In moments of darkness, trust in your inner light to guide you toward steadfast growth and resilience.
From
36
Clouded Perception
To
32
Duration
Introducing
One brings in one's neighbors to invite them for a drink. taoscopy.com
Clouded Perception36
Stay resilient amidst adversity. When in challenging circumstances, maintain inner clarity and integrity while concealing your light from those who may not understand or appreciate it. Patience and perseverance are key.
↓ Line 1
In times of adversity, one must be cautious and avoid drawing attention. Perseverance is needed despite hardships.
↓ Line 2
Despite injury or setbacks, one should continue to strive forward with determination and strength, leading to eventual success.
↓ Line 4
Understanding the core of the problem allows one to find a way out of adversity. Insight leads to liberation.
↓ Duration32
Consistency brings endurance. Stay true to your path, create lasting habits, and cultivate patience for sustainable success.
Other titles: Darkening of the Light, The Symbol of the Appearance of Clear Intelligence Wounded, Injury, Wounding of the Bright, Brightness Hiding, Calling Pheasant, The Darkened Light, Concealment of Illumination, Injury of Illumination, Light Obliterated, Intelligence Unappreciated, Censorship, Hiding One's Light, The Dark Night of the Soul, Ignorance "Not necessarily as bad as it sounds, may just mean being restricted or restricting yourself." -- D.F. Hook
Judgment
Legge: Under the conditions of Clouded Perceptionbe aware of the difficulty of your position and maintain firm correctness.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Darkening of the Light. In adversity it furthers one to be persevering.
Blofeld:Darkening of the Light. Righteous persistence in the face of difficulty brings reward.
Liu:Darkening of the Light. It benefits one to carry on through hard times.
Ritsema/Karcher: Brightness Hiding, Harvesting: drudgery, Trial. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of intelligence hidden or harmed. It emphasizes that deliberately concealing your light by entering what is beneath you is the adequate way to handle it. To be in accord with the time, you are told to: hide your brightness!]
Shaughnessy: Calling pheasant: Beneficial to determine about difficulty.
Cleary (1): In concealment of illumination, it is beneficial to be upright in difficulty.
Cleary (2): When illumination is damaged, it is beneficial to be upright in difficulty.
Wu:Light Obliterated indicates that it is advantageous to be persevering in time of danger.
The Image
Legge: The sun enters the earth -- the image ofClouded Perception.The superior man manages his subordinates and shows his intelligence by keeping it hidden.
Wilhelm/Baynes: The light has sunk into the earth: the image of Darkening of the Light. Thus does the superior man live with the great mass: He veils his light, yet still shines.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes light hidden within the earth. In governing the people, the Superior Man, though taking care to conceal his light, nevertheless shines.
Liu: The sun sinking under the earth symbolizes the Darkening of the Light. In approaching the people the superior man veils his brightness, yet still has glory.
Ritsema/Karcher: Brightness entering earth center. Brightness Hiding. A chun tzu uses supervising the crowds to avail-of darkening and-also Brightening.
Cleary (1): Light enters into the earth, illumination is concealed.Thus do Superior people deal with the masses, acting unobtrusively while in fact illuminated. [When practitioners of the Tao are among the masses, if they use their illumination too much, they will startle the ignorant and amaze the worldly, easily bringing on abuse and slander.]
Cleary (2): Illumination goes underground, in concealment of illumination. In dealing with the masses, true leaders act unobtrusively while in fact being illuminated. [What sages learn is to become daily more illumined unbeknownst to others.]
Wu: The light enters the earth; this is Light Obliterated. Thus the jun zi uses the spirit of dimness in place of brightness to administer affairs of the populace. [By “dimming” his internal strength, he would make people feel that he is one of them.]
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: The image of Brightness entering into the midst of the earth suggests clarity that has been wounded or obscured. The lower trigram shows Clarity, the upper Docility. King Wen had both of these qualities, yet he was involved in great difficulties. The individual concerned should obscure his brightness. Thus was Count Chi able to correctly maintain his mind and intent amidst the difficulties of his situation.
