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Suggestions for Difficult Readings

peter2610

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The aim of this post is to provide helpful suggestions for dealing with I Ching answers that we don’t understand. Firstly, be aware that this is a problem that we ALL face, regardless of our level of experience. I don’t know of a single I Ching user who would claim to understand every answer instantly, even advanced users are presented with problematical readings that require reflection and consideration. Arguably the biggest difference between an advanced reader and a beginner lies in the “safety” of the interpretation, in the use of ALL the data to arrive at a secure position. With this in view, always try to place your reading in context by using the Judgement and the Image texts. If you can understand how the Judgement and Image relate to your situation you will have “tuned-in” to the I Ching’s approach, you will be far more likely to understand the individual line-texts more accurately. Don’t approach these texts in a rigid “literal” frame of mind but recognise them as simply symbolic. For example when the Judgement for Hex.27, Corners of the Mouth urges you to “Pay heed to the providing of nourishment” it will more often than not be referring to the content of your thought processes rather than your choice for dinner, and when the Image describes thunder arising under the mountain it is not trying to describe some imminent volcanic event but rather the utmost restraint (Ken - Mountain) that must be imposed upon our impulsive dynamics (Chen - The Arousing) if we are to pay heed to the content of our thoughts - Hex.27. Try to use the Judgement and Image to determine where the I Ching is ‘coming from’ with regards to your question. Sometimes the I Ching’s response will emphasise the practical steps necessary for a solution, often it will be pointing to a faulty attitude or assumption in ourself or others that is preventing progress. Until the specific approach of the reading becomes abundantly clear try to remain as openly-minded as possible.

If a particular line text is proving to be perplexing don’t feel imposed to “push” an interpretation on it, accurate interpretation should, if possible, be a balanced process in which the meaning of a line-text emerges from the situation rather than being forced onto the situation. If you have a possible interpretation that you’re not sure of, try looking at the ‘Line Resultant’ - the resulting hexagram created when that particular line changes. For example, the line text for 4th yin in Hex. 27 reads as:

“Turning to the summit, For provision of nourishment, Brings good fortune, Spying about with sharp eyes, Like a tiger with insatiable craving, No blame.”

This describes a situation in which we are urged to turn to our highest values (the summit) for guidance on how to proceed. This might not involve any direct action at all but rather the strength and stability to passively abide in non-action. If we cannot accept this as a likely direction, however, we will probably search frantically “Like a tiger with insatiable craving.” This frantic searching is a normal reaction in many kinds of situation, hence “no blame,” but it often creates a screen which obscures the true direction hence we need to carefully discriminate and accurately determine the true content of the situation. This is very, very similar to the processes contained within the line resultant - Hex.21 Biting Through - and this similarity supports the accuracy of the interpretation of 4th yin.

If there appears to be little or no similarity between your interpretation of the moving line and the line resultant don’t despair. The ego often demands immediate results and if these don’t appear instantly it fills us with a sense of failure and bitterness at the direction we have followed. Be prepared to persevere with different readings and the correlations will eventually appear, faint at first but then increasingly clear.

Given a reading with multiple moving lines these can provide a reliable wider approach to our interpretation. In this technique rather than read all the moving lines from the text of the initial hexagram we read only the first moving line. If, for example our reading gave us 19,2,3,5 - 63 we would read the line text for 2nd yang from within Hexagram 19, this moving line transforms Hex.19 into Hex.24 and it is from Hex.24 that we read the text for the next moving line, 3rd yin. This then gives us Hex.36 from which we read the line text for 5th yin and finally we end up at Hex.63. This technique might seem somewhat alarming to those who are new to it but if you can persevere you will find that it will broaden your outlook on a situation and deepen your understanding.

Finally, let us examine the role of the nuclear trigrams within a reading. Every hexagram contains two nuclear trigrams - lines 2,3,4 and lines 3,4, and 5. For example Hex 37, The Family, contains the lower nuclear trigram K”an, and the upper nuclear trigram Li. Taken together, K’an and Li form the nuclear hexagram ‘Before Completion’ - Hex.64. Nuclear trigrams and hexagrams should be seen as implicitly ’embedded’ within a situation. In Hex. 37 the Family, the nuclear hexagram 64, Before Completion, could be seen as representing the core, implicit, process within most families - the raising of children. In a wider sense it represents, in a nuclear context, any process where guidance and protection are given in order to bring a latent situation to completion.
The importance of open-mindedness in our approach cannot be over-emphasised but keep in mind that with sufficient effort, patience and perseverance we eventually acquire enough skill to realize our final goal - the goal of intuitive certainty.
 

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