About a missing cat

[emiliana2010]

Friends, my beloved cat Sailor, a neutered 8years old black cat, is missing from home. He loves spending time under the bushes of the front neighbour's garden being by himself, he never went really far from home as far as I know of. Now I am too tense, too anxious, too scared, too heartbroken and too tired to be able now to make any sense from the Yi Jing readings I have done over the last few days. Could you help me? Forgive me the too many questions. Know that they have been asked over several days, the last ones when I didn’t know anymore whether I was coming or going.

My first question has been: Sailor is not answering to the evening call. Will he be back?
The response has been 61.5 > 41 Good, I thought, tomorrow morning I will find him at the door, but it did not go that way.

So, the second day since he was missing I asked: What is going on with Sailor? 14 unchanging
This response confused me, I could not make any sense out of it. What could great possession mean in this situation? I searched for him without any result and could not understand what I needed to do, whether be proactive and actively search for him or let things evolve and wait-just-wait.

Then I asked: What should I be doing to have Sailor come back home? 36 unchanging
Ok, I understood I needed to keep going with the search. But I must say that the appearance of this second unchanging hex made me feel awkward. I kept searching for him during the day and the following one, but no news or signs of Sailor.

So I asked: Where should I be looking for Sailor? 30.1.2.3 > 64
Again, I could not relate to adhering, radiance, light, fire… I looked up for the meaning of the trigrams and amongst many I found eye and dry wood which got my antennae twitching. Close by there is a wooden bridge made in a shape that resemble an eye. Bingo, I thought. I spent quite some time walking the whole area calling him, but nothing. I have to say that I knew he was not going to pop up from under a bush because if he would have been around he would have come home. I had also prepared some signs with photos of him and spread them in the neighbourhood but I felt that I was actually groping in the dark.

And this is the moment in which I started loosing it and began asking question already asked, (forgive me).

Will Sailor come back home? 58.1.2.5 > 16, which looks good but for the fifth line, incomprehensible to me, and anyhow still no Sailor.

Where is Sailor? 26 unchanging. Is he being restrained? By whom or what? How can I use this information in order to find him? And another unchanging hex…

One evening I was walking under the rain looking for him when I felt overwhelmed. I did not know where to go or what more to do. So right there, at the corner of that street I asked: What is appropriate for me to do right now to find Sailor? 32.2.3.6 Totally confusing response.

The following day again I ask: What is appropriate for me to do at this point? 55.4 > 36
I understand that I need to join in with someone with whom I feel affinity. So, still floating in mid air I swore that the next one would have been my last question and ask: What can I do to find Sailor? 55.5 > 49, the invitation to look for the advice of a wise person. This brought me to connect with an animal communicator and now to you. The animal communicator will connect with Sailor soon, and I hope you will give me your wise counselling today.

Thanks for your loving attention. Hugs to you all.

 

[Liselle]

How terribly scary this is

How long has Sailor been gone, and is he neutered or not?

I may not get to all the readings (and yes I understand you asked them over a period of days - I ask a lot of panicked questions when I'm scared, too ), and who knows if I'll understand them correctly...but starting at the beginning...

(All the quotes are from Hilary's book.)

“Sailor is not answering to the evening call. Will he be back?”
The response has been 61.5 > 41 Good, I thought, tomorrow morning I’ll find him at the door, but it didn’t go that way.

'There is truth and confidence as a bond. No mistake.'

I agree with your interpretation of "good." It might mean Sailor is bonded with you (maybe that's too simplistic), and "no mistake" that he'll be back.

[Edited: I just read LiSe's commentary about 61.5 -
https://yijing.nl/hex/hex_61.html

Who is true can also recognize truth in others. He can make real and deep contact, and he can avoid all harmful and needless influences. The ability to find the right people and avoid the wrong ones is one of the greatest assets in life, surpassing the best education, the most abounding riches.

Applied to "will Sailor be back," LiSe seems to be saying that he will, not only because he's deeply bonded to you, but also because he has good instincts for recognizing trouble.]

