A day of maximum hope and 1% improvement

A day of maximum hope and 1% improvement

Yesterday was the winter solstice and I’m starting to view it as my favorite day of the year.

Santa rode past our house last night on a vintage fire truck, which added to the cheer.

It’s the day with the least amount of light; then we get approximately one more minute of daylight each day for the next six months until the summer solstice.

It reminds me of what one often hears from the self-help crowd: try to get 1% better every day in whatever you are working on. It is now Capricorn season, and that concept seems fitting, as Capricorn is about building things that last, which requires steady improvement.

Which brings us to our winter solstice hexagram: Hexagram 10: Treading (Conduct) of the I Ching.

It symbolizes the need for cautious progress and conducting oneself with dignity. The commentary says one should step forward with great care, as if treading near a tiger’s tail. I’ve accidentally stepped on a cat’s tail a time or two and, based on the cat’s reaction, know how important it is to tread carefully!

It’s a time of year when we start thinking about resolutions or goals for the year ahead. I go through my journal from the previous year and note the highs and lows and see what I can do to have more of those highs in the next year.

These wise words from Liz Greene are good to keep in mind while Treading or trying to making improvements:

I think you must take what you are, appreciate it, and make the most of it. Any “improvements” we try to make on ourselves need to be made from a place of self-acceptance and self-appreciation. Otherwise they may represent a compulsive attempt to fulfill others’ expectations or an idealised image of perfection, and are therefore inauthentic and ultimately useless.

Wishing you a happy solstice and happy holidays!

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References:

I Ching or Book of Changes translated by Richard Wilhelm

The Art of Stealing Fire by Liz Greene

Continue ReadingA day of maximum hope and 1% improvement

Peace from the pause

Peace from the pause

Peace has arrived just in the nick of time.

Hexagram 11: Peace from the I Ching is our hexagram host for the next week.

Heaven and earth and united, per the image of this hexagram.

Of course Linus Van Pelt’s words from A Charlie Brown Christmas immediately came to mind. He quotes the Bible in answer to Charlie’s Brown question about the meaning of Christmas: “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace on earth, good will towards men.

It seems to be the case, however, that there is never peace on earth.

In Richard Rudd’s commentary on this hexagram, he emphasizes the importance of pausing throughout the day to contemplate and discriminate between genuine voices and less than genuine voices.

One of my favorite descriptions of contemplation comes from Jon Mundy: “Contemplation is not a complete stopping of the mind. It is rather a quieting of the mind. Contemplation simply sees what is. It is loving sight.” Isn’t that a lovely way of putting it?

We must find our own unique path to inner peace and wisdom.

Such inner peace doesn’t come from distancing ourselves from the suffering aroud us. It is more about cultivating perspective and meaning even from the pain, which is why pausing is so important.

If there is one thing I’ve learned from all my Jungian reading and studies, it is that demonizing the other person makes inner peace impossible. Peace is only possible when we recognize that the other is made of the same qualities as we are.

“We are the peace that passeth all understanding.” – Richard Rudd

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References:

I Ching or Book of Changes translated by Richard Wilhelm

The 64 Ways by Richard Rudd

A Course in Mysticism and Miracles by Jon Mundy

Continue ReadingPeace from the pause

What are you accumulating?

What are you accumulating?

Last weekend I spent the entire weekend in workshops with a Jungian analyst learning more about the ancient Chinese book of wisdom The I Ching as part of my studies at the Jung Institute of Chicago. Taoism, and the I Ching specifically, were important to Carl Jung’s work.

I haven’t talked much about using the I Ching for divinatory purposes in my blog posts, as I am focusing on using it to reflect on the current astrology; each of the 64 hexagrams correlates to a section of a zodiac sign.

To ask a question of the I Ching you use coin tosses or yarrow stalks to obtain the hexagram. The longer method takes about 15 minutes. There are shorter methods described in Alfrad Huang’s translation, which he learned from Taoist masters in China in the 1950s.

It’s important to keep the question short, preferably eight words or less. Don’t ask yes/no questions and try to work out an answer for yourself before resorting to the I Ching or other divinatory method such as the tarot.

My favorite way to use the I Ching in a divinatory way is before meeting with a client for an astrology consultation. I ask for wisdom to share with them, which will help guide me in what to focus on when discussing their astrology. Usually the hexagram is eerily precise as to the person’s current circumstance. I’ve used tarot for this in the past, but I’ve come to prefer the I Ching because there is written commentary, and reading it feels like one is hearing wisdom from a sage.

