Harmony within radiates outward, igniting shared dreams with joyful resilience.
From
37
The Family
To
16
Enthusiasm
Being overtaken by one's past
One is alarmed by practices one has engaged in before. 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 1
The foundation of the family is strong. By maintaining order and discipline, harmony is achieved.
↓ Line 3
Conflicts may arise, but maintaining a firm and correct stance helps restore harmony.
↓ 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.
↓ Line 6
Diligence and dedication in one's duties lead to respect and eventual success.
↓ Enthusiasm16
Inspiration fuels energy; align enthusiasm with purpose to move forward effectively.
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 1
Legge: The first line, dynamic, shows its subject establishing restrictive regulations in his household. Occasion for repentance will disappear.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Firm seclusion within the family. Remorse disappears.
Blofeld: The family dwelling stands within an enclosure -- regret vanishes.
Liu: He sets up a rule for his family. Remorse disappears. [People can expect success in their plans.]
Shaughnessy: The gate has a family; regret is gone.
Cleary (1): Guarding the home, regret vanishes.
Wu: A family lives by the principle. There will be no regret.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: He establishes rules before any change has taken place in their wills. Wilhelm/Baynes: The will has not yet changed. Blofeld: The first part of this passage symbolizes determination which has never swerved. Ritsema/Karcher: Purpose not-yet transformed indeed. Cleary (2): The aim does not change. Wu: The goal has not been changed.
Legge: Line one is dynamic in a dynamic place. It suggests the necessity of strict rule in governing the family. Regulations must be established, and their observance strictly insisted on.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: At the outset, the man establishes firm rules of order and relationships in the household. Overindulgence of a young child leads to the difficult task of breaking the child's will later on.
Wing: At the very beginning of relationships or endeavors, you establish firm roles and well-defined systems, then all will go well. Even occasions that might give rise to arguments will pass without remorse.
Editor: A house symbolizes the whole psyche, so a household is all of the entities which make it up -- thoughts, feelings, appetites, passions, etc. The idea here is that one must maintain consistency and order in the situation at hand, and not allow any deviation from that order. Implied is the injunction not to indulge in inappropriate expressions of emotion. The line can sometimes mean that you have everything you need to succeed within you: you don't have to seek outside for what you already possess.
Therefore when the light circulates, the energies of the whole body appear before its throne, as, when a holy king has established the capital and has laid down the fundamental rules of order, all the states approach with tribute; or as, when the master is quiet and calm, men- servants and maids obey his orders of their own accord, and each does his work. The Secret of the Golden Flower
A. Put your house in order. Maintain discipline, define your parameters, and organize your priorities.
B. Restrict and control the expression of autonomous forces within the psyche. Do not deviate from established order.
C. You already have everything you require to attain your goals.
Line 3
Legge: The third line, dynamic, shows its subject treating the members of the household with stern severity. There will be occasion for repentance, there will be peril, but there will also be good fortune. If the wife and children were to be smirking and chattering, in the end there would be occasion for regret.
Wilhelm/Baynes: When tempers flare up in the family, too great a severity brings remorse. Good fortune nonetheless. When women and children dally and laugh, it leads in the end to humiliation.
Blofeld: When members of the family speak sharply to one another, the mutual regret and the serious situation which follow may lead to good fortune; but if the women and children take to tittering, misfortune is assured. [An occasional scolding may not do much harm, but constant mockery of parents or husband will cause irreparable damage to family accord. The former, if followed by regret and by the threat of an unwanted quarrel or separation, may bring people to their senses and make them mutually more considerate than hitherto.]
Liu: If the members of the family are severe toward each other, there will be seriousness but good fortune. When women and children are silly, there will be regret in the end.
Ritsema/Karcher: Dwelling People, scolding, scolding: Repenting, adversity significant. The wife, the son, giggling, giggling: Completing abashed.
Shaughnessy: The family members so excited; regret; danger; auspicious. The wife and children are so introspective; in the end distress.
Cleary (1): People in the home are strict. Conscientious sternness bodes well. If the women and children are too frivolous, it will end in humiliation.
