Friday, October 30, 2015

Great Power - Hexagram 34



Da Zhuang
Harvesting, Trial.

Acting with strength to advance the great purpose of life.

Harvesting, Trial.

 

Structure: 

·          Below 1, the Creative and strength.  Above 2, the movement and action of thunder.  Inner strength of the Creative united with strong directed outer movement.  Acting with strength.  Strong resolve makes action firm; actions complete strong resolve.

·          The four strong lines signify great power.  Strength is an attribute of creative and action trigrams.

·          Strong within and effective in action.  Strong action does not cease.

Time:  The hexagram marks the second month (March-April) of the Chinese calendar and the spring equinox, the midpoint of spring.  At this time inner worth mounts with great strength and comes to power.  Yet strength that has already passed beyond the median brings the danger that one may rely entirely on one’s own strength.

 Images: 

·          A ram butts forcefully against a hedge that obstructs it way and entangles its horns in the branches. 

·          During the age when sages developed the I Ching, wagons had wooden wheels, hubs, and axels. The wagon could not move if the axel, which powered the wheel, broke. Stronger axels allowed wagons to carry heavier loads. 

The less we use our power outwardly, the greater its effect.  The hexagram describes how to advance benefiting all with powerful inner strength.  Such power does not show externally, yet it can move heavy loads.

A resolve strong enough to fulfill a great purpose that benefits all has great power.  The sage aligns with the cosmos, the sacred universe.  Having sufficient inner strength to benefit all is the ultimate achievement of the full realization of virtue.[1]  Movement of actions in harmony with the movement of the cosmos has great power.

Greatness does not exist apart from the spiritual path. The cosmos and Earth are always great.  Similarly, sages act resolutely to bring the Way of humanity[2] to life. Those aligned with the spirit act with strength to accomplish a great purpose.  

When we understand that greatness and justice must be as one, then we understand true meaning of the cosmos. True greatness depends on being in harmony with ways of the spirit.  In the end, greatness comes only to those whose strength and virtues are one.

Strength grounded in what benefits all makes it possible to master our harmful behaviors of self-cherishing and to wait for the right time to act.   Self-discipline makes it possible to do what needs to be done, the foundation upon which great power rests.  Sages remain aware of the dangers of pushing ahead regardless of circumstances.  In this way, the Way of humanity transforms us and our experience of the world. 

Outwardly, sages appear lacking yet inwardly they have more than enough.  They act with great power and clarity to benefit all and remain unmoved by the myriad things.  Their effective and decisive actions bring aspiration to completion. The benefits of power applied correctly have no limits. 

Power Not Force 

Many use their strength to forcibly get what they selfishly want and to take advantage of the moment and others.  Whenever they feel blocked or frustrated, people who esteem their strength act obstinately. Such people might consider themselves brave, but they act and cause disorder because they lack a sense of justice and the capacity to harmonize with others.  Undeveloped people follow selfish impulses, doing whatever comes to mind, indulging in whims and temptations.  The excessively strong may rely entirely on force and not ask wise partners the best way forward.  Danger lies in not waiting for the right time, impulsively acting and not considering the consequences of acting.

Yet, if we know the obstacles that block our way are projections of our self-cherishing and hostility for others, we can compose ourselves and decide not to continue to struggle against them.  We transform ourselves and allow everything to right itself in time without becoming discouraged or frustrated.  The wise simply stop within the danger and stand still to avoid making things worse.  Instead of stiffening obstinacy, the wise yield.  By turning inward to penetrate the obstacles with understanding, the wise discern how to move through difficulties in ways that benefit all. 

When we quietly and perseveringly work at the removal of resistance, the way will open.  The obstruction gives way without having to force our way through it, and the sage can then again advance to manifest the Way of humanity within the world. This reveals the natural cyclic process of retreat and advance.  Once we remove the obstacles that caused our retreat, we then can advance powerfully.  The less we apply power outwardly, the greater its effect.

When the gates to success begin to open and resistance gives way, we can forge ahead while remaining mindful and careful.  The sage treads only upon paths that accord with what benefits all, avoiding doing anything which would disrupt the harmony they find in resting within the spirit. Sages dwell within the world without being of it.  Such is great power.

The wise always remember and give honor to the true source of great power.

 

Line 1:  Excessive strength in a lowly station advances through force, creating harm.  Strength without balance uses strength inappropriately.

The first line represents strong feet.  It goes forth impetuously, hungry for accomplishment, and imagines it can climb quickly to the heights.  The line advances rapidly but imprudently, and it regresses as quickly.  Such is the way things are.

Line 2:  The line governs its being firmly and responds to the world with flexibility.  The line can correct itself and practice the Tao.  It is powerful without being eager to use its power within the world.

Resistance gives way, and the line forges ahead. 

Line 3:  The selfish and hostile use force to get their way.  The sage uses emptiness. 

The ram butts the hedge because it is in its way.  Using strength in this way leads to adversity. Excessive strength lacks the capacity to harmonize.  The unbending line creates danger for itself. 

Line 4:  The strong line, the uppermost of the four rising lines, leads the advance.  Ahead of it are yielding lines, which do not hinder it.  The advancing power has passed midway, but the enlightened line knows the importance of remaining correct; thus, all regret vanishes.  The line has the power to correct others and the world because of its established virtue. 

Success comes to those who quietly and persistently work at the removal of resistances.  The obstruction gives way without excessive strength and without remorse as the follows the ways of the spirit.  A fence makes a boundary, but when opened up, it no longer impedes a strong advance. 

Line 5:  The line gives up its stubborn resistance to the advancing strong lines without regret and yields to them harmoniously, enabling the strong lines to give up their use of force.

Line 6:  The line advances too far and comes to the point it cannot advance nor retreat.  Whatever it does complicates the situation further.  However, the line understands the situation and composes itself.  Instead of stiffening its obstinacy, the line decides not to continue.  It yields, and in this way its mistakes do not become lasting ones.


[1] Virtues shape our behavior and align us with the spirit.  The Tao brings forth the good and great, which we experience as love. The Tao causes all life to develop and flow within natural limits, regulating and organizing love, which we call a moral discipline that benefits all.  The Tao transforms life so that each attains its true nature, a power that we call justice that ensures that all life has the means to achieve its potential according to its being.  The Tao harmonizes all life within interbeing, which we call wisdom, and separates what endures from what perishes.  The completed sage uses these virtues to shape the world.

[2] The Way of humanity embodies the laws of Tao that govern the human being in relationship to the spirit, with each other and with the Earth. It is the path of love that creatively responds to the experiences of life in ways that benefit all.  Sages shape their experience through the human virtues of caring for all, moral discipline, justice, and wisdom to bring to life the spirit within the world, materializing the invisible.  Sages find their purpose and meaning by obeying the spiritual command to reduce inner faults and manifest the sacred within the world.  Suffering ends when we have the lived experience that the self and other are the same and experience expresses the sacred mystery.

1 comment:

  1. "Without goodness, there is no greatness."

    "Power, not force... Empowering what is improper is not great power."

    "Someone might be brave, but they cause disorder because they lack a sense of duty or justice or a capacity to harmonize with others. It is dangerous to be unbending."

    "Perseverance in inner equilibrium without excessive use of power leads to good fortune... Govern the inward with firmness, responding to the external with gentleness."

    The warning to avoid the self-centered misuse of power is simple and clear. What's difficult is the work of waiting, experiencing, and not acting from emotional reactivity. I can cultivate the sincere intention to work for the benefit of all by exposing and rejecting the self-centered motives that arise in each moment. The techniques of meditation are methods for intending, attending, and choosing.

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