. She's got a home, but it is not a good one. And there was a very visible 'something that happened' between the two of us others also noticed.....

Hmm, typing that spured me to ask that very question. Answer? 15 UC.

LiSe's description of that unchanging hex is rather fitting: team words, expansion, a noble one brings to completion:
"It is an art, expressing oneself and at the same time not offending the other in any way. Giving him his honor, respecting his views, giving him the room to express himself as well.
Unity means also to stay free of black-white thinking. When something is true, it should mean it is life sustaining, but anything “true” which excludes something else being true, is a sign you are talking of very temporal, short living truths. This is not scientific? Just take a good look at science.
Substituting ‘words’ (part 1 of the character) for ‘bird’ gives Jian1, a mythical bird with one wing and one eye. Two of them could fly: the perfect cooperation."

It is amazing how this cat took up "space", though she lived outside. The house has felt empty since she was taken back. Even my two animals' behaviors have been affected -- very quiet, seeking comfort, not their usual joyful selves.

Yeah, let's send out lots of collective energy to help this cat come back...

PS: Just asked does cat **want** to come back? 24.1 to 19...

flashlight said:

I'd gotten a 36 when asking where she was.

Click to expand...

she's hiding herself?

More like forcibly kept inside, which is consistent what the woman said would be necessary when she took her back after 3 months...

maybe she's keeping it in the cellar - in a dark place with no light

(This is ridiculously long, but a lot of it is quoting - it's not quite as bad as it looks. I hope. All the Yijing quotes are from Hilary's translation.)



I have come to the conclusion that cats exist to break our hearts and fill us with despondency and regret. (That's not true, of course, but there are so many sad cat stories.)

These readings seem a bit will-o-the-wispy to me, hard to get hold of. For example, 24.1 sounds encouraging. But what is it actually telling you? It seems to be saying the cat will return to you:

‘Not far away, returning.
No regrets here.
From the source, good fortune.’

but who knows what point of view it's even from? Is it telling you what the cat is thinking (which I think was your question)? Is it a straight prediction (the cat is not far away, and will return to you (5 miles?) Is it simply one part of the longer conversation, and therefore might be interpreted somewhat apart from the specific question? Is it advice to you not to have regrets? And actually, if it's describing the cat's thoughts, it could still be a few different things: (1) the cat wants to return to you, (2) the cat has no regrets about being home with her owner, (3) ...

This isn't from the readings, but to try to help you feel better...what else could you possibly have done other than what you did? You couldn't refuse to give the lady her cat back, or you'd be the one in trouble for theft. And you couldn't have not helped the cat for those months (you thought she was a stray and had no home, so you did the natural thing and took care of her).

You might give some thought as to what you'll do if she (the cat) does come back to you. What if that happened, and then the lady came to fetch her again? Would you try to convince the lady to let you adopt her, possibly for some sum of money?

Another thing (maybe?) - not from the readings - clearly this lady is not all sweetness and light, at least not towards you. You described her as "grabbing" the cat from you. Does it necessarily follow that she's not a good cat parent? Some people are better with animals than with people - ? I'm not trying to defend her, just that there's a lot you/we don't know (I think?).

There is a noticeable pattern to your readings, at least the first three (the repeated 25s, repeated 25.4s, repeated 20s):

25.2.4 to 61 ("what the chances were that the cat would come back to me")
25.1.4. > 20 ("Yi, what makes you think my story with cat is not finished?")
20.1.5 to 27 ("please give me an image of the cat's environement today")
36 (asking where she was)
15uc (spured me to ask that very question)
24.1 to 19 (does cat **want** to come back)

(I hope I didn't miss any.)

One thing you might do, something I've learned here at Clarity , is write this all out and then read it through as a story and see what you get from it. Hilary has suggested even reading it out loud to yourself. What I do sometimes is manually type out every word, not just cut and paste. The point is to do what you can to make yourself / allow yourself to concentrate and fully engage with the reading. Tricks like reciting and typing are means to that end. It can help! (Not every time, of course.)

This can seem impossible to do when you're upset. I am horribly bad at divining while upset. In your case, you might remind yourself that whatever might happen, it is almost certainly not going to happen in the next few hours. There is absolutely nothing you can do right now about the cat or for the cat. So you may as well spend the time trying to let Yi help you (whatever that might be).

I've started writing things out. Finish it in some word processing program or on paper; read it through a few times; look in whatever commentaries you have available; try to get a handle on what the words and images might mean. Make notes. Discuss it with yourself in writing. Try not to ask any more questions.