Wu: Family members complain about stern discipline. Though regrettable and disturbing, it is auspicious. When women and children are frivolous, there is cause for humiliation.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Stern severity means that there has been no great failure in the regulation of the family. When wife and children are smirking and chattering, the proper economy of the family has been lost. Wilhelm/ Baynes: "When tempers flare..." nothing is as yet lost. "When woman and child dally," the discipline of the house is lost. Blofeld: Because sharp words do not cause much harm, but the tittering of women and children leads to the destruction of good order within the family. Ritsema/ Karcher: Not-yet letting-go indeed. The wife, the son, giggling, giggling: Letting-go Dwelling articulating indeed. Cleary (2): It is not a mistake for the people in the home to be strict. When the women and children are frivolous, the order of a household is lost. Wu: The principle is not abandoned. Proper conduct is violated.
Legge: Line three is dynamic in a dynamic place. If the place were central, the energy would be tempered, but he is at the top of the trigram, and may be expected to exceed in severity. But severity is not a bad thing in regulating a family -- it is better than laxity and indulgence.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: A proper balance must be struck between indulgence and severity. However, severity, despite occasional mistakes, is preferable to a lack of discipline.
Wing: A moderate path to establishing order in the situation must be found.
A balance should be struck between careless indulgence and severe discipline. When in doubt, however, it is far better to be overly severe than to allow the situation to become lost in the chaos of indulgence.
Editor: Psychologically interpreted, the first line shows the establishment of rules within the psyche, and the third line shows their enforcement. The wife symbolizes the Eros function: the feelings, desires, appetites and drives; and the children represent the proliferation of new psychic "entities" which are created in the normal day to day intercourse of thought and feeling. The image pertains to maintaining a balance between two extremes -- severity and permissiveness. If one must err, it is better to be too severe than too lax. The Greeks were fully aware that Eros is a "mighty daemon":
When Sophocles speaks of Eros as a power that "warps to wrong the righteous mind, for its destruction," we should not dismiss this as "personification": behind it lies the old Homeric feeling that these things are not truly within man's conscious control; they are endowed with a life and energy of their own, and so can force a man, as it were from the outside, into conduct foreign to him. E.R. Dodds --The Greeks and the Irrational
In terms of the Work, of course, these forces are not only some degree within our control, but it is the ego’s specific duty to control them as much as possible. That is what this line is all about.
A. Get a grip on yourself -- control your emotional responses.
B. Impose restrictions and order. Define hierarchy.
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.
Line 6
Legge: The sixth line, dynamic, shows its subject possessed of sincerity and arrayed in majesty. In the end there will be good fortune.
Wilhelm/Baynes: His work commands respect. In the end good fortune comes.
Blofeld: His sincerity (and/or confidence) is such as to make him appear awe-inspiring -- good fortune in the end!
Shaughnessy: There is a return stooped-like; in the end auspicious.
Cleary (1): There is trustworthiness, dignified; it turns out well.
Cleary (2): There is truthfulness, which is impressive. The end is auspicious.
Wu: He is confident in his dignity and will have good fortune in the end.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: This is the result of the recovery of the true character. Wilhelm/Baynes: This indicates that one makes demands first of all upon oneself. Blofeld: He will enjoy good fortune because he subjects himself frequently to self-examination. Ritsema/Karcher: Reversing individuality's designating indeed. Cleary (2): What is auspicious about his impressiveness is that it calls for personal transformation. Wu: He often examines his own conduct.
Legge: Line six is also dynamic, and being in a magnetic place, he might degenerate into stern severity. But he is sincere and complete in himself. His majesty is not artificial: his character is remolded and perfected, hence his action will only lead to good fortune. The words of Mencius are aptly quoted in illustration of the lesson: "If a man himself does not walk in the right path, it will not be walked in even by his wife and children."
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: It is the father's character which eventually determines order and unity in the family. He should be sincere and majestic.
Wing: Your character and its development will be enhanced. Your sense of responsibility toward yourself and others brings good fortune and success. You will be recognized and respected for your insights and virtuous works.