Legge: This hexagram shows an able officer going forth in the service of his country, notwithstanding the occupancy of the throne by a weak and unsympathetic ruler. Hence the name Clouded Perception or Intelligence Wounded -- that is, injured and oppressed. The lesson of the figure is to show how such an officer will conduct himself and maintain his purpose.
King Wen was not of the line of Shang. Though opposed and persecuted by its sovereign, he could pursue his own course, till his line came in the end to supersede the other. It could not be so with the Count of Chi, who was a member of the House of Shang. He could do nothing that would help on its downfall.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: Recognize a difficult situation and use your willpower to cope with its restrictions.
The Superior Man manages the situation by subduing his need to speculate, meddle, or call attention to himself. (Alternate: When in the presence of arrogance, the wise man plays the fool.)
The thirty-fifth hexagram shows the trigram of Clarity progressing over the earth -- an image of advancing awareness. The thirty-sixth hexagram is the inverse of this -- it shows the trigram of Clarity swallowed up by the earth. If the image of Advance of Consciousness symbolizes noon, when the sun is at the midheaven, then Clouded Perception symbolizes midnight, when the sun is at the Imum Coeli, or undersky. It is a time of maximum darkness, maximum ignorance; a time when the dark forces of the unconscious are at their strongest. We are reminded of the Dark Night of the Soul, an inescapable and inevitable phase of the Work:
When, at length, they have practiced themselves for some time in the journey of virtue, persevering in meditation and prayer, wherein, with the suavity and relish they have found, they have become detached from worldly things, and acquired some spiritual strength in God, so as to be able to curb the creature appetites and in some small degree suffer for God some slight load and dryness, without turning back at the crucial moment; when, to their thinking, they are proceeding in these spiritual exercises to their entire satisfaction and delight; and when the Sun of Divine favors seems to them to shine most radiantly upon them, God darkens all this light, and shuts the door and fountain of the sweet spiritual water, which they were wont to drink in God as often and as long as they chose ... and thus, he leaves them in darkness so profound that they know not whither to direct the sense of the imagination and speculations of the mind. St. John of the Cross
The Dark Night of the Soul is the universal experience of everyone who follows the way beyond the tried and true paths of the spiritual dilettante. It is an archetypal filter for determining the survival of the fittest in psychic evolution. For those who have entered this phase of the Work, it is good to remember that no one is given a test that they can't pass if they sincerely want to.
The situation in line five of this hexagram means little to one who is unacquainted with Chinese history. In its essence, the story of Count Chi concerns a superior man who was imprisoned by an evil emperor. The only way that he could survive this dark time was to feign insanity. Thus the message in the Image counsels us to show our intelligence by concealing it. There is a wide range of applications for this rule, and perhaps Lao Tse gives us the best paraphrase of the idea in his famous aphorism: He who knows does not speak; He who speaks does not know.
In terms of the Work this can mean that one must firmly understand that there are some things which cannot be shared with just anyone. Inner work is very fragile until it has had time to crystallize, and to expose its truths to the harsh light of unsophisticated intellect is to risk severe damage to the process of individuation.
One must not tell people of things they cannot grasp. There are mysteries that cannot be shared with everybody ... Some things can be told to no one and a secret told to a wrong person is destructive and even irresponsible. M.L. Von Franz -- The Feminine in Fairytales
This hexagram can symbolize many situations, but sometimes it is a suggestion that you are ignorant or "in the dark" about the true state of affairs now prevailing.
Line 1
Legge: The first line, dynamic, shows its subject with clouded perception, flying, but with drooping wings. When the superior man is about his business he may go for three days without eating. Wherever he goes, the people there may speak derisively of him.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Darkening of the light during flight. He lowers his wings. The superior man does not eat for three days on his wanderings. But he has somewhere to go. The host has occasion to gossip about him.
Blofeld: Failure of the light during his progress through the sky caused him to lower his wings. When busy with affairs, the Superior Man may go without food for three days on end, so intent is he on reaching his goal; but his lord will have something to say about this.