A technique Trojina uses to great effect (I wish I had examples bookmarked) is to literally imagine a conversation between you and Yi. The point, I think, is to look at it as a conversation, not just as isolated utterances. Try to think of ways to express Yi's words in simple English. Think about what the images might mean in real life, about a cat.

You: What are the chances the cat will come back to me?
Yi: <whatever you think 25.2.4 > 61 means>
etc.

"what the chances were that the cat would come back to me"

Hexagram 25 Oracle:
‘Without entanglement.
Creating success from the source, constancy bears fruit.
One who is not upright commits blunders,
And it is fruitless to have a direction to go.’

Hexagram 25 Image:
‘Below heaven, thunder moves.
All things interact Without Entanglement.
The ancient kings, with abundant growth in accord with the seasons, nourished the ten thousand things.’

Hexagram 61 Oracle (the background; how you relate):
"Inner truth.
Piglets and fishes, good fortune.
Fruitful to cross the great river.
Constancy bears fruit.’

Hexagram 61 Image:
‘Above the lake is the wind.
Inner truth.
A noble one deliberates over legal proceedings and delays executions.’

Line 25.2:
‘Not ploughing and reaping,
Not weeding cleared fields,
And so then it is fruitful to have a direction to go.’

Line 25.4:
‘There can be constancy.
No mistake.’

lisa said:

I have come to the conclusion that cats exist to break our hearts and fill us with despondency and regret. (That's not true, of course, but there are so many sad cat stories.)

Click to expand...

We have a longer life spam than does a cat. Five years ago I thought Miss Kitty would outlive me, and I was concerned about how I could provided for her after my demise, but in the time, since my health has done nothing but improved and Miss Kitty's has done nothing but fail, I have been thinking of burial site and tombstone. Nothing temporal last forever.

This isn't from the readings, but to try to help you feel better...what else could you possibly have done other than what you did? You couldn't refuse to give the lady her cat back, or you'd be the one in trouble for theft. And you couldn't have not helped the cat for those months (you thought she was a stray and had no home, so you did the natural thing and took care of her).

Click to expand...

I acquired Miss Kitty (or more properly, she acquired me) only because a couple in the neighborhood split, and abandoned their cat to the community. The wife took the children and went home to mother, sixty miles away. This cat is too aggressive for children and should not have been kept. The husband, of course, was not about to keep his wife's cat. So it devolved to me, and I have been the beneficiary of Miss Kitty's supervision, discipline, and instruction.

@Pocossin: Darn good thing you have Miss Kitty to watch over, motivate you to take care of yourself so to take care of her... and to keep you in line

@Lisa - wonderful post and great advice, thank you. Yes, I will try the writing it out conversation with Yi approach, that speaks to me a great deal.

You might give some thought as to what you'll do if she (the cat) does come back to you. What if that happened, and then the lady came to fetch her again? Would you try to convince the lady to let you adopt her, possibly for some sum of money?

Click to expand...

VERY EASY ANSWER!!!! The cat is not chipped, it has no legal owner and the woman has no legal claims to her. If cat came back, I'd zoom to the vet and get her chipped. And probably stop by the police station on the way back to give them a heads up on the story just in case (they know me and are cool). Legally, said woman could not do anything. That of course would not prevent the probable nasty things that would ensure (her son, in whose care supposedly was the cat, ha ha, is my immediate neighbor and the last person one would ever want to choose as a neighbor -- understand in that what you wish, even in the worst scenario you'd be right; the cops keep a close eye on him).

Another thing (maybe?) - not from the readings - clearly this lady is not all sweetness and light, at least not towards you. You described her as "grabbing" the cat from you. Does it necessarily follow that she's not a good cat parent? Some people are better with animals than with people - ? I'm not trying to defend her, just that there's a lot you/we don't know (I think?).

Click to expand...

She never got the cat chipped, which is a legal obligation. If you care about your animal, you want to make sure you can find it if it gets lost. Had I done what most people would have, the cat would have gone to the shelter, and without a chip, this lady would never have found her cat again. She knew the cat had disappeared. She did not insist her son go look for it, did not post about its disapearance anywhere and did not interrupt her long vacation (remember, she has no money to get the cat chipped) to come back and find it. Hell, she wasn't even relieved that I'd been taking care of it (no thanks, nothing -- had I'd been in her shoes, I would have been so thankful!) Finally, her behavior with the cat when she came to get her completely freaked the cat out; if one knows cats, and namely this one, one would behave totally differently if motivated by the cat's wellbeing and emotions. And, final note, I asked her "well, if she's your cat and you care about her so much, clearly you must know what distinctive sign she has?" (she claimed she'd had the cat 3 years). She was not able to answer that. I could have within a week.

You'reright: cats were put on this planet to break our hearts...

