Clarity,
Office 17622,
PO Box 6945,
London.
W1A 6US
United Kingdom
Phone/ Voicemail:
+44 (0)20 3287 3053 (UK)
+1 (561) 459-4758 (US).
If you cling to the answer you will lose the solution.
The symbolic replies from the Yijing can invite you to endless lingering in the field of metaphors, chewing on every possible piece of information that might or might not be meaningful to you. Many users are afraid that they might overlook something in the answer, as if under each insight another insight is hidden which they must uncover. There is no use in wrenching the answer of the Yijing. Once you have what you need you have to decide your next step and move on. Therefore, “if you cling to the answer you will lose the solution”.
There is no text in the Yijing.
The words are not important, and although it can be very rewarding to look at the original Chinese text from a historical and philological point of view, you should not be carried away by the endless sea of possibilities that such an undertaking can give. What the Yijing gives you when you use the book are images, an overview, a situation, an idea – not words. Therefore, “there is no text in the Yijing”.
The Yijing does not solve your problems.
I think this is an obvious one. “I have consulted the Yijing and the answer was great. I really understood it. But nothing has changed!” Of course not. The process of change only starts with the Yijing, it will not be accomplished by the Yijing. Using the Yijing means hard work and put in a lot of honesty. So kick your butt and live the answer of the Yi. The Yijing is only a book. Therefore, “the Yijing does not solve your problems”.
When you read the text of the Yijing: read the text of the Yijing.
Many times when I ask one of my students to cite a text from the Yijing they do not give me the text from the Yijing but the commentary from the translator. Most people do not work with the Yijing, they work with the translator’s explanation of the Yijing. I find this a strange practice – it’s like driving a car but having Hyacinth Bucket – excuse me, Bouquet – sitting next to you giving you directions while you are perfectly capable of driving yourself. I was very surprised when I heard someone say that beginners should start with the translator’s commentary, after all, he said, that’s what all beginners do. I would say, only read the commentary once you have grasped the meaning of the text yourself. If you make it a habit to immediately go to the commentary, instead of contemplating on the actual text of the Yijing you will never learn to appreciate the direct and illuminating answers that the book can give you. The commentary is just what it says: commentary. It does not hold the answer of the Yijing, and many times the commentary can clash with your actual situation, leaving you more baffled than if you would have taken the time to listen to what the Yi has to say. Therefore, “when you read the text of the Yijing: read the text of the Yijing”.
If you want change nothing will change.
Often the Yijing is consulted when a situation is not as we desire it to be. We want change, we want things to be different. But this need can conflict with what the situation, or yourself, really needs. When you consult the Yijing and have interpreted the answer, the need for change should be gone: instead, you should be aware of the necessity of change, or the want of it, and how it can be accomplished in the most natural way, without forcing it. If you need change you will most likely not be willing to wait for it and let it flow into your circumstances. If you can accept your current situation and if you can see how you got there, change will not be a necessity but a simple part of the flow you are in. Therefore, “if you want change nothing will change”.
The Yijing exists to make itself unneeded.
The Yijing is not only a book, it is also a principle. What it shows you is like the air that you are breathing: you are in it, you use it, you need it, but most of the time you cannot see it. Once you are aware of the principle you don’t need a tool to make it visible anymore: when you know how to operate the TV you will hardly consult the manual anymore. The Yijing is a learning aid to help you see the underlying principle that weaves the chaotic structure that we experience. But learning aids are not meant to be used all the time. When you have learned the principle you can discard the tool. Therefore, “the Yijing exists to make itself unneeded”.
It's a nice idea. Kevin said something like that in one of his posts (not the wandering off into dementia, the bit about "the Yijing exists to make itself unneeded.") He called it training wheels.Maybe – I don’t know. Ask me about this again in at least fifty years’ time.
(I’ll probably say, ‘What’s that, dear? Oh… maybe about half-past two?’)
Heerlijke, verse pasta met een heerlijke saus laat het hart van de fijnproever sneller kloppen in het favoriete Italiaanse restaurant om de hoek. Vers bereide pasta is een echte belevenis en veel lekkerder dan de gedroogde producten uit de supermarkt of van de discounters. Ook al is het veel werk om thuis pasta te bereiden, het is de moeite waard. Om je werk te vergemakkelijken kun je terugvallen op de populaire pastamachines. Met deze machines is het mogelijk om verschillende variaties van de populaire pasta te produceren.
We geven je enkele voorbeelden van goede pastamachines en ook tips over waar je op moet letten bij de aankoop van een pastamaker en welke functies pastamachines te bieden hebben.
Because this is not a recent post. The website just got all excited and decided my whole blog was brand new to it, and it should copy all the posts to the forum. In the years since this one was published, Harmen's moved, and it seems pasta has moved in. But you can still find his original post here: http://www.itcn.nl/serendipity/archives/126-The-Ten-Laws-of-Proper-Yijing-Practice-Explained.htmlHow come when I click on the link to Harmen's Non-Laws (because there aren't any, there are only guidelines ...), I get a picture of some rather stodgy looking Dutch food treats and nothing to do with the I Ching? And text ... Oh, Italian! Pasta! That's different!
Oh, ah. Well, websites do that, don't they? Yes, on closer inspection, it does appear that there are many "new" blog posts. Hmm. Some of them look quite interesting. Good to have them all at the top where we can see them.Because this is not a recent post. The website just got all excited and decided my whole blog was brand new to it, and it should copy all the posts to the forum. In the years since this one was published, Harmen's moved, and it seems pasta has moved in. But you can still find his original post here: http://www.itcn.nl/serendipity/archives/126-The-Ten-Laws-of-Proper-Yijing-Practice-Explained.html
You can also find a list of all interesting and possibly new-to-you blog posts here in the table of contents (below the tag cloud).Some of them look quite interesting. Good to have them all at the top where we can see them.
Thanks Hilary. I haven't looked at Harmen's 10 Laws (or are they guidelines?) in a long time.The website just got all excited and decided my whole blog was brand new to it,
Clarity,
Office 17622,
PO Box 6945,
London.
W1A 6US
United Kingdom
Phone/ Voicemail:
+44 (0)20 3287 3053 (UK)
+1 (561) 459-4758 (US).