Liu: The darkened light flies and droops its wings. The superior man fasts for three days during his wanderings. His host speaks of him with derision. He leaves to go someplace.
Ritsema/Karcher: Brightness Hiding tending-towards flying. Drooping one's wings. A chun tzu tending-towards moving: three days not taking in. Possessing directed going. A lord: people possessing words.
Shaughnessy: The calling pheasant in flight, drops its left wing: the gentleman on the move, for three days does not eat; there is someplace to go; the ruler has words.
Cleary (1): Concealing illumination in flight, letting the wings hang down; a superior man on a journey not eating for three days has a place to go. The master is criticized.
Cleary (2): Illumination concealed in flight, etc … The ruler has something to say.
Wu: It is like a bird in flight with its wings drooping. If the jun zi takes a journey, he may go without food for three days andhis host will have words about his undertakings.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: In such a case he feels it right not to eat. Wilhelm/ Baynes: It is the obligation of the superior man to refrain from eating during his wanderings. Blofeld: It is the duty of the Superior Man to go without food for three days if his activities require this of him. Ritsema/Karcher: A chun tzu tending-towards moving: righteously not taking-in indeed. Cleary (2): It is right that they do not eat. [This is like a just person fleeing a vicious tyrant … such is the speed of travel that they do not have the leisure to eat for three days.]Wu: For righteousness sake, he refuses to eat.]
Legge: Line one is dynamic, and in its right place. He should be going forward, but the general signification of the hexagram supposes him to be wounded. The wound, received at the commencement of the action, is but slight. It suggests a bird hurt so that it must droop its wings. The subject then appears directly as the superior man. He understands that he must desist from the struggle for a time, and is so rapt in the thought that he can fast for three days and not think of it. When he does withdraw, opposition may follow him, but he holds to his own purpose. The commentary says that he does not purposely fast, but when he has nothing to eat he doesn't complain. He thinks it right that it should be so in this case.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: At the outset, the man encounters hostility and derision in his attempt to soar above all obstacles. He does not compromise but perseveres in his thinking and remains true to his principles. People do not understand him.
Wing: An attempt to rise above the obstacles in your environment will be met with hostility. If you decide to serve your personal drives and compromise the needs of society, you will be misunderstood and censured. Such is the difficulty of the position.
Editor: Flying: Air is the realm of thought. To fly is to move in the realm of ideas: to think, speculate, reason. Drooping wings: Wounded in the realm of thought: impaired thinking, inferior conceptualization, crippled by faulty ideas or incomplete information, “clipped wings.” He does not eat: he doesn't jump to conclusions, but reasons it out to the end. Three days: A period of completion. ("The Chinese say that numbers begin at one and are made perfect at three." -- Gaskell, Dictionary of Scriptures and Myths.) People speak derisively: Subordinate elements within the psyche (emotions, etc.) clamor for resolution, easy answers, etc. Psychologically, this combination of symbols points to a confused situation which demands careful differentiation. Though answers may not be forthcoming immediately, be patient and you will get what you seek. The line can also refer to painfully following one's path regardless of consequences. (Compare with symbolism of fourth line correlate.)
In a word: the first work of the hero is to retreat from the world scene of secondary effects to those causal zones of the psyche where the difficulties really reside, and there to clarify the difficulties, eradicate them in his own case (i.e., give battle to the nursery demons of his local culture) and break through to the undistorted direct experience and assimilation of what C.G. Jung has called "the archetypal images." This is the process known to Hindu and Buddhist philosophy as viveka, "discrimination." Joseph Campbell --The Hero with a Thousand Faces
A. Your thinking is confused and requires a new point of view. Don't jump to easy conclusions. Even though you are anxious to resolve the issue, you are obliged to reason it through to the end.
