...life can be translucent

Menu

petrosianii

visitor
Joined
Oct 3, 2007
Messages
89
Reaction score
1
family_reunion.jpg


Few hexagrams cause me more difficulty than #37 Family. One of my earlier posts about the meanings and importance of family delved into the notion that all families - even the "Ozzie and Harriett" variety - contain at least a little dysfunction. That post concluded that such dysfunction is the way of heaven with respect to family.

Well, the holidays are upon us, and there is no other time like holidays where the dysfunctions inherent in families are displayed. If you're like me, holidays cause increasing levels of dread and anxiety, as family gatherings, gift exchanges, holiday shopping and family traditions approach.

Hexagram 37's Prescriptions on Family Unity

My girlfriend and I are planning to go to my big sister's home for Christmas dinner. Actually, it was more my girlfriend's idea than mine, that whole building a bridge thing, you know. For my part, I tend to be more of a loner, not to mention a bit of a holiday humbug of sorts. Though I'm less so now than in years past, the impulse to shy away from family holiday gatherings is still a temptation.

Hexagram #37, however, counsels otherwise. The oracle repeatedly speaks of the importance of upholding family traditions, especially during the holiday season. Family traditions help provide continuity across generations. Additionally, the I Ching warns that the reluctance to participate in family traditions can cause families to grow further apart. Tradition, says the shen, is an important glue that holds families together.

Fear of Family
Nevertheless, some of us who came from inordinately dysfunctional families may struggle to find our proper place within our families. We may reject getting too close to certain family members for fear of being hurt by them as we have been in the past. Or, we may simply have a phobia of intimacy with people in general.

If the latter is the case, the I Ching does gives us some advice on how to overcome such phobias. Participation in yearly family traditions can be very helpful in overcoming the fear of intimacy. Moreover, family gatherings can provide much needed opportunities to practice that all-important spiritual virtue of forgiveness, which in itself promote healing and family well-being.
 

Clarity,
Office 17622,
PO Box 6945,
London.
W1A 6US
United Kingdom

Phone/ Voicemail:
+44 (0)20 3287 3053 (UK)
+1 (561) 459-4758 (US).

Top