So, the second day since he was missing I asked: “What is going on with Sailor?” 14 unchanging
This response confused me, I couldn’t make any sense out of it. What could “great possession” mean in this situation? I searched for him without any result and could not understand what I needed to do, whether be proactive and actively search for him or let things evolve and wait-just-wait.

As a direct answer to your question - meaning you have to interpret 14uc from Sailor's point of view - it might mean very simply that Sailor is "rich," he has all he needs and possibly more.

The Image says:
'Fire dwells above heaven. Great Possession. A noble one ends hatred and spreads the good, She yields to heaven and rests in her mandate.'

It helps sometimes if you substitute your own name - in this case, Sailor's name - for "noble one." It sounds more personal that way. So -
"Sailor ends hatred and spreads the good. Sailor yields to heaven and rests in his mandate."

Here's where I start wondering if he's neutered or not. If he's not neutered, he might be "yielding to heaven and resting in his mandate" - looking for girl cats. If he is neutered...they're less likely to wander, but it doesn't mean they can't or won't ever. Cats are curious by nature. Maybe he just wanted to explore, for variety, like we might go on vacation? Example: I had a girl cat who escaped out of my apartment building on a very unusual winter night when it was 70 degrees outside. I think she just followed her nose into the fragrant air. I got her back, although it was quite a while and I was frantic, too. I know how this feels, and I have great sympathy.

Then I asked: “What should I be doing to have Sailor come back home?” 36 unchanging
Ok, I understood I needed to keep going with the search. But I must say that the appearance of this second unchanging hex made me feel awkward. I kept searching for him during the day and the following one, but no news or signs of Sailor.

I think I'd interpret this one - 36 unchanging - very simply as "Hiding Brightness." Hide your brightness - you don't have to do anything. In fact, "doing things" might be counterproductive - not for Sailor, but for you. As you've found out, you're exhausted.

(Having said that, I doubt I could sit around doing nothing, either. It's hard just to take Yi's word for it, and as we all know we can misinterpret our readings. And you'd still worry, even if you weren't actively looking for him.)

So I asked: “Where should I be looking for Sailor?” 30.1.2.3 > 64
Again, I could not relate to adhering, radiance, light, fire… I looked up for the meaning of the trigrams and amongst many I found eye and dry wood which got my antennae twitching. Close by there’s a wooden bridge made in a shape that resemble an eye. Bingo, I thought! I spent quite some time walking the whole area calling him, but nothing. I have to say that I knew he was not going to pop up from under a bush because if he would have been around he would’ve come home. I’d also prepared some signs with photos of him and spread them in the neighbourhood but I felt that I was actually groping in the dark.

30.1
'Treading in confusion. Honour it, Not a mistake.

30.2
'Clear golden light. From the source, good fortune.'

30.3
'In the clear light of the setting sun, If not beating a pot and singing, Then you will be making the lament of great old age. Pitfall.'

I don't understand this one, either...you say you feel like you're groping in the dark, and of course 30 is the very opposite of that...

Very clever with the trigrams and the bridge, even if it didn't pan out. :bows:

Um...will try with it... 30 can mean insight, awareness, illuminating, shedding light on... as you know it's the trigram li doubled, and Hilary once said someone acting in a li manner would be likely to document things, make spreadsheets and lists, etc. Hm - in this case, maybe it's referring to the signs you made with pictures of Sailor. That's certainly "shedding light on" and "making people aware." And - it's "beating a pot and singing" from line 3.

You asked for a location, and other than the bridge, the reading doesn't seem to describe a recognizable spot, but you were travelling around hanging signs, which is sort of location-related...maybe it means you were hanging signs in the right area?

30.1 might describe you literally "treading in confusion" - wandering around calling and looking, not knowing if you're in the right place or doing the right thing. Yi might mean you should "honor" what you're doing to find him, honor and accept the fact that you're confused (how could you not be?), and that what you're doing is "not a mistake."

I know that contradicts the 36uc reading which I thought might mean "hide your brightness." Well...first of all, I could easily be wrong. (About all readings, for that matter...they're I Ching readings, not the newspaper, which is why we have protracted discussions on this website trying to figure them out.) Did id you cast the 30 > 64 reading after you hung the signs? If so Yi might have been saying, well, you've already done that - spreading awareness can't hurt - if you didn't do something you'd "lament"...