Line 2
Legge: The second line, magnetic, shows its subject with clouded perception and wounded in the left thigh. She saves herself by the strength of a swift horse, and is fortunate.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Darkening of the light injures him in the left thigh. He
gives aid with the strength of a horse. Good fortune. [Here the Lord of
Light is in a subordinate place and is wounded by the Lord of Darkness. But
the injury is not fatal; it is only a hindrance. Rescue is still possible.]
Blofeld: Though injured in the left thigh, he made use of a horse in relieving distress -- good fortune!
Liu: The darkened light injures his left thigh, but he is saved by a strong horse. Good fortune.
Ritsema/Karcher: Brightness Hiding. Hiding tending-towards the left thigh. Availing-of a rescuing horse, invigorating significant.
Shaughnessy: The calling pheasant is wounded in the left thigh; herewith hold aloft the horse's vitality; auspicious.
Cleary (1): Concealment of illumination. Getting hurt in the left leg calls for rescue; if the horse is strong, it bodes well.
Wu: His left thigh is wounded. There will be good fortune if a strong horse is used to save him.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Her good fortune is due to the proper fashion of her acting according to her circumstances. Wilhelm/Baynes: The good fortune comes from [the line's] devotion to the rule. Blofeld: This good fortune results from compliance with laws and regulations. [The implication would seem to be that, when charged with emergency duties, we must persist in carrying them out at all costs.] Ritsema/Karcher: Yielding used by-consequence indeed. [By-consequence (-of), TSE: very strong connection, reason, cause, result; rule, law, pattern, standard...] Cleary (2): The luck of the second yin is in model obedience. Wu: Abiding by the principle.
Legge: Line two is magnetic, but in her proper and central place, giving us the idea of an officer, obedient to duty and the right. Her wound in the left thigh may impede her movements, but it does not disable her. She finds the means to save herself and maintain her good purpose. The "proper fashion of acting" is suggested by the magnetic line being the central place.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The man is injured but is not disabled. He recovers and pursues his good purpose with the strength of a horse.
Wing: Rather than disabling you, a recent injury that you have sustained on your path will serve to inspire you toward affirmative and vigorous action in the direction of the general good.
Editor: The thigh is a walking muscle, giving us the power to move or act. The left is a universal symbol of the unconscious psyche and its functions. The left thigh, then, is an image of unconscious motive power, or natural motivation. To be "wounded in the left thigh" suggests an impeded natural response, as opposed to a conscious, willed response. (When associated with the idea of Clouded Perception, this may refer to a failure of insight or intuition.) A horse represents energy in general; here it may be psychic energy relating to perception -- "horse- sense," if you will. One is reminded of the centaur Chiron, the “wounded healer” of Greek myth, who was also wounded in the thigh. In astrology, Chiron symbolizes unhealable wounds, and although it may be stretching the symbolism here, dealing with such wounds is a natural part of the Work: they may be unhealable, but they must be dealt with nonetheless. In the words of an old Blues lyric: “I may get better, but I won’t get well.” Sometimes receiving this line is a hint that if you were in touch with your inner processes you wouldn't have needed to ask the question.
Fusion, inner unity, is obtained by means of "friction," by the struggle between "yes" and "no" in man. If a man lives without inner struggle, if everything happens to him without opposition, if he goes wherever he is drawn or wherever the wind blows, he will remain such as he is. But if a struggle begins in him, and particularly if there is a definite line in this struggle, then, gradually, permanent traits begin to form themselves, he begins to "crystallize." Gurdjieff
A. Crippled by ignorance, but saved by instinct -- let horse-sense be your guide.
B. A lack of awareness has crippled your ability to respond, but the impetus of your innate sense of what is correct will carry you through.
Line 4
Legge: The fourth line, magnetic, shows its subject just entered into the left side of the belly of the dark land. But she is able to carry out the mind appropriate to the condition of clouded perception, quitting the gate and courtyard of the lord of darkness.
Wilhelm/Baynes: He penetrates the left side of the belly. One gets at the very heart of the darkening of the light, and leaves the gate and courtyard.
