– Photo by Jan Ketchel
Today, I request of the I Ching*: Guidance for ALL, now.
What is given is hexagram #32, Duration. The essence of duration is union, as an enduring condition.
The image of duration is built with thunder, the arousing, on top of wind, the gentle. Thunder and wind are a naturally paired set of influences. With the sound of thunder comes the energy of wind. The human social analogy for duration is the enduring relationship of marriage.
Within the individual, duration is a state of being that is not worn down by hindrances. By embracing enduring meaning in one’s life, one becomes self-contained and self-renewing. This kind of meaning is found in aligning one’s will with one’s true spirit.
Thunder and wind are mobile occurrences, seemingly an unlikely pair to depict the qualities of duration. But this fluidity of coming and going implies a definite lack of rigidity or refusal to change. That which acts from duration changes with the changing times. What doesn’t change is one’s unswerving commitment to the inner truth of one’s being, that which guides all actions.
No particular moving line was emphasized, hence, all the lines of the hexagram carry guidance for specific challenges to the state of duration.
The first line: Seeking duration too hastily brings misfortune persistently. Relationships require time to achieve duration. Self-development requires perseverance over time. If we grasp too quickly things fall apart and we are saddened, or give up.
The second line: Regret disappears. The power of one’s will is greater than one’s material resource. However, in the time of duration one is able to regulate one’s inner strength, thus avoiding excess in action. This removes the cause for regret.
The third line: The inability to turn inward brings misfortune. If one remains at the mercy of moods aroused by outside events, one suffers inner turmoil and loses the innerly connection to that which provides duration.
The fourth line: No game in the field. If one persists in a course of action that is fruitless, one will only be disappointed. Here, will overpowers spirit and loses its duration.
The fifth line: Flexible reason, moderate emotion. Reason must be flexible and adjust to changing conditions. Emotion must remain moderate lest it burn up or remain overly attached to the moment. Best that reason lead to maintain duration.
The sixth line: Continued restlessness brings misfortune. To remain in persistent hurry or worry precludes inner composure. Turn inward, breathe in, breathe out. Let calm breathing lead to duration.
In this time of outer threat, find composure in that which provides duration. The power of duration will endure and safely bridge to coming stability, where that which lends duration within will also lead to duration without.
Duration,
Chuck
*Source: The I Ching, Wilhelm edition