Pocossin - You've done well by Miss Kitty, bless you both. I enjoy hearing your stories about her and her instructional methods.

Flashlight - ohhh. Worse than I thought. Well, Wilhelm does translate 25 as "The Unexpected" (actually "Innocence (The Unexpected"), vs. Hilary's "Without Entanglement." LiSe Heyboer calls it "Natural."

I had 25 at least once with the the meaning of "unexpected" (keeping attuned to an unexpected or unusual event having to do with my question - which of course I failed to do ).

Go through your readings with a very open mind and see what nuggets of advice might be there...

I'll try Lisa... won't be easy.. open mind and impartiality here is a challenge...

Ah, Lisa, I tried... I don't think I did a very good job, perhaps because I am not yet a good interpreter. I remembered the POV I had in mind when I asked each question, but somehow in trying to write out this dialog, I ended up with a cacophony of POVs...

Anywhoo, after over a week of not chatting with Yi about cat, I asked this morning how she was doing. Yi said 25 uc, which I interpreted as "not your problem, babe".

For whatever reason, cat's energy is still very much present around me, so I asked "will cat live with me at some point?" Yi answered 27 uc.

Again, two possible interpretations in my mind -- that would nourish *me*, or that it may happen when cat needs food. And the latter seems to put a different spin on the 25uc received just before.

Ah... confusing!

Getting 25 three times and 27 twice has to mean something significant, but I have no idea what. 25 might be saying that there's really nothing concrete you can do...unless, is it possible to keep food out for her? Would that be a way to combine 25 (disentanglement, the unexpected) with 27 (nourishment, necessities, food)?

You might end up feeding every other creature around, though. Keeping food outside for a cat is trickier than it seems.

Just noticed that 25's Image mentions nourishment:

'Below heaven, thunder moves.
All things interact
Without Entanglement.
The ancient kings, with abundant growth in accord with the seasons, nourished the ten thousand things.'

However I don't know what (if anything) to make of that. It's talking about seasonal growth, and there's nothing particularly seasonal about a dish of food put outside by a human, I suppose. And nourishing "the ten thousand things" is not what you want to be doing, if that's what that means.

Maybe the Yi sees me as an Italian mama -- mangia!

I don't sense the cat in the vicinity... Leaving food out thus wouldn't help (save attract others) and I will be leaving the area soon for a while...

Maybe the best (and only) thing you can do is keep these readings in mind and see if anything happens that seems to pertain. I've noticed that more lately - I'll have no idea what a reading means, but then when something happens, I'm able to think (if I'm lucky), oh yes - this fits the reading. And then (if I'm even luckier), I can apply the reading somehow.

(Or at least that's a theory. In practice, I don't keep my readings in mind very well. But the point is that maybe you can't understand these right now, until something happens to allow them to make sense. So I hope you'll do better than I do in remembering them.)

"Keep in Mind" -- what a challenge, LOL! Thankfully, this post exists to pick up where my neurons leave off

The one time I got the "yeah, of course that fits" feeling wasn't even on one of my questions, but in response to this thread (http://www.onlineclarity.co.uk/frie...E9cision-to-move-un-another-area-for-tomorrow), where, for once, the reading was sufficiently clear to me I had mustered the courage to give my opinion.

(Maybe the Yi had indeed smelled Italian mama material -- I'm finishing simmering the last big batch of tomato sauce of the season for canning....)

Very strange, I dreamt about the cat last night. Strange because I very very rarely remember my dreams, and when I do, it is only for a few minutes and then whoosh! it's gone. Very clear, very simple dream - I was working in the garden, heard her meow, turned around and there she was walking toward me. That's it.

It was in the back of my mind most of the day as I worked. So I finally asked Yi, why did I dream about cat?
37.1.5>52. Whatever the reason, the reading struck me as quite peaceful.

Nice dream

37.1 → 53 (Gradual Development), Wilhelm:
Firm seclusion within the family. Remorse disappears.

53.5 → 52 (Keeping Still),
Crowley: At last they gain the goal of traveling
Legge:
Shows the geese gradually advanced to the high mound.
(It suggests the idea of) a wife who for three years does not become pregnant;
but in the end the natural issue cannot be prevented.
There will be good fortune.

By staying in one place (52, and 37 says at home? along with a dream which shows you in a garden) you will find each other, sweet

Awww, thanks Ashteroid I felt it was a peaceful reading, yet I am often unsure what the Yi is trying to tell me.Obviously, I liked your interpretation
She better hurry though, I leave in a week, and the next trips in a while will just be short stays - not over a season....
If only the yi would tell me how to deal with the nutty woman and her horrid son next door if she did come back. Haven't asked, one bridge at a time...