Nurture your community with loyalty and integrity, and you will unlock true abundance.
From
37
The Family
To
14
Wealth
Beautifying oneself
One is presentable to receive one's guests. taoscopy.com
The Family37
Focus on nurturing harmony in your community or family. Cultivate stability and mutual support by fostering open communication and shared values.
↓ Line 2
Focus on responsibilities and duties within the family. Consistent effort leads to success.
↓ Line 4
A person who is a source of strength and support brings great benefit to the family.
↓ Line 5
Leadership and responsibility within the family bring about positive outcomes.
↓ Wealth14
Abundance is present. Use your resources wisely and share generously. Celebrate success with humility and grace, knowing that true wealth comes from balance and integrity.
Other titles: Family Life, Clan, Home, Linkage, Dwelling People, The Psyche, "May indicate a situation where the family can and should help." -- D.F. Hook
Judgment
Legge: For the regulation of The Family, what is most advantageous is that the wife be firm and correct.
Wilhelm/Baynes: The Family . The perseverance of the woman furthers.
Ritsema/Karcher: Dwelling People. Harvesting: woman Trial. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of living and working with others in a common space. It emphasizes that caring for your relation with those who share this space and for the space itself is the adequate way to handle it. To be in accord with the time, you are told to: dwell with people!]
Shaughnessy: Family members: Beneficial for the maiden to determine.
Cleary (1): For people in the home it is beneficial that the woman be chaste. [In the human body, the vitality, spirit, soul, psyche, and intent all belong to yin and all take orders from the human mentality … When you refine away the human mind, the mind of tao spontaneously becomes manifest.]
Wu:The Family indicates that it is advantageous for a woman to be persevering. [This is a hexagram with its emphasis on women. Both constituent trigrams are feminine … Hence those who endeavor to be firm and correct will have advantages.]
The Image
Legge: Wind rising out of fire -- the image of The Family. The superior man speaks the truth and is consistent in his behavior.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Wind comes forth from fire: The image of The Family. Thus the superior man has substance in his words and duration in his way of life.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes wind rising from fire. The Superior Man's speech is full of substance and he behaves with constancy.
Liu: The wind coming out of the fire symbolizes The Family. The speech of the superior man should have substance, and his conduct be enduring.
Ritsema/Karcher: Wind originating-from fire issuing-forth. Dwelling People. A chun tzu uses words to possess beings and-also movement to possess perseverance.
Cleary (1): Wind emerges from fire, members of a family. Thus is there factuality in the speech of superior people, consistency in their deeds.
Cleary (2): … Developed people are factual in speech, consistent in action.
Wu: Wind comes forth from fire; this is The Family. Thus the jun zi speaks with facts and acts with perseverance.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: In Family the wife is in her correct place in the lower trigram, and the husband in his correct place in the upper. That spouses occupy their correct positions shows the correct relationship between heaven and earth. The parents rule the family: let the father indeed be father, and the son son; let the elder brother be indeed elder brother, and the younger brother younger; let the husband indeed be husband, and the wife wife -- then the family will be in its correct state. Bring the family to that state, and all under heaven will be established.
Legge: The written Chinese character for Family simply means "a household," or "the members of a family." The lesson of the hexagram is the regulation of the family, effected by the cooperation of the husband and wife in their several spheres, and only needing it to become universal to secure the good order of the kingdom. The important place accorded to the wife is seen in the short sentence in the Judgment -- that she be firm and correct, and do her part well is essential for the family's proper regulation.
The wife is represented by line two and the husband is her proper correlate in line five. The relationship between heaven and earth is analogous to the relationship between husband and wife.
The second sentence of the Confucian commentary, more closely rendered, would be: "That in the family there is an authoritative ruler is a way of naming father and mother." This means that the assertion of authority in a family should be a correct balance of force and gentleness.
Anthony: The Family symbolizes correct relationships between people – the family unit, the spiritual family (the Sage and the student), and human groups generally. When these most basic relationships are correct, the world is made correct through the force of inner truth, through cultivation of the feminine component of our nature, and through persevering in a virtually menial position (from our ego’s viewpoint) so that our work can come to fruition. All this means to forgo striving and self-assertion, and to allow ourself to be led, while persevering in gentleness and devotion to our path.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: For the correct regulation of the psyche, what is most important is that the ego must be firm and correct.
The Superior Man lives his allegiance to the ideals of the Work.
