When we clean house, whether mentally, physically in the body, or in our outer reality, we make room for something new to come in. Even the simple acts of letting go of an old idea or vacuuming our rooms can leave us feeling that something has changed. Letting go of something old that no longer serves us, an old habit for instance, can open us up to new possibilities. Stubborn ideas, when let go of, free us to perhaps try some new, more enlightened ideas. A certain sense of freedom and lightness results when we clear out, and thus a moment’s pause in the emptying offers a moment’s pause before we fill it up again that may be life changing. Pause, take a breath, and see what happens!
Stagnation is a normal part of any journey. It’s not unusual to get bogged down at some point, to experience inertia, to flounder and not know where to go next. In such times it is best to accept the time of stagnation as a necessary part of the journey, and to sit with it and wait for clarity to return. Without clarity there is no use in proceeding. Just wait. In the stillness of waiting clarity will eventually emerge. Once clarity returns the journey’s direction will also be clear.
When things are difficult, when the world seems at odds and nothing feels like it is going well, remember that all things change, that time itself will bring changes that will shift the sense of despair and that, as with nature, a new season will arrive. Sometimes change is just a matter of waiting.
Storm clouds are gathering… – Photo by Jan Ketchel
Today, I consult the I Ching with the following: Please provide guidance to navigate the energy of now.
Hexagram #5, Waiting, with moving lines in the first and fourth places, with a future of hexagram #28, Preponderance of the Great, is my answer.
The image of Waiting is water gathering in the sky, a picture of clouds filling with moisture. The obvious inference is, waiting for rain. This can only happen when the clouds have accrued enough density and are thus ready to release their bounty.
Applied to human circumstance, don’t try to push the river. The forces at work here, particularly in nature, are operating on their own schedule.
The moving line in the first place suggests that at present conditions are calm, the impending concern is still at a distance. The guidance suggests that one not exhaust one’s energetic reserves in advance, as this might weaken one’s ability to respond when it truly is time to act.
At the moving line in the fourth place, the storm has arrived. One finds oneself in quite a dangerous, precarious position. The guidance here is to stand fast, to allow fate to take its natural course. By embracing this composure, one is likely to not worsen the situation and, as a result, find the best way out.
The pending danger is more vividly expressed in the image of hexagram #28, a deeply sagging ridgepole, a roof soon to be caving in. This condition is transitory, as collapse is inevitable.
Thus the notion of a major shift, a revolution, is the inevitable consequence of this set of circumstances. The I Ching cautions that this is not to be achieved through forceful measures. The change is a natural and necessary transition, appropriate to the needs of the time.
In a nutshell, we are presently in a time of waiting. At this moment, the energy of major change is still gathering.
Be calm, remain aware, but don’t tax your energy with too much vigilance. The storm will arrive, a major transition will occur; it is inevitable.
Do not act precipitously. Follow your path of heart, regardless of who follows you.
Here is this week’s message of guidance from Jeanne.
Center the self and wait patiently… – Image by Jan Ketchel
This is a time of waiting. “But what,” you might ask, “are we waiting for?”
You, My Dears, are waiting for everything and for nothing. You wait for life and you wait for death, yet every move you make, every thought you allow to form, every word you utter, every action you take must become part of your patient waiting.
In patient waiting, practice and intent are of the utmost importance. Without attachment to outcome, personal gain, or getting your due in any way, patient waiting asks only that you live impeccably.
To live impeccably is to assign the utmost importance to the self, devoid of selfless and selfish feelings or sentiments, so that you may hone your energy, and thus your evolving self, to perfection.
“Is perfection the goal?” you might ask. Yes, I say, perfection of the self in all you do is a perfectly acceptable goal, but that perfect self must be energetically perfect as well. And even though the human self may constantly battle or defend or disappoint you as you seek perfection and impeccability in all you do, remember this: that’s its role!
I suggest you find or accept what you are good at and make it your goal to be the best at whatever that is. This seeking of perfection must enter all parts of the self and all aspects of your life. You may be a good friend, a good parent, a good cook, a good writer, a good athlete, a good doctor, a good clerk, a good gardener, a good samaritan, a good teacher, have great talent or be a good guide to others. You may even be a good lover. Learn from yourself. Notice how you have honed your attentive and impeccable self, how you constantly learn your job better and better, how you constantly seek higher ground professionally, and as many skills as possible to keep up in a changing world. Such seeking to better the self must extend into all areas of the self and life, into your inner world and your outer world.
Include compassion, kindness, and gentleness into your every movement and decision. Include firmness and high expectations in your intent to change as well, yet be also flowing and open to what life brings to the table. Notice when life is asking you to change, when circumstances do not permit you to move in a certain direction. Do not force what life itself says must not be forced. Accept limitations with humbleness, knowing that you are being guided to go in a new direction. Learn how life itself, without any input on your part, naturally pushes you to change.
Drop your controlling habits and acquiesce a little bit more each day to the flow of life, honing your impeccability to flow naturally without worry or regret. In this time of waiting, allow the self to be both open to opportunity as regards your skilled self and also open to the changing self as well.
Be flexible. Be aware. Be open. Be accepting of change. At the same time, firm up your intent so that in both your inner world and your outer world your intent may be heard, so that its firm commitment to change may be acceptable, adaptable, unresistant to the true self, the impeccable self you seek to know better. This is the self who, without doubt, knows exactly how to live through this time of waiting. This self also knows how to take you forward into new life, if you can allow yourself to be taken.
With patience and in full awareness that this impeccable self exists, begin your time of waiting. Set your intent and then practice becoming the new you. Each day as you awaken reset that intent and often throughout the day as well. Whenever there is a lull, remind yourself of the following:
I am a being you is going to die, but before I do I intent to fully live impeccably and with awareness. I invite my most impeccable, honest, and truly compassionate self to emerge and fully live!