Editor: The concept rendered as "sincerity" in English is extremely important in Chinese thought, with connotations which transcend our ordinary definition of the word. Wing-Tsit Chan defines it: "This word means not only sincerity in the narrow sense, but also honesty, absence of fault, seriousness, being true to one's true self, being true to the nature of being, actuality, realness." The line can imply a compliment for good work, saying, in effect, that your attitude is in accordance with that which promotes integration and harmony in the family of the psyche.
When the Way of Heaven [or principle] and the nature of man [or desires] function separately, there cannot be sincerity. When there is a difference between the knowledge obtained by following the Way of Heaven and that obtained by following the nature of man, there cannot be perfect enlightenment. What is meant by enlightenment resulting from sincerity is that in which there is no distinction between the Way of Heaven as being great and the nature of man as being small. Chang Tsai -- Enlightenment Resulting from Sincerity
Other titles: The Symbol of Harmonious Joy, Repose, Happiness, Providing-for/Provision, Excess, Merriment, Self-confidence, Contentment, Harmonize, Excitement, Intemperance, Self-deception "Repose in the absolute confidence that the action now being taken is right. Also refers to music." -- D.F. Hook
Judgment
Legge: Enthusiasm indicates that feudal princes may be set up and the army advantageously mobilized.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Enthusiasm. It furthers one to install helpers and to set armies marching.
Blofeld:Repose profits those engaged in building up the country and sending forth armies. [This means that perfect certainty as to the rightness of our cause is of great value under the conditions mentioned. The usual meaning of this character is "beforehand" or "happiness." In the English translation of Wilhelm's version, it appears as "enthusiasm." "Repose" was suggested by the Chinese experts who kindly vetted this manuscript. At first I felt hesitant about adopting it, until I realized that, where it is used favorably, it must be understood as the kind of mental repose which follows absolute confidence that the action now being taken is the right one. In lines one, three and six, however, it clearly means failure to act when action is essential; in line five, failure to act owing to incapacity.]
Liu:Happiness. It is of benefit to build up the country (or business), and send the army forth. [Receivers of this hexagram should be wary of exhibiting excessive enthusiasm when beginning a new undertaking. If they are not, there will be misfortune. The hexagram also advises that everything necessary for advancement should be made ready. Then if an opportunity presents itself, it should be seized immediately, without hesitation.]
Ritsema/Karcher: Providing-for , Harvesting: installing feudatories to move legions. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of what is needed to meet the future. It emphasizes that accumulating strength through foresight and prudence so things can be fully enjoyed is the adequate way to handle it. To be in accord with the time, you are told to: provide-for!]
Shaughnessy: Excess: Beneficial to establish a lord and to move troops.
Cleary (1):Joy. It is advantageous to set up a ruler and mobilize the army.
Wu:Merriment indicates the advantage of establishing principalities and taking military actions.
The Image
Legge: Thunder exploding out of the Earth -- the image of Enthusiasm. The ancient kings, in accordance with this, composed their music and honored virtue, offering it especially to God when they worshipped him at the service of their ancestors.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Thunder comes resounding out of the earth: the image of Enthusiasm. Thus the ancient kings made music in order to honor merit, and offered it with splendor to the Supreme Deity, inviting their ancestors to be present.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes thunder over the earth. The ancient rulers venerated heaven's gifts with solemn music and they sacrificed abundantly to the Supreme Lord of Heaven in order to be worthy of their ancestors.
Liu: Thunder arising from the earth symbolizes Happiness. The ancient kings composed music to honor virtue, offering it to God and the spirits of their ancestors.
Ritsema/Karcher: Thunder issuing-forth-from earth impetuously. Providing-for. The Earlier Kings used arousing delight to extol actualizing-tao. Exalting worship's Supreme Above. Using equalizing the grandfather predecessors. [Actualize-tao:ability to follow the course traced by the ongoing process of the cosmos... Linked with acquire, TE: acquiring that which makes a being become what it is meant to be.]