Applying the Hermetic Axiom: "as above, so below," the relationships within a family are analogous to the relationships within a city-state, or a kingdom, and vice- versa:
Society centuries before the time of Confucius had been organized on the basis of family. In the early days of the Chou dynasty fiefs had been allotted to the feudal lords in a system of planned colonization. These feudal lords, linked to one another and to the royal house by marriage ties, took their families, retainers, peasants, artisans and soldiers to form self-sufficient colonies based on an agricultural economy and governed from well-fortified walled cities. These large family groupings of the nobility were preserved only so long as the relationships of parents to children, brothers to brothers, and masters to servants were effectively controlled. D.H. Smith -- Confucius
If the ideal city is like a family, then the analogy also holds for an individual -- here the comparison goes directly from city to psyche:
Have we any greater evil for a city than what splits it and makes it many instead of one? Or a greater good than what binds it together and makes it one? ... Then is that city best governed which is most like a single human being? Plato -- The Republic
Psychologically interpreted, the hexagram of The Family symbolizes the psyche, and the Confucian commentary tells us that when its inner components all assume their proper roles and functions, then the Work will come into fruition. ("All under heaven will be established.") The identical idea has been stated in Gnostic thought:
Jesus said to them: "When you make eyes in the place of an eye, and a hand in the place of a hand, and a foot in the place of a foot, and an image in the place of an image, then shall you enter the Kingdom. The Gnostic Gospel According to Thomas
The husband is the analogue of heaven or the Self, and the wife is the analogue of earth or the ego. When the ego assumes its correct role as the magnetic servant of the Work, then inner transformations can take place. I have paraphrased the Judgment in terms of the necessity of the ego to follow the dictates of the Work, but one could alternately phrase it in terms of keeping emotional responses under control. For the wife to be "firm and correct" is to ensure that emotions, drives and appetites are not allowed to make decisions -- they are servants, not masters. This is the essence of the Work, and arguably the most reiterated idea in theI Ching.
The patient should be encouraged to use his mind, through observation and discrimination, to bring clearly into his awareness the irrational aspect of his drives and emotions, and also the possible drawbacks and harmfulness to himself and others of their uncontrolled manifestation … To act on the spur of an impulse, a drive or an intense emotion can very often produce undesirable effects which one afterwards regrets … Therefore, he should learn – by repeated experiment and effort – to “insert” between impulse and action a stage of reflection, of mental consideration of a situation, and of critical analysis of his impulse, trying to realize its origin, its source. R. Assagioli – Psychosynthesis
The thirty-seventh hexagram teaches us that the way to manage the emotions is no different than the proper management of aFamily. No wise parent can teach a child self-discipline by adopting the child's point of view: permissiveness, either with our children or our own primitive drives and passions, is a sure formula for disintegration. The Work demands that the ego hold the line on this issue -- indeed, it is the ego's only legitimate function.
We are dominated by everything with which our [ego] becomes identified. We can dominate and control everything from which we disidentify ourselves. R. Assagioli -- Psychosynthesis
Line 2
Legge: The second line, magnetic, shows its subject taking nothing on herself, but in her central place attending to the preparation of the food. Through her firm correctness there will be good fortune.
Wilhelm/Baynes: She should not follow her whims. She must attend within to the food. Perseverance brings good fortune.
Blofeld: This is a time when nothing can be brought to completion; however, within the household, righteous persistence brings good fortune.
Liu: Her duties are to keep the household and prepare the food; she should not pursue her fancies. Persistence leads to good fortune.
Ritsema/Karcher: Without direction, releasing. Locating the center, feeding. Trial: significant.
Shaughnessy: There is no place to follow, in the middle of the food; determination is auspicious.
Cleary (1): Not concentrating on anything, being chaste in the kitchen is auspicious.
Cleary (2): Not concentrating on anything but household duties, it bodes well to be chaste.
Wu: There is nothing suitable to do outside of the family. There will be good fortune to prepare meals inside.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: The good fortune is due to the docility of its subject operating with humility. Wilhelm/Baynes: The good fortune depends upon devotion and gentleness. Blofeld: Namely, good fortune arising from compliance and gentleness. Ritsema/Karcher: Yielding uses Ground indeed. Cleary (2): What bodes well is docile obedience. Wu: The good fortune comes from the subject’s modesty.
Legge: Line two is magnetic, in the proper and central place in the lower trigram. It fitly represents the wife, and describes her special sphere and duty. She should be unassuming in regard to all beyond her sphere, always being firm and correct. Docility is suggested by the magnetic line. The humility comes from the upper trigram, whose attribute is Pliant Flexibility
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The good fortune of the family lies primarily in the unassuming role of the wife, who looks after the welfare of the family and food for the sacrifice. Similarly, in governmental affairs the state of public welfare depends primarily upon the unassuming civil servant who confines himself to the duties at hand.
Wing: Don't succumb to impulses now. Seek nothing by force. Restrain such actions that are not part of the business at hand. Good fortune comes when the immediate needs of The Family are met.
Editor: The image is a clear picture of a magnetic element remaining in its proper place. That is, the "female" components -- emotions, feelings, etc., must remain within the psyche to nourish its growth, evolution and eventual transformation. An inappropriate expression of emotion invariably spells disaster for the Work. Since the polarity of the ego is always magnetic in relation to the dynamic Self, the line can also refer to keeping the ego in its proper sphere of influence.
