An etymology of Bi.22

[confucius]

The ideogram used to describe the twenty-second hexagram is composed from two figures on top of each other. At the bottom is the ideogram commonly used to describe the Kauri, a porcelain seashell anciently used in China as currency and everything that can be described as pretty and expensive. Above it, drawn three times, is the general symbol for plants. This repetition, expressing the idea of multitude, here praises the magnificence of the flowering flow during Spring. This impetuous movement, blossoming from the inside out, is the principal axis from which all characters and expressions will be constructed using this word.

This exteriorization movement, attached to the idea of evoking something precious, produces the sense of beauty contained in the ideogram Bi.22. This beauty is not implied as gracious in itself or as received as a gift from above but, rather, as the authentic inner beauty emanating from the inside of a person.


Confucius

 

[lightofreason]

From the universal perspective, the seeding of meaning is in contractive bonding (mountain in upper - discernment, quality control) operating in a context of expansive bounding (fire in lower - guidance, aid).

The border emphasis of bounding is foundational and this hexagram pairs with 36 where they both show dealings with issues of 'covering up'. Confucious text is overly positive but there are both positive and negative in the core bounding focus suggesting some aspect has been missed - namely the concept of gloss over, exaggerate the outside to draw attention away from the inside - both 36 and 22 focus on this 'hiding' in that there is no likemindedness in the context, the inner light needs to be protected. Confucious suggests the beautification is reflecting the internal rather than hiding it.

The pairing of 36/22 covers both issues of hiding/bringing-out where the gloss can be the negative of the hiding, and so what is covered in 36 is shown in 22 but when we go a bit deeper so we move past this and into the gloss over, facade, issue. The octet of fire-based hexagrams covers this hide/reveal emphasis. Thus in the octet so 36 'opposes' 13 as 22 'opposes' 49 - in the latter the covering up of 22 is removed to reveal the 'truth' through 49. In the former, the definitely unlikeminded context in which 36 exists is now a very likeminded context represented in 13.


The infrastructure of 22 is described by analogy to:

101001
100001
--------
001000 - 15, modesty, fill in the lows, level the highs and so reflects the generic focus on covering up. A fact from psychology is that beauty is often found in 'bland' or 'symmetric' faces where many can project their interpretation of beauty easily onto those faces, as compared to say 'character' actors who often have an asymmetric look and so not regularly considered as 'beautiful'.

Chris.

 

[martin]

Traditional interpretation of hexagram 22 recognizes the tension between inner and outer, core and surface, substance and adornment.
So there is the possibility of covering up, facading, hiding, distracting attention from the inside, and so on.
But there is also "the authentic inner beauty emanating from the inside of a person" (Confucius) and I don't hear you much about that. Not here and not on your IC+ page about this hexagram.
IMO you overemphasize the hiding aspect, as if hexagram 22 is all about trickery, lying and false appearances.

Again - like with hexagram 9 - I sense a strange 'political' twist in your interpretation. I also sense it in your 'control' interpretation of water on top (we discussed that in another thread).
Are you an incarnation of Machiavelli?

 

[lightofreason]

Traditional interpretation of hexagram 22 recognizes the tension between inner and outer, core and surface, substance and adornment.
So there is the possibility of covering up, facading, hiding, distracting attention from the inside, and so on.
But there is also "the authentic inner beauty emanating from the inside of a person" (Confucius) and I don't hear you much about that. Not here and not on your IC+ page about this hexagram.
IMO you overemphasize the hiding aspect, as if hexagram 22 is all about trickery, lying and false appearances.

(1) I think you are being perhaps overly metaphysical in that you are trying to idealise 22 and in doing so remove it from its context that links it with all else.

(2) the overemphasis of positive aspects in Confucius' explanation can in fact serve as an example of the hiding process! (and so is cleverly done)

(3) the development of 22 is from a five line form 10100 that it shares with 36. - this is all obvious when using the natural derivation sequence (binary sequence) but becomes itself hidden when we introduce variations on themes (e.g. traditional sequence where it reflects the metonymy/metaphor issue - a part being taken as if the whole)

(4) Across the board we find that the TOP line determines the quality of these pairs in that the yin member is unconditional and general, the yang member conditional, particular. Thus the only DIFFERENCE between the two is the top line, all else is constant and that means the focus on the hidden, on there being no 'likemindedness' in the local context as compared to the emergence of likemindedness as we move towards the yang end of the octet: 36,22,63,37,55,30,49,13

(5) Due to the self-referencing, each octet is a microcosm of the whole binary sequence and so we can use the same forms of interpretation - reflection as well as repetition - in analysis. As such, 36 'opposes' 13 as 22 'opposes' 49, as we find 63/30, 37/55. At the same time, 36 and 55 form a 'variation on a theme' as does 22 and 30, 63 and 49, 37 and 13. This is a horizontal analysis. Then there is the vertical analysis, briefly covered in the understanding of 36 and 22 emerging from 10100 and so sharing meaning other than that top line. etc etc IOW I tthink he metaphysical perspective, the idealist perspective, can be too idealist and so cut off relational aspects that bring out the full spectrum of the hexagram - so perhaps with 22 you have been blinded by its 'beauty'! ;-)

(6) IOW - as I have stated, we can interpret 22 as reflecting the light placed on the surface as compared to it being hidden in 36 but this is simplistic in that it does not take into consideration all of the relationships that support the identify of 22. IOW the links with 36, the links with other members of the fire-based hexagrams octet, and the XOR relationships. IOW when we go for the 'big picture' and remove the idealisation so the hidden element is revealed ;-) - and so the combination of positive/negative in the one form. IOW it is possible that the 'traditional' perspective demonstrates the intent through the over-emphasis on beauty etc by drawing attention away from seeing 'inside'.

As regards to Machiavelli - he probably wrote 'The Prince' after considerations of the competitive interpretation of the IC! ;-)

If one idealises hexagrams in the manner in which many do, one will miss the depth of what is being delt with.

Chris.