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.

photo credit

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 :)

Change: Post III... Entering Change

Last, but certainly not least, I met "AG" at Edmonton Indigo Drinks last night.

This really iced the cake on my evening.

AG, is a writer, editor, and an all-round asset for anyone going into business. Simply look at Noorish Cafe and Yoga Studio for the proof. We spoke briefly on her international travels, and I quickly learned of her connection to the great Master Alfred Huang.

Though it is certain that adversity will come our way in this life, it is equally certain that the best response to that adversity is to simply listen... and then follow that listening...

Connections then follow you.

AG has had the good and permanent fortune of assisting Master Huang in getting his great books to market. And now, only a few weeks into the STA-sis Arts revamp and revitalization, it is my good fortune to see the six-degrees-of-separation principle welcoming me with open arms. As we can see in the case of M1, two posts below: a simple step into your joy keeps ones illumination burning at a right and steady pace. But is this easier for the young?...

Allow me now to say 'no.' ... Which brings me back to Change.

Amid adversity, we do have our best learning. We hear things like this all the time now: All kinds of platitudes and maxims are spurting out their inner wisdom all over billboards and board-rooms, and it is quite possible we are green-washing and even indigo-washing ourselves into a big blob of grey... EVEN THEN, I can now argue, if one keeps close to oneself but a small modicum of hope... a little morsel of faith in oneself... even just a grain of belief of knowing that Life itself sustains you.... your learning... never... rests.

Not for a moment. Not in your sleep. Not in your dreams. Not in hours of media-based stimulation; in spending all your money, expelling all your friendships, whatever it is that you do... Learning cannot stop when there is faith from underneath it. Upon surfacing - and it does come up for air - illumination cannot help itself but want to burst forward into joy; and adversity becomes merely a future power to draw upon.

Adversity bolsters ones reserve.

So whatever barrier we face - or think we are facing - stick with it. Enter your own debate. Enter Change. And I would say: stick with adversity, gently, otherwise you may fall into the pitfall of "being right." That is to say, do not allow suffering to become rigged to identity, as that is truly thee Labyrinth.

And yet, along these lines of listening and observing, the Labyrinth itself, inevitably, becomes its own gift.

Practically speaking now, there is nothing - truly nothing - that a cup of tea cannot solve. (And I do recommend Jasmine!) Eyes closed, deep breathing into the back and belly (in that order), is the best medicine.

Lastly...

Faith, meditation... hope... these things are physical experiences for me. I do not find them in the mind. I do not find them outside myself. I find them in my low back: my ankles, my fingers, my lungs, my eyes.... I find them inside my skin.

They do shine.

They do tingle.


Listen for them :)
Phil.

{Please visit my "Book of Gardens"}