Our emotions are probably untrustworthy when it comes to providing us with a basis for action. Fear and aggression, for instance, were useful during thousands of years of prehistory when our ancestors had to battle for survival against savage and cunning enemies. But today, these same emotions, when unrecognized and unchecked, lead to such dangerous acts as the relentless stockpiling of nuclear arms, or the unnecessary expansion of territorial borders. R.M. Restak -- The Brain: The Last Frontier
A. Tend to your proper business -- do not step outside your sphere of duty.
B. Control your emotional responses to nourish the evolution and integration of psychic processes.
Line 4
Legge: The fourth line, magnetic, shows its subject enriching the family. There will be great good fortune.
Wilhelm/Baynes: She is the treasure of the house. Great good fortune.
Blofeld: A well-to-do household -- great good fortune!
Liu: One makes the family prosperous. Great good fortune.
Ritsema/Karcher: Affluence Dwelling, the great significant.
Shaughnessy: A wealthy family; greatly auspicious.
Cleary (1): A rich home is very fortunate.
Wu: This is a wealthy family with great auspiciousness.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: This is due to her docility and because she is in her correct place. Wilhelm/Baynes: For she is devoted and in her place. Blofeld: This good fortune is indicated by the position of the line which symbolizes cheerful acceptance. Ritsema/Karcher: Yielding located-in the situation indeed. Cleary (2): Docilely occupying its position. Wu: Because its position is well taken.
Legge: Line four is magnetic and in her proper place. The wife is again suggested to us, and despite her confinement to the internal affairs of the household, she can do much to enrich the family. Yu Yen (Yuan Dynasty) observes that the riches of a family are not to be sought in its wealth, but in the affection and harmony of its members. Where these prevail the family is not likely to be poor, and whatever it has will be well preserved.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The woman of the family balances the income and expenditures, enriching the well-being and peace of the family. The faithful steward performs the same service for public welfare.
Wing: Attention to details pertaining to the economy of the situation brings good-fortune. Any attempts to further the well-being of others in a modest and humble way will be successful.
Editor: This line restates the message of the Judgment. Psychologically speaking, it re-affirms the idea that emotional energy under control and in its proper place is a great source of personal power. This is an image of the ideal role of the ego in relation to the Work.
Control of the emotions is a very important element of self-control in general. Often the concept of self-control conjures up the image of an emotionless, dry, rigid way of life. If a person is in complete control of his emotions, however, he can call forth any emotion he desires and is free to enhance it as he wills. Rather than be controlled by emotions such as love, yearning, or awe, he can control them. One can evoke these emotions and blend them together, painting every aspect of life with a rich palette of feelings. Control of the emotions can thus lead a person to experience a richer blend of feelings in his daily life than the average person generally experiences. Aryeh Kaplan --Jewish Meditation
A. Our emotions must serve us, not rule us.
B. The whole is enriched by the rectitude of one of its parts.
Line 5
Legge: The fifth line, dynamic, shows the influence of the king extending to his family. There need be no anxiety -- there will be good fortune.
Wilhelm/Baynes: As a king he approaches his family. Fear not. Good fortune.
Blofeld: The King draws near to his family (i.e. the nation) -- no cause for worry; good fortune!
Liu: The King extends his love to the family (country) without worry. Good fortune.
Ritsema/Karcher: The king imagines possessing a Dwelling. Beings: care significant.
Shaughnessy: The king approaches his family; do not pity; going is auspicious.
Cleary (1): The king comes to have a home; no worry – it is fortunate.
Cleary (2): The king has a great home. Do not worry; it is auspicious.
Wu: The king succeeds in making the nation like a family. It is auspicious, without worries.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: The relationship between them is that of mutual love. Wilhelm/Baynes: They associate with one another in love. Blofeld: This means that the ruler and his people meet together with love in their hearts. [This may be interpreted to mean that we enjoy the affection of our superiors or bestow affection on our juniors and those in our charge.] Ritsema/Karcher: Mingling mutual affection indeed. Cleary (2): With communication and mutual love. Wu: Because the people love and respect one another.
Legge: The subject of the dynamic fifth line appears as the king. This may be the husband spoken of as also a king, or the real king whose merit is revealed first in his family. The central place here tempers the display of strength and power. The mention of "mutual love" is unusual in Chinese writings, and must be considered remarkable here. "The husband," says Ch'eng-tzu, "loves his helpmate in the house; the wife loves him who is the pattern for the family."
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The father is not feared by the family. Like a richly endowed king, he governs through mutual affection and tempers the display of his powers.
Wing: A magnanimous and loving relationship exists between the leader and his followers. There is no reason to fear openness in these kinds of relationships. Good fortune comes through a beneficial influence.