Before meeting with a client last week I used the yarrow stalk method to cast an I Ching and received a hexagram that happens to match this week’s Hexagram 26: Great Accumulation. It is also referred to as the Taming Power of the Great.

The message of this hexagram is that energy is accumulating for release. Now is the time to accumulate creative power, not to release it.

The image of the hexagram is heaven within the mountain, which points to hidden treasures.

During this time of Sagittarius season, where the amount of daylight in the northern hemisphere is so limited, I find it easier to not release energy.

With a New Moon in Sagittarius coming up this week it is a good time to ponder: what can you achieve in the future by fousing on accumulating and stockpiling your creative energy right now?

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References:
I Ching or Book of Changes translated by Richard Wilhelm

The Complete I Ching by Alfred Huang

Continue ReadingWhat are you accumulating?

Indulge totally in the present

Indulge totally in the present

I used the yarrow stalk method for the first time while casting an I Ching hexagram this morning for a personal question.

Previously I’ve always used coins, but I purchased some yarrow stalks this week at the Jung Institute of Chicago during the weekend session about the I Ching.

I got Hexagram 5: Waiting (Nourishment), which coincidentally is also the hexagram for this next week of Sagittarius.

Sagittarius isn’t necessarily known as being into waiting. With Mars currently visiting Sagittarius, this is all the more true. But there are some Sagittarius type keywords in R.L. Wing’s commentary:

It is now that you must make a show of confidence. Do not express your doubts about the past or future. Indulge totally in the present. Keep your thoughts and words on a positive note and maintain an assured and cheerful attitude. In this way you will win the confidence of others and fortify your own certainity.

Wilhelm’s commentary also has a Sagittarian upbeat attitude about waiting:

We should quietly fortify the body with food and drink and the mind with gladness and good cheer. Fate comes when it will, and thus we are ready.

We can indulge in waiting AND food and drink. Works for me!

Finally, we have Barrett’s take:

When you are fully present in waiting, your intense attention shines out like a beacon, beginning a creative engagement with the world – not by working on anything, but by waiting on it and holding your faith.

I think I can handle this waiting after all and plan to keep this hexagram top of mind for the remainder of the month.

How are you going to foritfy your mind with gladness and good cheer in the days ahead?

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Continue ReadingIndulge totally in the present

Determination within and gentleness without

Determination within and gentleness without

We’re in the season of big plans and grand gestures, all in keeping with Sagittarius. In addition, yesterday’s full moon in Gemini probably had us feeling playful, energetic, and possibly distracted.

Yet this week’s hexagram 9 from the I Ching is The Taming Power of the Small, reminding us to focus on small goals and successes.

We’ve quickly gone from The Power of the Great to the seemingly opposite The Taming Power of the Small in just one week.

It might not make sense that The Taming Power of the Small is associated with the fire sign of Sagittarius, a sign which loves lofty ideals and the big picture rather than details.

Yet the Sagittarius symbol of the archer’s arrow does speak to the importance of focus.

The image of this hexagram is one of many clouds, but the wind is not strong enough to bring forth rain from those clouds. In times when we cannot have an impact on the outer world, we “can do nothing except refine the expression” of our nature in small ways, per Wilhelm’s translation.

Also: “To carry out our purpose we need firm determination within and gentleness and adaptability in external relations.”

I’ll close with one of my favorite descriptions of Sagittarius from Arielle Guttman, which highlights how it is a perfect season for turning inward even amidst the outer distractions of the holidays:

During the month of Sagittarius, the world is locked in the depths of winter. The landscape is quiet, buried under the snow. Activity is at a minimum. Among Native American peoples, this is the time for telling stories, for philosophical reflection. So it is no wonder that Sagittarius is a sign of wisdom and preeminently the sign of the philosopher.

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References:
I Ching or Book of Changes translated by Richard Wilhelm

Mythic Astrology: Internalizing the Planetary Powers by Arielle Guttman

Continue ReadingDetermination within and gentleness without

The Power of the Great and Sagittarius

The Power of the Great and Sagittarius

It’s now Sagittarius season and Hexagram 34: The Power of the Great of the I Ching is the one kicking it off.

The fire sign of Sagittarius, ruled by Jupiter, needs a quest. It thrives on pursuing clues and patterns that will reveal the ultimate meaning or truth of a situation. It likes to preach and universalize.

Before we get too carried away, it’s important to consider what this hexagram really means by The Power of the Great.