Blofeld: It is as though he had penetrated someone's left side and perceived a darkened heart as clearly as if that heart had been abstracted from its dwelling place. [The Chinese text for this line is so far from clear as to suggest that it is corrupt. My interpretation must be regarded as no more than an intelligent guess. The actual text runs something like this: "Into left side, obtain light-darkened heart -- or heart of the light-darkening -- outside the gates and courtyards (of home)." Fortunately, the commentary on this line explains the general meaning, so the matter is not of great importance.]
Liu: He penetrates the left belly (an inner place) and wins the heart (confidence) of the darkened light. Then he gets the chance to fly away from the courtyard.
Ritsema/Karcher: Entering tending-towards the left belly. Catching Brightness Hiding's heart. Tending-towards issuing- forth-from the gate chambers.
Shaughnessy: The calling pheasant is wounded in the left belly: Bagging the calling pheasant's heart, in going out of the gate and courtyard.
Cleary (1): Entering the left belly, finding the mind in which illumination is concealed, one leaves the house.
Cleary (2): … Finding the heart of illumination in concealment and going out of the house.
Wu: He enters the left side of the trunk to get at the heart of Light Obliterated. He leaves his house.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Having just entered into the left side of the belly of the dark land, she is still able to carry out the idea in her mind. Wilhelm/Baynes: That is, he finds out the inmost sentiment of the heart. Blofeld: This is a way of saying that he saw clearly into the other's heart. Ritsema/Karcher: Entering tending-towards the left belly. Catching the heart, intention indeed. Cleary (2): Entering the left belly is finding the heart’s intent. Wu: For the purpose of learning the intention. [“The left side of the trunk” suggests a darkened area, referring euphemistically to the court of the tyrant king.]
Legge: Line four is magnetic, but in her proper place. She escapes from her dangerous position with little damage. The "idea in her mind" is the idea of withdrawing from the position and escaping.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The man is in close proximity to the leader of the evil forces. Knowing the latter's secret thoughts, he recognizes that there is no hope for improvement. He therefore leaves the scene before the disastrous storm.
Wing: You are in a fine position to perceive the present situation with clarity. If it appears hopeless and doomed, as it well might, now is a good time to exit.
Editor: Left side: Universal symbol of the unconscious. Belly of the dark land: The center of the unconscious, the source of ignorance, evil, etc. Carry out the mind appropriate to the condition of clouded perception: i.e., the Judgment and Image of the hexagram. Quitting the gate and courtyard of the lord of darkness: Once you see the source of the problem, avoid it henceforth. This line is the proper correlate of line one, which describes a difficult inquiry. In some circumstances, the two lines might be thought of as a question and its answer.
The unconscious parts of the psyche are actually, as the term implies, unknown -- a fact not infrequently overlooked, for it is hard for anyone to believe that factors of which he knows nothing are functioning autonomously within his own psyche. Even when their presence has been demonstrated conclusively, it is often hard for the individual to admit their existence even to himself. M.E. Harding --Psychic Energy
A. "Resist not evil" -- avoid it.
B. Clarify your ignorance by getting to the heart of the matter and then act accordingly.
C. You have comprehended an unpleasant truth which demands an obvious and appropriate response.
Other titles: Duration, The Symbol of Constancy, The Long Enduring, Constant, Persevering, Standing Fast, Continuity, Constancy in the Midst of Change, Holding Firm, "Get yourself into a fixed routine like the orbiting planets." -- D.F. Hook
Judgment
Legge:Consistency means successful progress without error through firm correctness. Movement in any direction is advantageous.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Duration. Success. No blame. Perseverance furthers. It furthers one to have somewhere to go.
Blofeld: The Long Enduring. Success and freedom from error! Righteous persistence brings reward. It is favorable to have in view some goal or destination.
Liu:Duration. Success. No blame. It benefits to continue. Going anywhere is advantageous.
Ritsema/Karcher:Persevering, Growing. Without fault. Harvesting Trial. Harvesting: possessing directed going. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of continuity and endurance. It emphasizes that continuing on and renewing the way you are following is the adequate way to handle the situation. To be in accord with the time, you are told to persevere!]