I mean, both could be true. Doing these things to try to find him might be unnecessary and might not produce results (36) - but it's also "not a mistake."

And this is the moment in which I started loosing it and began asking question already asked, (forgive me).

Will Sailor come back home? 58.1.2.5 > 16, which looks good but for the fifth line, incomprehensible to me, and anyhow still no Sailor.

You are forgiven.

58.1
'Responsive opening: good fortune.'

58.2
'True and confident opening, good fortune. Regrets vanish.'

58.5
'Trusting in stripping away, There is danger.'

I wonder if line 1 was indirectly encouraging you to be more "responsive" to your readings? I've found that sometimes when I start asking the same questions over again out of panic, Yi sometimes stops answering them directly and starts giving me other sorts of advice. 58 is about exchange and communication as well as joy, and who have you been exchanging and communicating with? Yi.

58.2 - Hilary says in her commentary, "This means opening up a clear channel for honest communication..." - which again, could mean with Yi and your readings. As a direct answer, it might mean - I don't know, is there any such thing as an actual opening of some kind for Sailor to come back through? Door, window, gate...?

58.5 - might mean you're putting your trust in sort of "stripping away" at the same thing again, asking the same question? You already asked, Yi already answered, there's no use scratching the scab off?

Where is Sailor? 26 unchanging. Is he being restrained? By whom or what? How can I use this information in order to find him? And another unchanging hex…

Oracle
'Great taming, Constancy bears fruit. Not eating at home, good fortune. Fruitful to cross the great river.'

He's out exploring, not eating at home, crossing great rivers? (Which doesn't have to be literal, of course, the river part.) The omen words in this are not at all scary, which is nice. "Good fortune" and "fruitful."

"Not eating at home" might be reassurance that he is eating elsewhere, that he's getting enough to eat.

Also - 26 in general is about Great Taming - as Hilary puts it, taming "the energies of nature." A couple of the lines talk about a "young bull" and a "gelded pig," which again make me wonder if he's neutered or not. You didn't get moving lines in your answer, but Hilary has said that they can still be part of the "gestalt" of an unchanging reading.

Also, 26 is about "Great Farming," "Raising Great Beasts" - as "great farming," it's the conceptual opposite of hexagram 9, small farming. So 26 is about a thriving enterprise, not 9's sort of subsistence farming where the least disruption in the weather etc. could mean doom. So I wonder if in some way it's saying Sailor is self-sufficient, independent, acting as a "great beast," taking care of himself perfectly well? Having a big-boy adventure? (That could be essentially true even if he's charming other people into feeding him - it's still him doing it for himself.) It also doesn't mean he won't come home, per your earlier questions.

One evening I was walking under the rain looking for him when I felt overwhelmed. I didn’t know where to go or what more to do. So right there, at the corner of that street I asked: “What’s appropriate for me to do right now to find Sailor? 32.2.3.6 Totally confusing response.

32.2
'Regrets vanish.'
Can sometimes mean "live in the present."

'Not lasting in your character, Maybe accepting a shameful gift. Constancy: shame.'
I think maybe this could be another one where Yi's talking to you about asking the question. I often find myself asking Yi questions not entirely for information, but for comfort. Comfort might be a "shameful gift" if sought for sort of the wrong reasons? (Yi can be very rude sometimes.)

32.6
'Shaking up lasting, pitfall.'
I think this might mean that Sailor coming home will take the time it takes (32), and there's no point trying to hurry it, which is what you're (very understandably!) trying to do. Again, Yi might be answering bluntly to the point of rudeness, dratted oracle.

The following day again I ask: What’s appropriate for me to do at this point? 55.4 > 36
I understand that I need to join in with someone with whom I feel affinity. So, still floating in mid air

55.4
'Feng is screened off At midday, seeing the Dipper. Meeting your hidden lord, Good fortune.'
"Hiding Brightness" again as the relating hexagram. "Meeting your hidden lord" - as a direct answer to your question - might mean "meet with, grapple with, your fear and anxiety." Sometimes this line means that the thing we're afraid of is somehow an ally or could be turned into one. So maybe actually confronting your fears will help diminish them? Could that make sense as what is most appropriate for you at this point? I know you were hoping for concrete information about Sailor or how to find him, but maybe that's not what you most need right now.