The image of this hexagram is heaven and thunder in alignment. Per Wilhelm, “True greatness depends on being in harmony with what is right. Therefore in times of great power the superior man avoids doing anything that is not in harmony with the established order.“

Let’s also ponder Richard Rudd’s reminder of that strength really is “effortleness:”

“Strength lies in flexibility, flow, and receptivity rather than force, muscle and aggressiveness…Often strength is not about moving at all…At every level, Strength comes through the feminine. The easiest fight is the one we avoid in the first place. We simply don’t provoke through force.”

With Mars entering Sagittarius tomorrow, November 24, it could be easy to lose sight of this kind of strength. Especially if you have Sagittarius rising, Moon, Sun or other placements in Sagittarius.

Mars is energetic and ready to cut and sever. It can also be self-sacrificing. In Jupiter’s domicile of Sagittarius, it could become too preachy and dogmatic. If you are normally more reserved, however, it could be an opportunity for you to finally speak your truth.

On a practical, everday level, if you have any of the Big 3 in Sagittarius, especially Moon or rising, injuries or sickness could arise, so be careful. On the upside, you might have more energy, which those of us in the northern hemisphere with increasingly shorter days will appreciate.

A question for all of us to consider in the next week: How will you use your power?

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References:
I Ching or Book of Changes translated by Richard Wilhelm

The 64 Ways by Richard Rudd

Continue ReadingThe Power of the Great and Sagittarius

On recovering personal authority

On recovering personal authority

It’s a relief that Hexagram 14: Possession in Great Measure is here.

That Mars-Uranus opposition energy was getting tiring. I mostly experienced it in my dreams. Last night alone I dreamt a drunken man entered our home by mistake. Initially he was friendly but became hostile and I used all my might to hold our front door shut after somehow shoving him outside. Then a dream where I was in my car at an intersection and a man jumped on the car and climbed onto the roof and stayed on it as I slowly drove forward when the light turned green while simultaneously calling 911. Then yet another dream where I accidentally entered my neighbor’s house instead of my own. Fortunately he was nice about it and offered to give me a tour of his house. Still another where I returned home and a huge city bus was in our small driveway.

All are good examples of the unexpected and sometimes aggressive Mars-Uranus energy. Jungian analyst John Beebe says every day has a typology component, so those dreams certainly reveal me having to confront inferior extraverted sensation too.

Possession in Great Measure means clarity and strength are united. “Power is expressing itself in a graceful and controlled way,” per Richard Wilhelm’s translation.

I’m reminded of how my favorite Jungian author, James Hollis, repeatedly emphasizes the importance of reclaiming our personal authority.

Many of us at one time or another outsourced our authority to a guru or authority figure and too often feel tentative and unworthy as a result. “This is why the recovery of personal authority, namely, sorting through the incessant bombardment from the exterior world, and the immense traffic within, to find the voice of our own soul is so necessary.”

With the Sun and Mars entering Sagittarius in the coming days, and Mercury already there, the timing is right to start focusing on our personal authority. The jarring Mars-Uranus energy lit the initial spark but now we can hand it off to the fire sign of Sagittarius, which is a fire sign ruled by Jupiter. The pursuit of truth, wholeness, and optimism are part of its nature.

In closing I’ll offer some questions from James Hollis on recovering personal authority:

What is true for you?
What not?
Why do you say that?
How do you know?
And now, are you prepared to live your truth in this world with its consequences, or prepared to live the consequences of your continued evasions of your personal truth?

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References:
I Ching or Book of Changes translated by Richard Wilhelm

The Broken Mirror: Refracted Visions of Ourselves by James Hollis

Continue ReadingOn recovering personal authority

Breaking through the silence of noise

Breaking through the silence of noise

Breakthroughs aren’t always a good thing.

Hexagram 43: Breakthrough of the I Ching is the image of a lake that has risen up to heaven, ready to break through in a cloudburst. To avoid this cloudburst, the hexagram warns us that it is best to distribute while accumulating, instead of piling up riches only for oneself.

Richard Rudd says that is the accumulation of noise that prevents insight, which is the positive form of breakthrough.

“We often think of deafness as silence, but it’s not. It’s noise and activity, ‘a life of sound and fury signifying nothing’ (Shakespeare’s Macbeth).

“Deafness is about trying to escape the silence. Insight is about listening to the inner ear, which gradually allows us to adjust to the silence by cutting out the noise wastage from our lives. Epiphany brings us back to the silence once again. Finally we’re ready to embrace it, and wow is it loud!”

The Mars-Uranus opposition I talked about in my last post continues into next week. It is all the more accentuated by Monday’s New Moon in Scorpio, which will interact with the Mars-Uranus opposition.

This volatile energy can indicate an unwelcome cloudburst is on the horizon, due to an accumulation of unshared wealth or talent, or an accumulation of repressed energy. So it’s time to pause and contemplate:

What have you been accumulating that you can start sharing with others?

