Hexagram 3 - The Beginning

The beginning.

Pertains to the whole cycle.

No benefit from moving toward a purpose.

Benefit from finding wise partners.

Structure:  Danger above 3.  Movement below 2.  Movement within danger. 

Images: 

·          Growth of a tender grass sprout piercing through hard soil.

·          Darkening clouds and thunder that precede the rain. 

This hexagram is the creation story of a constantly changing cosmos. Tao brings forth a teeming chaotic profusion.  Difficulties arise from the struggle to attain form out of chaos.  Everything is in motion. Eventually, the laws of Tao form and shape the energy, releasing the creative tension as does rain when it releases the tension of the thunder and lightning that precedes it.

The Creative perpetually surges into our awareness of experience, an unformed chaos of enormous energy, which we experience as uncertainty. The laws of Tao form and shape the energy, and uncertainty becomes certainty.

People have the power of will to shape the experienced confusion and uncertainty. Those who self-cherish and have hostility for others use this power for their self-benefit with the full knowledge that they harm others and the Earth. Sages use this power to create the conditions needed to bring to life the ways of the spirit within themselves and in the world[1].

The ways of self-cherishing, hostility for others, and worldly concerns[2] pervade our culture, and overcoming them challenges spiritual practitioners from the beginning to the end. Thoughtlessly acting serves only to release an anxious uncertainty. Whenever we give self-cherishing and hostility for others a full rein to shape our reaction to experience, we go astray and do not find what we seek.  Impetuous action in uncertain times without guidance leads to disaster and remorse for losing the way. 

Hold Back from Impetuous Action

It takes time for the spiritual energies to flow into forms that can hold the creative energies of the great transformation.  At the beginning, everything remains unformed. The wise hold back from asserting their will upon the accumulating creative potential, not forcing their vision of how things should be upon others without their engagement. Selflessly, the sage endures the growing tension inherent in accumulating the creative potential, accepting and bearing the discomfort of uncertainty.

As we gradually deepen our spiritual practice, our abilities grow to hold these unformed creative energies patiently within presence, skillfully shaping surrounding conditions with our virtues[3] in ways that increase the potential of the creative process. Sages consider the consequence of their actions before acting with others and do not pursue what will distort or diminish the process of bringing forth the ways of the spirit within the world.

The universe moves from within.  The wise know that whatever actions they choose will shape their future.  By seeking the hidden order within the seeming chaos and to further increase the situation’s beneficial potential, the sage prepares for acting without acting. 

Partner to Overcome the Chaos within the World

The chaotic time requires the wise to come together to cooperate in overcoming the destruction of life and the Earth.  When duty calls them to act, the wise seek other wise partners with whom they can overcome the difficulties and accomplish the great.  They know that the difficulties of the world must be solved by the people of the world and that they partner with an ever more inclusive group.

Opportunities to connect with those with whom we can achieve a shared goal must be seized.  We find such partners only if we avoid arrogance and competitiveness, meeting them with deference.  The wise know they need the cooperation and support of others who can help discern the way forward to the great transformation and overcome obstacles in this difficult time; thus, they cultivate enlightened qualities to attract worthy partners.

Yet sages know that in such times they cannot rely just on others as the times are beset with difficulties that will prevail until the moment when the new era comes forth. The sage participates in preparatory efforts with inspiration and guidance, managing difficulties firmly and faithfully.  The group acts intentionally and at the right time. It adapts to rapidly changing conditions by learning from the consequences of its actions.

When we choose to give rise to a new era, we knowingly place ourselves into the midst of all kinds of strong and dangerous forces. If the difficulties become too great, some seek rescue, but no leader appears.  Within such a situation, they might give up in despair, one of the saddest of all things.  The wise do not give up nor wait on others to rescue them.  Instead, they change themselves by deepening their spiritual being to more inclusively serve the moment, becoming the efficient helpers needed to overcome obstacles in difficult times. Sages place themselves below the powerless and oppressed, knowing that success for all depends upon following the leadership of the powerless and oppressed.

The time calls us to harvest the fruits of the spiritual path that sages have nurtured over millennia to bring forth into the world a culture of interbeing.  We have reached the time to live harmoniously on Earth with others.  This creation of the world of interbeing is difficult at the beginning.  Only we can deliver ourselves into this new era, knowing that ultimately all life on Earth depends upon our doing so.

Every day invites us to begin anew. By overcoming our inertia to actualize our potential and face the difficulties that hinder bringing to life the ways of the spirit, we will overcome the conditions that bind us to the obsolete.

At the heart of chaos and confusion of a beginning dwells the creative energies of the spirit.  Sages penetrate that raw, chaotic energy to clearly reveal the form of the new era of interbeing. Eventually, the chaos clears and the difficulties and dangers pass, releasing all from tensions, just as a thunderstorm comes with much fury, fills the air with rain, and then subsides.  The ten thousand things take shape and unfold in the ways of the spirit.

 

Line 1:  The sage’s adherence to the spiritual path is as immovable as a stone pillar.  The sage brings to life the ways of the spirit by living its virtues. With an unmoving devotion to the spirit, it moves through life with the great purpose to benefit all. It values the oppressed and the unvalued and acquires the support of the common people.

Line 2: At the beginning, the line finds itself surrounded by obstacles and difficulties. Unexpectedly, a way out presents itself, but the line carefully avoids taking upon itself any obligation entailed by any help that might compromise its resolve. The line remains true to what it values and waits until its true path through its difficulties appears.

Line 3:  The unbalanced and confused line acts rashly beyond its abilities to overcome a dangerous situation on its own. The undeveloped need a wise guide to show them the way so not to get lost in the wilderness. The wise know that they need the wisdom of a sage to guide them on the spiritual path; thus, they wait for the proper time.  They know that rushing ahead brings loss and danger.

Line 4:  The line has a high social ranking but does not have the abilities to act and overcome a dangerous situation. If it sought the advice and support of the wise, it would have success. Neither false pride nor false reserve should deter it.  Taking the first step toward union does involve some self-abnegation, but such flexibility reflects an inner clarity.  With the right partners, the great purpose is achieved.

Line 5:  Conditions prevent the sage from fulfilling its great purpose to overcome oppression. The self-righteous try but fail. The sage limits itself to small efforts and succeeds. Only through faithful and conscientious work, unobtrusively carried out step by step, can hindrances to solving the problem disappear.

Line 6:  At the end of difficulties, the line gets stuck and does not find its way out, folding its hands and giving up the struggle, not knowing that the situation changes. Such resignation is the saddest of all things.  The wise move forward at the end of difficulties.

---

[1] World does not refer to nature but to how people live within nature.  The world –  civilization, culture, history, society, beliefs, worldly influences – is embedded as a subsystem within the natural system.

[2] Worldly concerns are the amoral ways in which the selfish willingly harm others for self-benefit and then ignore the suffering they cause.  Selfish individuals seek power and domination over others and willingly use violence to do so.  The selfish accumulate wealth through the unlimited exploitation and ultimate destruction of people, other life forms, and the Earth.  The selfish seek the attention of others.  The selfish consume as much as they can and seek constant distractions from facing the harms they caused others, all life, and the Earth.       

[3] 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.