Editor: This line can be problematic and is occasionally received under less than lucid circumstances. The "influence of the king" can be interpreted psychologically as the action of the Self in the inner dimensions and hence a reassurance that things are going as they should, even if they don't appear that way to our limited viewpoint in Spacetime.
God is bound to act, to pour Himself into thee as soon as He shall find thee ready. Meister Eckhart
A. A superior element influences subordinate elements for the overall benefit of the whole.
B. Relax, don't worry -- "Someone up there likes you."
C. Proper influence comes from affectionate regard, not tyranny.
D. Nourish your inner harmony -- attend to your legitimate needs.
Other titles: Possession in Great Measure, The Symbol of Great Possession, Sovereignty, Great Having, Great Possessing, The Great Possessor, Great Wealth, Abundance, Having What is Great, "Often means things other than material possessions or achievement. Count your blessings for they are many." -- D.F. Hook
Judgment
Legge:Wealth means great progress and success.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Possession in Great Measure. Supreme success.
Blofeld: He who possesses much -- supreme success!
Liu: Great Possessions. Great Success.
Ritsema/Karcher: Great Possessing, Spring Growing. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of your relation to an overriding concern or central idea. It emphasizes that organizing all your efforts around this idea is the adequate way to handle it...]
Shaughnessy: The Great Possession: Prime receipt.
Cleary (1): In great possession are creation and development.
Cleary (2): Great possession is great success.
Wu: Great Wealth is primordial and pervasive.
The Image
Legge: Fire over Heaven -- the image of Wealth. The superior man represses evil and nurtures virtue in accordance with the benevolent will of heaven.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Fire in heaven above: the image of Possession in Great Measure. Thus the superior man curbs evil and furthers good, and thereby obeys the benevolent will of heaven.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes fire in the heavens. [When the trigram for heaven is above, whatever is below may be separated from it; when it is below, it indicates fusion or intermixture with what is above. The significance here is that the splendor of a very great man lights up the heavens.] The Superior Man suppresses those who are evil and upholds the virtuous. Most gladly he accords with heaven and carries out its commands.
Liu: Fire over heaven symbolizes Great Possessions. The superior man suppresses evil and honors virtue, and thus follows the will of heaven and waits upon destiny.
Ritsema/Karcher: Fire located above heaven. Great Possessing. A chun tzu uses terminating hate to display improvement. A chun tzu uses yielding-to heaven to relinquish fate.
Cleary (1): Fire is in the sky;great possession.Thus does the superior person stop evil and promote good, obeying heaven and accepting its order.
Cleary (2): … Leaders obey nature and accept its order by stopping the bad and promoting the good.
Wu: Fire above and heaven below form Great Wealth.Thus the jun zi suppresses the evil and promotes the good; he abides by the will of heaven to enrich his life.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge:Wealth shows the magnetic line in the central ruler's place, and honored by the dynamic lines above and below. The figure is composed of the trigrams of Strength and Clarity. The central line of Clarity responds to the central line of Strength, eventuating in timely action. This indicates great progress and success.
Legge: Wealth means "great havings," and symbolizes a kingdom, family or individual in a state of prosperity. The danger in such a position arises from the pride it is likely to engender. Here however, everything is against that: the place of honor is occupied by a magnetic line, so that the ruler will be humble, and all the dynamic lines will respond to her with sympathetic allegiance. The ruler's seat is in the central position of the trigram of Clarity, and hence her strength is directed by intelligence, and all her actions are timely, like the seasons of heaven.
Fire above the sky shines far -- symbolizing the vastness of the territory of wealth. To develop virtue and repress evil is in accordance with the will of heaven, which has given to all men a nature fitted for goodness.
Cleary (2): All states of being have this essence inherent in them and are indeed made of this essence, but all states other than that of complete enlightenment are out of harmony with this essence in some way. Buddhahood is when you accord with this essence.
Wu: As the sun shines brightly high in the sky, both the good and the bad will be exposed. The responsibility of the jun zi is to discriminate between them. He acts in accordance with the nature of goodness (the will of heaven) to enrich his life.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: The greatest kind of Wealth accrues from furthering the Work.
The Superior Man manages his forces in accordance with the goals of the Work.
Wealthis the inverse of the preceding figure, Union of Forces. If the thirteenth hexagram depicts a process of uniting, the fourteenth might be seen as the completion of that process. To have one's inner forces correctly united is indeed Possession in Great Measure, which is the title that Wilhelm gives to this figure.
It is emphasized in the Image that this Wealth must be administered in accordance with the "benevolent will of heaven,” which is to say: the principles of the Work must always guide one's choices if one is not to lose equilibrium and become pauperized by illusion.
The superior man considers a rich possession of moral principles to be honor, and peace in his person to be wealth. Chou Tun-I