I swear that the next one would be my last question and ask: “What can I do to find Sailor?” 55.5 > 49, the invitation to look for the advice of a wise person. This brought me to connect with an animal communicator and now to you. The animal communicator will connect with Sailor soon, and I hope you will give me your wise counselling today.

55.5
'A thing of beauty coming. There is reward and praise, good fortune.'

55 again, not sure why. Also not sure where it says look for the advice of a wise person - maybe you're reading a different translation? But it is a lovely-sounding line.

I think this is the fastest I've ever tried to interpret a list of readings. I devoutly hope I didn't say anything too ridiculous or do something stupid like look at the wrong text.

Until Sailor is actually back home, it's nerve-wracking for you and also for those of us trying to comment on the readings. I think this is basically good news here, granted with fortitude required - but as you know it's possible to be wrong about readings.

I very very much hope he comes home very soon, meowing to his mommy.

 

[Liselle]

Just realized I overlooked your question about 26, about whether he's being restrained somewhere.

I'm not sure any of the readings come right out and say that, but in real life it's of course always possible that someone will see a "stray" cat and take him into their own home, or take him to a shelter.

Does he have a collar and tag, or a microchip, or any other form of identification? Things like that might be hexagram 30 things, perhaps, shedding light on his identity, making people aware of who he is and where he belongs. 58 could describe someone phoning you, if that's possible.

(This is where I fail at readings, I think. Maybe "fail" is the wrong word, but look what I've done - gone from "Sailor might be having an adventure" to "Sailor might be at a shelter, but someone might phone you." And of course I don't know either of those. But I still don't see anything scary-bad in the readings.)

 

[Liselle]

Is that Sailor in your avatar picture, by the way? Lovely cat.

 

[emiliana2010]

Wow Liselle, what an answer you gave me! I feel grateful for the time and care you took in writing this very exaustive reply.
I edited my post adding that Sailor is an 8year old neutered cat.
I heard from the animal communicator!!! Making a very long story short, Sailor was having a stroll when passing by a house he was taken by a woman and broght in. He's now in a room with closed windows, scared, has food and water but he only drank, he doesn't want to eat their food. The communicator took quite some time to reassure him, calm him down, told him we are looking for him to bring him home and later on will connect with him again to see whether he can give infos about the location and type and color of the house he's in.
So, this gives a meaning to Great Possessing, and hex 26, being restrained, doesn't it?
I feel more serene, hopefull and looking forward to the next talk of the AC with Sailor.

Keep you posted!

 

[emiliana2010]

Liselle, you write about hex 55
not sure why. Also not sure where it says look for the advice of a wise person - maybe you're reading a different translation? But it is a lovely-sounding line.
I found it in the James Dekorne Book of Changes site under the Commentary.

Legge: Line five is the ruler's place, magnetic herself, but the ruler of the trigram of Movement. She can do little without assistance, but if she can bring into her service the talents of lines one, three and four, and even of two, her magnetic correlate, the results will be admirable. Nothing consolidates the prosperity of a country so much as the cooperation of the ruler and her able ministers.
Siu: The modest ruler assembles ministers of brilliant ability around him. Especially is he attracted to men who are sound of heart and sure of getting results.
Wing: Be receptive to the opinions of others. Invite counsel from the most able helpers you know. Such modesty brings unexpected good fortune and rewarding results for all concerned.

Ciao!

 

[emiliana2010]

Liselle, my avatar is my first cat, a female that is now one with existence.

 

[Liselle]

It's comforting to know the animal communicator and Yi seem to generally agree. One's not saying he's okay and the other the total opposite. I hope he's able to give you more information. And yes, - well, I don't know anything at all about animal communicators, but it might help put the right angle on 14 and 26, give more specifics.

Hoping for more good news soon.

 

[Tohpol]

If you want to get up to speed on animal communication I highly recommend this documentary about Anna Breytenbach.

I also tested out the techniques on my black lab Tweed and it works in ways that are quite astonishing.

