Translation work question:

[bruce_g]

Interesting. I wonder, then, if a tethered arrow is a metaphor for capturing, or rounding up the herd or possibly lassoing something. There’s clouds but no rain (promise of opportunity?). Might it be that the prince was using this time to do some target practicing?

 

[ewald]

The rain that apparently doesn't come in 62.5 probably indicates that there is quite a chance that the harvest is going to fail. So there is a need for an alternate source of food. I think that the duke therefore is using a way of hunting that makes it possible to hunt a lot of animals quickly, with low expenses. He does this with the tethered arrow, not hunting for birds, but for animals that live in holes.

 

[lindsay]

That's an interesting theory, Ewald, but I have two problems with it. First, a gong1 was a very high noble. Such a dignified person would be hunting for sport, not for food. Or he would be at war. Second, what kind of animals live in the ground? Not much sport in hunting most of them. The duke is not going to be hunting rodents like groundhogs or prairie dogs. The only sporting prey I can think of is bear, which lives in dens or caves, or big cats. I don't think you'd be using tethered arrows for them. Remember, in archery you can only shoot arrows accurately with very light-weight cord. Not much good for bears or wolves or lions, I think. If I were the hunter in such an encounter, I would not want a wounded bear on the other side of a cord connected to me.

Lindsay

 

[ewald]

But when harvests are failing, it's the dukes responsibility to do something about it. He won't have time for sports then, and is going to hunt. Even he.

There's lots of animals in holes, like rabbits or badgers. I don't know about badgers, but rabbits are certainly eaten. And while they eat crops too, it helps to hunt them, as that'll mean that more of the crop is going to survive. So it's a good idea to have a quick hunting method.

With a very light-weight cord, one cannot catch humans, as they'll break or cut the cord easily.

 

[bruce_g]

Maybe animals made different holes back then (straight!), but no hunter I’ve known would shoot into a hole, except maybe Elmer Fudd, at dem wascally wabbits!

 

[lindsay]

Rabbits? Yes, I like that idea, Ewald. Tethered arrows show caution, fore-thought. Not only will the prey not get away if you hit it, but if you miss the target, you won't loose your valuable arrow. Do you think 62.5 means something like: "When good and necessary things seem certain, but do not actually happen - then even the duke must be ready to hunt carefully and cautiously for rabbits"?

Lindsay

 

[lindsay]

Bruce, I had the same idea. How long is an arrow? Three feet or a meter? How clumsy is drawing a long bow in a confined space? Not the weapon of choice for shooting into burrows or crawling through caves. Maybe a crossbow ... Or maybe a harpoon isn't such a crazy idea after all. "The duke harpoons a rabbit while crawling into its burrow." Translating this text should be easier than this! This isn't even a difficult one! There's a lesson here somewhere ...

Lindsay

 

[ewald]

Lindsay - Yes, that's what it must mean.

As to Bruce's point about holes, I guess there are various kinds of holes. The holes that I remember having seen on National Geographic channel usually consisted of a narrow, straight corridor, of no more than a meter long, leading to a bigger space. You might stand or squat in front of one, and shoot your arrow inside. But they weren't from rabbits.

Holes that are circular wouldn't be very practical to shoot into. But larger holes or caves wouldn't be much of a problem, if you keep near the entrance and shoot inside.

 

[denis_m]

Regarding Bruce's query in posting #26:

What I meant about "getting wound up in the thread he follows" in 3.3 is an alternate way of handling ji1. Wilhelm translates it as "knows the signs of the times." Ji1 is literally a skein of fine thread, so many people say this means "to discern the thread" or "see where things are headed." The Great Treatise uses ji1 in this sense to explain why divination works.
Ji1 here could also mean "if the superior man is getting wound up in the thread, it would be better to turn back."
Lines 3.3 and 62.5 echo each other. You're right, the deer is like a guide into new regions! It's like a symbol whose meaning we are still exploring. What the duke is shooting at in 62.5 is like a symbol whose meaning is being nailed down. Very fitting for The Small Get By. Keep your nose down and don't get any high-flying ideas. The word li2 in 62.6 means encounter (harm), and it is used interchangably with a homonym that depicts a bird net.

Denis M

 

[bruce_g]

A larger cave would make more sense, I think. Here, anyway, there are rabbits galore, and all the holes I see on walks (and there are many) curve quickly, thus making it impossible to shoot at even with a gun, much less an arrow; and also difficult for a larger animal to reach inside or dig out.

I like a lot what Denis says here. And this still returns me to the idea that this may be about “practice” for the hunt at a time of pause or standstill, when flying high can be most dangerous; the way an athlete practices when he’s not physically on the playing field, or the way the hunter connects with the gods and the quarry before going out to the field the following morning. 3.3 and 62.5, as Denis has said, do seem to be connected. Another example of this image (in my head) is that of a soldier or prince, sharpening his sword, into the night until the next battle is to be fought. To expose himself too soon would be perilous. A tethered arrow may mean a practicing arrow, one that doesn’t go anywhere except into the ground, which makes a hole?

I don't know. I could be way off.

 

[bruce_g]

Ewald may be right. Perhaps even a prince has to leave his delicious pheasant dinner sometimes and find whatever is available.

Going back to the practical application I’ve always gotten from this line: In times when great things don’t call us out into the world, we make due with what we have. If we are smart and flexible, we’ll find a suitable means to exist.

 

[lindsay]

Yes, Bruce, it sounds like your experience with 62.5 comes very close to Ewald's interpretation of the text. I think we should give Ewald some credit for this one. It seems like everytime he comes forward with an original suggestion, the sharks (like me) go after him. He needs a little encouragement. Ewald really does think for himself and offers us some very interesting ideas. Nice job, Ewald!

You do a pretty good job yourself, Bruce, but I know better than to give you any encouragement -- or we'd end up with dozens of hilarious graphics and many pictures of dogs and guitars. Do you have any saquaro cactus out your way? I miss them and the smell of mesquite and creosote most. Ah, well ... the road rolls on.

 

[bruce_g]

Oh, come on, not dozens. 7 or 8, tops.

Yes, there’s a few saguaro growing up around Oatman on the old Route 66, but the saguaro forests are further south, nearer to Phoenix. I stopped into a store in Oatman a couple weeks ago, and they had one growing from their floor and clear through their roof. Ancient, those things are. Say, now that I think of it, saguaros have owl holes. Did ancient Chinese princes travel to Arizona? Or is that 40.6? (badda boom!)

 

[bruce_g]

So as not to disappoint Lindsay, here’s a little friend, photographed on the way home from Oatman. Now there's an expert on hunting and survival. It was 115 degrees F that day!

View attachment 53

 

[ewald]

Thanks, Lindsay

 

[xensen]

thanks

thanks to confucius, rosada, and lindsay for the mentions of my translation at my site www.rightreading.com. btw, the secret access from the main page at rightreading to the yi jing is to click in the center of the goya image ;-).

in some respects my text (which attempts to convey something of the poetic quality of the ancient bronze age core, mainly as represented in early versions of the line readings) is still a work in progress, and i'm sure I will benefit from the insights of the community here.

tom christensen

 

[hilary]

Hi Tom! Thanks for dropping in