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thunder and wind trigram energy flow

starflower

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Hello all! I'm reading Cleary's translation of the IC and it is not clear to me if the thunder trigram energy flows upward or downward. I'm guessing upward but a little confused as lightning comes down from the sky. Any help for this newbie much appreciated!
 
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svenrus

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Scientific proven: lightning moves FROM the ground UP. (It has even been filmed in slow-motion)
 
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starflower

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Thank you svenrus! I just watched an amazing video about this, great image to keep in mind.
 
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Freedda

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The trigram Zhen, is visualized as thunder, but not always as lightning. Svenrus is correct that it's energy rises up from the ground. One idea is that thunder slumbers in the earth over the winter, and then awakens in the spring. It awakens us with a shock, a thunderclap, often followed initially by fear, which then gives way to joy (and perhaps understanding).

Some ideas /key words associated with Thunder:

Arousal, awakening, action, movement, shaking up, breaking loose, shock, kick (maybe in the pants?), vital, decisive.

From Lise: "Thunder brings about movement." "Thunder acts in the dragon." Thunder is the flying dragon, the voice of Heaven which resonates on earth.

From Bradford Hatcher: as upper trigram - action(s) in response to an external stimulus (hopefully resonant), and an outward expression of energy; as lower trigram - being driven from within by motives, appetites and nature natural inclinations, and the will to live and advance the intentions.

Associations from the Shuo Gua (commentary on the trigrams from the 10 Wings): divine, sacred emergence, arising; urgency, quickness, haste, anxiety; a great road, journey (or) career; decisiveness, execution (as in to act) and fierceness, temper, haste; farming, agriculture - turning back, coming back to life [which reminds me of an awakening in Spring]; abundant growth, freshness, newness.

Best, David.
 

starflower

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Thank you David, this is some great food for thought! I know now that in some hexagrams fire is visualized as lightning. I've learned a lot from this answer and I'll be refering back to it as I study.
 
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Freedda

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... I know now that in some hexagrams fire is visualized as lightning ...
Please note that the trigrams (and hexagrams) for Thunder and Fire are two separate and different things, with different energies and meanings. To think of one as the other could be confusing.

However, it is true that sometimes Fire is shown as, or referred to as, Lightning (or brightness or light), but this is different from Thunder.

Some examples: translations of the image text for Hexagram 35 (fire above earth) read, "Brightness comes up above the earth," or "the light rises over the earth." Image text for Hexagram 55 (thunder above fire) reads "thunder and lightning come as one," or "Thunder and fire arrive together: abundance." Or for Hexagram 21 (fire above thunder), "Thunder and lightning: Biting through"

So, Thunder is thunder (as far as I know); whereas Fire can also be lightning, light or brightness (or fire).


Best, David.
 
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sylvia1ching

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The Chinese believed that thunder and lightening orginate from the earth the movement is upwards. Lightening is LI, as you well know, and it if fire or flame it definitely has upward motion because flames and fire flare up. Fire is formless and so is lightening. So lightening is another form of fire and its motion is upward.
 

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