Cleary (1): When thunder emerges the earth stirs: Thus did the kings of yore make music to honor virtue, offering it in abundance to God, thereby to share it with their ancestors.
Wu: Thunder breaks out above the earth with a boom; this is Merriment. Thus the ancient kings used music to praise virtuous accomplishments and made grand offerings to the Supreme Being to be accompanied by their ancestors.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Enthusiasm shows one dynamic line inspiring responsive obedience in all the others: devoted obedience takes action. Such obedient action conforms to natural law and creates order and discipline in the people. The planets and the seasons follow their natural cycles. The sages similarly obey the laws of their nature and the people acknowledge their regulations and punishments as just.
Legge:Enthusiasm shows harmony and contentment throughout the kingdom -- a time when the people rejoice in their sovereign and readily obey him. At such a time his appointments and any military undertakings would be hailed and supported. Because he is close to the fifth place of dignity, the dynamic fourth line is seen as the chief executive officer of the ruler. The ruler has confidence in him, and all of the magnetic lines yield their obedience. Obedience is the attribute of the lower trigram which here takes the initiative and uses Movement, which is the attribute of the upper trigram.
The symbolism of the Image is more obscure than usual. The use of music at sacrifices is supposed to assist in producing the union between God and his worshippers as well as the present and past generations.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: Delegate authority and gather your forces.
The Superior Man synchronizes his will with the intent of the Self via the principles of the Work.
Enthusiasm is the reverse of the preceding hexagram of Temperance. In Temperance we saw the calm strength of a mountain concealed within the earth. In Enthusiasm we see thunder exploding out of the ground into the sky: the strength that was formerly tempered and restrained is now released. It is significant to note that while every line of Temperance is more or less "favorable,” every line of Enthusiasm is either negative or cautionary -- even the generally positive fourth line carries a hint of warning about “doubt.”
Negatively, Self-Deception (the passion of True Believers) seems to be what this hexagram is portraying. The figure often suggests a callow or deluded buoyancy -- the kind of outlook associated with romantic idealists. In its most negative aspect, Enthusiasm is Intemperance -- the exact opposite of the moderation and restraint shown in the preceding hexagram. The behavior of an untrained Great Dane puppy suddenly bursting into a formal dinner party could be described as "enthusiasm,” but hardly a desirable form thereof. The lower trigram of Obedient Devotion has suddenly employed the action and energy of the upper trigram of Thunderous Shock to express itself. This is inconsistent with the code of the superior man.
Conversely, in its most positive sense, Enthusiasm suggests the surety of total self-confidence. Blofeld translates this as Repose, explaining that the name was suggested to him by his Chinese advisors. We begin to understand this subtle distinction when we compare the seemingly obscure connection with music in the Image with a passage from Chuang- tse:
He who understands the music of heaven lives in accordance with nature in his life and takes part in the process of change of things in his death. In repose, his character is in harmony with the yin principle; in activity, his movement is in harmony with the yang principle. Therefore he who understands the music of heaven is not blamed by heaven or criticized by men ... It is said, "In action he is like heaven. In repose he is like the earth ... Because his mind has found repose, therefore the creation pays homage to him.”
To understand “the music of heaven” is to attain Repose, which is another way of describing the tranquility that comes with furthering the intent of the Self. The only dynamic line in the hexagram is in the minister's place just below the fifth-line ruler. He has the confidence of his sovereign and his actions therefore accord with heaven. We can turn to the Stoics to find an illustration of this idea:
My will is simply that which comes to pass. For I esteem what God wills better than what I will. To Him will I cleave as His minister and attendant; having the same movements, the same desires, in a word the same will as He. -- Epictetus
Thus we see that the hexagram can describe either one of two opposite conditions -- the intemperate Enthusiasm of ego-confidence (a synonym for Self-Deception), or the calm Repose of true SELF-confidence. The fifteenth and sixteenth hexagrams, each the inverse of the other, represent magnetic and dynamic aspects of the same general idea: Enthusiasm, when it emanates from the Self, is just Temperance in action.