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Above; fire, brightness,
beauty
Below; fire, brightness, beauty
This is another
doubled hexagram. The trigram Li means both ‘clinging’
and ‘brightness’, as the flame clings
burning bright, with no certain form of its own except
as it is defined by the object on which it burns.
Li represents the radiant beauty of nature.
Li is the clinging
flame. Persistence brings great good fortune. Nurturing
cows brings rewards and blessings. The cow is the
symbol of docility, indicating that the wise man submits
to the will of heaven. One should make oneself as
dependent upon the principal of righteousness as animals
are upon nature.
The sun and moon
depend upon heaven, as living things depend upon earth.
Clear bright consciousness of what is right results
in the transforming and perfecting of all things under
heaven. The weak yin lines in the second and fifth
positions between the strong yang lines indicate success
and the fact that docility like that of a cow will
lead to good fortune.
Fire rises in two
tongues of flaming beauty. So the wise man sheds his
light over every quarter of the earth.
Line 1
First light; tracks
run in all directions. But approaching with respectful
steps he suffers no blame.
As day dawns, people awake and, still sleepy, may
set off in the wrong direction. But one who remains
calm can accommodate all the different impressions
that flood into his newly awakened consciousness and
set about his tasks without confusion.
Line 2
Bright yellow
sunlight. Great good fortune.
It is now full daylight. Yellow is the colour of moderation.
In China it was the prerogative of the upper classes
the royal family and the highest nobles, to wear yellow.
The middle way, the golden man, symbolized by the
colour yellow, brings success.
Line 3
In the light of
the setting sun he does not strike his chime and sing
but mourns his lost youth. Misfortune.
At the end of the day, the man who does not celebrate
the pleasure of his past life and what is still to
come, will bring only sadness and misfortune upon
himself.
Line 4
It comes so suddenly,
flames up, dies and is cast away.
A man who rises suddenly to success will as suddenly
vanish again from view. Unexpected good fortune may
burst upon us, but it will have passed away before
we have had time to enjoy it. Real success comes slowly.
Line 5
His tears flow
in torrents. He groans in sorrow. Good fortune.
Here the man has reached the high point of his life.
At last understanding the vanity of all things. He
reviews his situation and soberly regrets whatever
he had done wrong in the past.
Line 6
The king sends
him forth to punish and set things right. Victorious,
he kills the rebel leader but takes his followers
captive. No reproach.
Punishment should not be distributed indiscriminately.
In public life, revolution is best treated by rooting
out evil in the person of the rebel leader, but sparing
his followers. In the spiritual life, the same moderation
should apply.
© 1979 Neil
Powell
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