Where is the “sound and fury” in your life that is preventing the silence that can lead to epiphany?

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References:

The 64 Ways by Richard Rudd

Continue ReadingBreaking through the silence of noise

Breaking through the numbness

Breaking through the numbness

As we rapidly approach Sagittarius, the season with the least amount of light symbolically (and literally, here in the northern hemisphere) we have Hexagram 1: The Creative as our host for the next week.

This hexagram is a doubling of the Heaven trigram. Per Wilhelm’s translation, this creates the idea of duration and endurance: “[The sage] must make himself strong in every way, by consciously casting out all that is inferior and degrading. Thus he attains that tirelessness which depends upon consciously limiting the fields of his activity.”

This is in keeping with the fixed waters of Scorpio we are currently swimming in. Casting out all that is inferior and degrading, and limiting the field of activity, also reminds me of the introverted feeling function, which Michael Pierce associates with the heaven trigram, which also has Scorpio undertones:

“Fi is the made-up mind…Opinions are usually in conflict, so there is no room left for receptivity or compromise. Fi poses ideals and goals…drawing one on to greater heights (and depths). It is the expression of Man’s active hoping.“

Richard Rudd says about this hexagram that “Joy comes from numbness. The numbness is the kindling, our awareness is the breath fanning the first sparks and then the joy emerges as the fire catches.”

We all experience patches of numbness in our lives and “here we are just trusting the numbness, just being with it.” Rudd also says the foundation of creativity is “to be unafraid of making mistakes.”

The biggest astrological configuration beginning this week is Mars in Scorpio’s opposition to Uranus in Taurus. This is powerful and potent. Although it can be uncomfortable – at the collective level there could be sudden outbursts of violence and/or struggles for independence – it should be perfect on a personal level for breaking through any numbness. Making mistakes will be more likely.

Perhaps you can also work with the introverted feeling function in your personality type while doing this work.

If you have natal placements in Scorpio and/or Taurus – especially any of the big 3 – this should be especially impactful.

Where are you currently numb? Do you trust it? What kind of creative fire is going to emerge from that kindling?

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References:

The 64 Ways by Richard Rudd
I Ching or Book of Changes translated by Richard Wilhelm Motes and Beams by Michael Pierce

Continue ReadingBreaking through the numbness

Coming to meet with tricks or treats

Coming to meet with tricks or treats

There’s something appropriate about Hexagram 44: Coming to Meet beginning on the day of Halloween.

“Coming to meet” is about meeting a situation or person halfway, but not to the point of compromising our higher ideals or inner dignity.

Wilhelm’s commentary notes that the “inferior man rises only because the superior man does not regard him as dangerous and so lends him power.” We need to be aware of flattery and seduction, as they may be attempts at seizing power.

Taking care to see beneath the superficial, and not fully trusting, is in keeping with the nature of Scorpio, the season in which Halloween falls.

Halloween, even amidst the fun, has long come with an element of suspicion. Back when I was a kid there was worry of razor blades and other nefarious things being put into the candy. There was paranoia regarding the possibility of receiving “tricks.” Today parents are more selective about which homes they let their children go to for trick-or- treating.

Regarding power and suspicion, I’m currently rereading The 48 Laws of Power of Robert Greene as a way of better understanding the power aspect of the Pluto archetype. There are also Scorpio themes throughout, including this one that pertains to today’s topic: “People are of infinite complexity and you can spend a lifetime watching them without ever fully understanding them. So it is all the more important, then, to begin your education now. In doing so you must also keep one principle in mind: Never discriminate as to whom you study and whom you trust. Never trust anyone completely and study everyone, including friends and loved ones.”

That reminds me of my favorite Robert Greene quote, which I appreciate as an enthusiast of personality typology and astrology: “Make understanding people a fun game, the solving of puzzles. It is all part of the human comedy. Yes, people are irrational, but so are you. Make your acceptance of human nature as radical as possible. This will calm you down and help you observe people more dispassionately, understanding them on a deeper level. You will stop projecting your own emotions on to them. All of this will give you more balance and calmness, more mental space for thinking.”

We’ll still have three planets in Scorpio in this next week: the Sun, Mercury, and Mars. Eclipse season is over until April. Whew. Saturn will end its retrograde and turn direct. Conditions are right for dispassionate observations, solving people puzzzles, and understanding others – and yourself – on a deeper level.

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References:

The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
I Ching or Book of Changes translated by Richard Wilhelm

Continue ReadingComing to meet with tricks or treats