How does the Warrior, forgive?

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Only a few days prior, I had asked a question myself of the I Ching. I had the pleasure of casting I Ching with yet two other friends in the weeks before, and, having a bit of a difficult time, I thought it was time for a question.

It's strange though... I RARELY ask!! I have long striven to be where I am at today, and I have been concentrating on my study of I Ching. I think this will change soon, as the regular use of I Ching is simply so pleasurable.

My questions tend to be metaphysical in nature, even though they pertain directly to things in my day-to-day.

I cast, #45, Gathering, moving into #25, Fidelity.

          

Fidelity, is also called "no error." And indeed, after one 'gathers,' it is best to make no error, lest what is gathered, gets dropped.

Gathering is marked by 'receptivity within joy,' and Fidelity, by 'the action of thunder within heaven.' Outwardly, the quality of pure yang is pervading my life. Indeed! This has been a most remarkable year of fast paced change, making all aspects of my living congruent with my intuition and best wishing. Externally, I am indeed living my heaven.

Inwardly, I am moving from the yin/receptivity of Earth, to the action of Thunder. This, I find especially interesting....

For my (SOON TO BE PUBLISHED) Book of Gardens, I prostrated to Kuan Yin, the bodhissatva of compassion for the duration the four years of writing it. She is also considered to be the feminine reincarnation of Avalokiteshvara, Buddha of Compassion. Currently, I have been studying the masculine archetypes of Carl Jung... and ... Earth, is yin receptivity, and Thunder is masculine action. ... I have also been thinking of purchasing soon a Buddha for my home space.

What was more poignant to me - and this is probably closer to why I do not consult the I Ching so much - is that I could tell the direction for me to be taking with each formulation of my question: It was difficult to just land on How does a Warrior forgive? I knew on the inside that I just needed to contain, fully, a sense of power and concentration for the things I'm experiencing currently. So I went ahead with the best version of my inside-questioning, knowing I would be given the avenue of study needed.

Gathering is marked by "drawing" - a method of attracting, or cultivating, the correct focus within oneself. Thomas Cleary, in the Tao of Organization, defines it as such:  "...when people seek each other they draw each other in; when they are dependent on each other they part.." 

Which addressed perfectly the issue I was experiencing. A coworker of mine was behaving rather inappropriately - repeatedly - and despite giving all the social cues in the world, as well as direct requests, my personal boundary was being continually challenged. Coming to this question alone took great concentration, to rid me of the sense of violation. Indeed, I gathered myself, to be rid of the arising (gross) co-dependency.

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And of course, a Warrior never needs to forgive if he is of the highest caliber in his class. He makes no error to begin with: the warrior is correct to his own decisions and the warrior code of ethics. I certainly do not see myself apologizing for defending a personal space: what I need "forgive," that is, to let go of, is any opportunity for future coercion - even if it be the mere potential for coercion. Hence, the Gathering need continue, allowing for a disciplined presence.

So the warrior "forgives," by gathering himself to make no error.

It has been a time of excellent growth to actually have this 'problem' enter my life. It asks so much of me, as I pay attention to it. Mostly, to get on with the better things in life, and allow invasiveness to fall upon its own sword.

Change moving to Settled

I had a chance opportunity to cast I Ching with someone today. We both recently moved to a small mountain town, and had crossed paths in one of the local hostels months ago. I believe one evening I challenged H to a game of chess, and we ended up in intense conversation on ... was it feminist theory? I don't remember 100%. I'm sure I said many things which were MALE though. Nevertheless, we have been crossing paths ever since.

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H, clearly had something on her mind, and so I briefly described I Ching and suggested we could toss coins sometime. She invited me to stay for a bit and do so right away and I had the time, and, in fact, was having a horrible day; so, casing I Ching - being my favourite thing on Earth(!) - turned this day around in no time.


She cast #49, Change, with the fourth line moving from yang into yin, making for #63, Settled. 

       

Certainly H possesses 'illumination on the inside.' Our first conversation proved this. And, by both these hexagrams, does this quality remain constant. Change, is characterized by fire inside the lake; and Settled, by, fire under water.

The upper movement - going from the joy of lake, to the 'danger' in water - makes this a time of  enriched consideration for H. After some discussion, we agreed that the fourth line, synonymous with the heart chakra, by way of moving into yin/receptivity, means answers will be found at this time by being softer - more gentle - with herself.

Which is not to say she was being hard on herself. Moving to a new place is never easy. It is adventurous, and a lot can be asked of oneself. Indeed, by Change, the first and fourth lines both being yang, reflect this tipping of the balance into a hard/old yang quality (within the heart chakra). With this moving into the balanced yin/yang relationship in Settled, H, will be able to ask "less" of herself, and by such become more grounded, deepening her way of relating to the things around her.

Which seems quite natural, given the locale is now becoming familiar.

In Settled, the image is first under water. If the fire is stoked to much, the water boils over and puts out the fire. If the fire is not attended to, the water will not be as useful. One needs to keep the "fire within" burning steadily, so as to avoid any "danger."

Danger, can mean simply past habituation, as well as up to and including galactic events we simply do not have control over. A person casting I Ching who receives the water image in their hexagram (one yang line surrounded by two yins) need best discern the amplitude of "danger" based on their question.

H, was a complete newcomer to this process. I enjoy introducing I Ching to people, because I find it to make spirituality very practical, immediate, and observable right within ones body, without lessening any of the poetry to life.

Bless ya, H. I hope to help with many, many more questions. Do call for tea :)