And Emiliana, when I saw that you'd received 61.5>41 as your first reading, I was fairly certain that your cat was okay. Great line to have in this context.

There's another cat thread over in the Reading circle...Seems like our feline friends are gatecrashing clarity with their antics.

 

[emiliana2010]

Thank you Tohpol! Yes, even if Sailor is not back home as yet, 61.5>41 stirs a lot of hope in my heart.
I am interested in animal communication since a while and Anna Breytenbach is a fantastic source of inspiration to me! I find her amazing. I've seen the documentary you suggest and the Diablo/Spirit story is truly remarkable.
I would love to hear what did you do with Tweed and what happened. Would you share it?

I would love greet everybody with cheers, but I am still sad...
Emiliana

 

[Sixth Relative]

Hi emiliana

My first question has been: Sailor is not answering to the evening call. Will he be back?
The response has been 61.5 > 41

Can you share the month/day/hour when you got this answer?

Using the Wen Wang Gua method, the Relative of offspring (useful to represent pets) is linked with the branch Shen (metal) and is hidden under Chou (earth). That is a good sign for finding a missing pet: it means the pet can get out of hide.

Unfortunatelly, the moving line is Si (fire) parent of the Black Turtle (it has, among others, the connotation for thieves). When a moving line controls a hidden relative, it prevents that relative to get out of hide; so, its a bad sign for finding the pet: there is an active force preventing him to come home. On the other hand, the resulting branch is Zi (water) which controls back Si (fire). There is a chance that in the future, the force preventing your cat to come out of hide would weaken and you could find him.

Now, to give a precise interpretation with WWG one needs to know the month/day/hour when the answer was received.

 

[emiliana2010]

Oh Sixth Relative! I'm so grateful you do this!
Unfortunately I register on my notebook only the date in which I ask a question in the traditional way, and that question was asked the 11 of December.

But here a little back history:

From my journal I read that December the 10th Sailor didn't answer the evening call (when it gets dark I call the cats home), and that was unprecedented. So around 23:00 I asked the Yi: is he ok? and got 52.2.> 18. I then asked: What should I be doing to have him come back home? The response has been 4 unchanging. From experience whenever I got 4 unchanging it meant that I had already what I was inquiring about but I didn't know iI had it. So I knew that Sailor was already back and waiting downstairs to come in, and in fact so it was.

The following evening, December 11th, again he didn't answer to my call, and that time I got the 61.5 > 41 answer. Up to that moment I was not alarmed, I thought I'd find him waiting in the garden in the morning.

But in the morning he was not there and all my calling remained unanswered. During that day, and all the following ones, I found myself chocked with anxiety. From the Yi Jing Journal on my iPad, on December 13th at 00:37 I asked: Will Sailor be back home? With this question I was actually intending I know that something happened and I want to know if he's going to be back home with us. The response has been 58.1.2.5 > 16.
I think this is the response to take into consideration because when I asked the question my intent was in tune with the situation.

This is the most accurate I can be regarding information. I hope they can be useful.

There are so many other questions asked and answer given but I think they will only fog the clarity so I will not mention them (unless you want to know...)

The following day, December 14th I connected with the animal communicator. Her inquiry revealed that Sailor had been taken by a lady and brought home (The Yi confirms this with a 25.3 >13 about the outcome of the situation). He remained in her place about 4/5 days and at the first occasion ran away, but he was so scared and freaked out that he just kept fleeing and hiding. So he found himself lost and unable to recognise where he was. From there starts the long list of images of cottages, woodsheds, squares, parks that I searched looking for Sailor. Till yesterday, when she told me he's debilitated and about to die.

I am full of hope, and if you can light up to this hope I can wait for Sailor's return with a lighter heart.
Thank you so much!

 

[emiliana2010]

Hi Liselle,
I took the time to read again your long reply to my post and want to tell you I grateful I feel for the care you showed. I mean, it takes a lot of time and concentration to write such a long post, and you've done it for me.
I am still cooking with this story...

 

[emiliana2010]

Sixty Relative hi,
I assume that the reading you ask about was done between 22:00 and 24:00. Is it helpful?

:bows: Emiliana