Day 21,689 - 2010 1220

Day 21,689 - 2010 1220
Belov-ED Days - 4,600
Monday
James Oliver Smith, Jr.
http://josjr.com/

I Ching images

Fu Hsi 09: Estrangement, Opposition, Diversity, Perversion
01 -------- Sky (Air, Stars, Planets, Flight, Birds)
02 -------- Head
04 -------- The Clinging, The Clarity, The Vision, The Divination

08 --- --- Lake (River, Sea, Brook, Ocean)
16 -------- Mouth
32 --------x The Joyful, The Happiness, The Expression, The Language

changing towards

Fu Hsi 14: Restraint, Limitation, Restricting, Moderation
01 --- --- Water (Fog, Mist, Ice, Frost, Dew)
02 -------- Ear
04 --- --- The Clinging, The Clarity, The Vision, The Divination

08 --- --- Lake (River, Sea, Pond, Brook, Stream, Puddle)
16 -------- Mouth
32 -------- The Abyss, The Danger, The Mystery, The Nourishment

Day 26,689 - Images from the I Ching: Sky [The Seeking] over Lake [The Joyful] (Hexagram 09 - Conduct) --> changing towards [lines 4,6] --> Water [The Abyss] over lake [The Joyful] (Hexagram 14 - Restraint) ... I have been thinking about this image sequence for a couple of days, in part because of a busy weekend, but also because, at times, I like to allow an image to ferment ... It seemed appropriate this time ... Sky(Seeking) over Lake(Joyful) are two visual and conceptual components that separately are quite present and welcome ... They represent the Head(Sky)[intellect, creativity, knowledge] and the Mouth(Expression, Joy, Language, Speech, Singing) ... What is not to like about these? ... But what is the relationship between sky and Lake (and Head and Mouth)? ... The areas of our brain that control speech(Lake) and logic(Sky) are quite capable of working independently, and often do, to our disadvantage ... How often have we said things that we really didn't mean, or were just plain mean in our flash of anger, or were heard by the wrong person at the wrong time for wrong reason ... Our mouths excel in expressing how we feel, even if that feeling is fleeting ... Our logical mind is also adept as solving problems, reflection and planning ... However, "feelings" are organic, quickly moving, complex and easily excited in constructive and destructive ways ... It takes a lot more energy, time and concentration to engage in planning, reflection and problem solving, whereas oral expression is immediately accessible and can be deployed in the blink of the eye ...

The waters of the Lake can be disturbed by a gust of wind, a sqall line, a sudden rainstorm or movement of the life within it ... When the Lake is disturbed, the reflection of the Sky is destroyed ... The harmony between Sky and Lake, and the reflection of the Sky that can be present within the surface of the Lake, is interrupted by even the slightest ripple ... Reflection, Planning and Problem solving require the cooperation of our expressive self, or nothing gets done ... As great, beautiful and expansive as the Sky is, it is bound by the horizon and since most of the earth is covered by bodies of water, its presence is swallowed in those bodies of water ... Just as our powerful, logical, problem solving, contemplative brains are swallowed up by our exhuberance, our celebrations and our emotional outbursts ... The I Ching here is telling us that we need to do what is necessay keep the waters of our inner Lake calm, reflective and open to the expansive presence of the outer Sky and the resources of intellect, logic and contemplation available within it ... But this does not mean _controlling_, muzzling, gagging the mouth in some coercive way ... The mouth still needs to be free to express that which needs to be expressed ... As with all in the Universe, balance, diversity and adaptability are paramount ...

There are two changing lines in the initial image, in the fourth and sixth positions ... taking the outer reality from Sky to Water ... The Abyss ... This is the fog, the mists, the heavy rain and in the winter, ice, that can surround us, sometimes in the aftermath of some verbal outburst indicated by the inital image of Sky over Lake ... This following image of Water over Lake adds an element of stress to the sequence ... Restraint, Limitation and Moderation may be in order during circumstances represented by these images ... Just as the ice cover on the Mississippi river restricts the water moving underneath and the winter Icy Fog in the Sky stands in the way of the Sun and its warmth and light, the circumstances we face daily may stand in the way of or goals, our joy and our journey ... This may be a time in which careful small steps are more useful on the slick, uncertain surfaces that linger from the blizzard and cold ... Quick large strides are nothing short of dangerous ... The Abyss ...

With my one remaining (somewhat) functioning eye I can't tell the difference between ice, snow, crevice, snowbank or trench ... With five foot piles of snow everywhere now, and streets narrow from accumlated snow, the Water for I Ching is quite strong right now, so I reach forward with my stick, test the surface, then take a tentative, small step ... Restraint, Moderation, Limitation ... It is the only way to get downtown today for my appointment with the ophthalmologist ... Il Matto ...

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