Shaughnessy: Constancy: Receipt; there is no trouble; beneficial to determine; beneficial to have someplace to go.
Cleary (1):Constancy is developmental. Impeccable. It is beneficial to be correct. It is beneficial to have a place to go.
Cleary (2):Constancy comes through without fault, beneficial insofar as it is correct. It is beneficial to have a place to go.
Wu: Constancy indicates pervasion. There will be no blame. It also indicates advantage of being persevering and having undertakings.
The Image
Legge: Thunder over wind -- the image of Consistency. The superior man stands firm and does not change his method of operation.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Thunder and wind: the image of Duration. Thus the superior man stands firm and does not change his direction.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes thunder accompanied by wind. The Superior Man stands so firmly that he cannot be uprooted.
Liu: Thunder and wind symbolize Duration. The superior man stands firm without changing direction.
Ritsema/Karcher: Thunder, wind, Persevering. A Chun tzu uses establishing, not versatility on-all-sides.
Cleary (1): Thunder and wind are perpetual. Thus does the superior person stand without changing places.
Cleary (2): Thunder and wind are constant; so do developed people stand without changing place.
Wu: A combination of thunder and wind forms Constancy. Thus the jun zi establishes himself by not changing his post.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Consistency means long continuance. The dynamic trigram of Thunder is above, and the magnetic trigram of Wind is below. Docility and Motive Force are in sympathetic communication because their dynamic and magnetic lines all correspond. When the motive power is spent it will begin again -- hence movement in any direction is advantageous. The sun and moon are consistent in their illumination, and the four sequential seasons are consistent in their cycles of growth. The sages are consistent in their work and all under heaven are transformed. When we examine this consistent perseverance the natural tendencies of heaven and earth are revealed.
Legge: The subject of the hexagram is perseverance in what is right, or in continuously acting out the law of one's being. It is seen as a sequel to the previous hexagram,Initiative. As that figure deals with the correct relations
between husband and wife, so this figure treats of the continuous observance of their respective duties. Initiativeconsists of the trigrams symbolizing the youngest son and youngest daughter and shows how the attraction and influence between the sexes is strongest in youth. Consistency on the other hand, consists of the trigrams symbolizing the oldest son and oldest daughter. This couple is more staid. The wife occupies the lower place, and their relationship is characterized by her submission. Given two parties, a magnetic and a dynamic in correlation, if both consistently observe what is correct and natural (i.e., the magnetic submissive and the dynamic firm), then good fortune and progress may be predicted for their course.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: The will to maintain the consistency of the Work assures progress in whatever direction it may take.
The Superior Man holds fast to the principles of the Work.
Wilhelm's title for this hexagram is Duration. I feel that the word Consistency best evokes the meaning of the figure. In an existence consisting of continuous change the only things that have duration are the principles upon which change is based. To adhere to these principles is to maintain consistency. Implicit here is a consistent balance of forces. Consistency in the Work means neither consistent action nor inaction, but an appropriate combination of the two principles as required by changing circumstances. The Confucian commentary alludes to this characteristic of the Work when it mentions the sun, moon and changing seasons as examples of forces which maintain their consistency within a context of continuous change.
Just as the moon at night reflects the light of the hidden sun, so in the Work the ego is always magnetic in relation to the dynamic Self. A moon that thought that it was the source of its light would be egregiously deluded, despite superficial appearances to the contrary; so too the ego that thinks that its powers come from anywhere but the Self.
Motives and standards of choice are not invented by the ego but are structured by the actualization of archetypal predispositions through personally acquired value standards. E. C. Whitmont -- The Symbolic Quest
SUGGESTIONS FOR MEDITATION
Note that all of the lines in the hexagram are generally unfavorable except two and five, and that when they both change places the hexagram becomes number thirty-one, Initiative. There is a profound lesson here which is best appreciated by meditating on the associations implied. The fact that each hexagram is the inverse of the other should not be forgotten.