Hexagram #27 - Nourishing

 

Moving to	Date
		Unchanging -
		Top Line - The person in this position has a highly developed awareness of what is required in order to properly educate, influence, and nourish others.  Should she under take this task conscious of all the implications of her responsibilities, she will bring happiness to many (24)
		Fifth Line
21	4/3/07	Fourth Line - "One is filled with a craving for nourishment. It is advantageous for one to intensely and carefully inspects all that there is for the best pieces. No harm in this
		Third Line
		Second Line -
		Bottom line -

Nourishment refers to much more than a healthy diet. It is the care-giving function. Eating properly implies care for oneself; providing healthy meals in the home is a sign of caring for the family. The writer of a great book or composer of an inspiring piece of music also provides nourishment - to humanity in general, by caring deeply about his or her work and offering the fruits of it to the world.

You can know people by observing what they choose to nourish in their own lives. Do they feed and develop their own bodies? Do they cultivate their spirits, their intellects, their moral values? Do they nourish and care for those around them? If so, to whom do they devote their energies? The most successful people are temperate in eating and drinking, thinking and dreaming. They strengthen the world by nurturing the higher nature in man.

Pay heed to your inner thoughts and impulses, ignoring thoughts which undermine a healthy and persevering attitude. A wise person is temperate in the consumption of food and drink, because to be otherwise only leads to discomfort; the fact that temporary pleasure may precede the discomfort does not influence the person of mature character. In the same way, be discriminating in your words and actions, lest a desire for temporary advantage lead you to cause pain for yourself or others. Enrich your own character and you will naturally nourish everyone around you.

Tuesday April 3, 2007

Asked what advice the I-ching had for me for the month of April

I interpreted it to mean that I need to return to the basics -- the chop wood carry water types of activities to find center.  That the lower level is where the wisdom is at the moment.  That the higher level (referring here to line four) has lost the ability to provide guidance.  One quote I found says "line four brings us to a point where we are so hungry for real nourishment, actually starved for it (looking around like a starved tiger) that we finally seek out good things that will bring us back to our correct path."

Also found an interesting comment that said this referred to moving up the charkas -- This could mean an imbalance in the 4th or based on the information in the Tao of organization it could mean an imbalance in the second chakra

Hex 27 counsels us to *contemplate* our nourishment and become clear about it. It also says that this contemplation of nourishment, through which we thoroughly familiarize yourself with its nature, arises out of a concern for substantial, quality food.
 

Good fortune comes from seeking nourishment in the high hills. Staring about with hungry eyes like a tiger brings no reproach.

At first this seems to contradict the second line, but we have now reached the upper trigram and the line no longer refers to a man bent on seeking his own advantage but to one who searches about him for others to help him attain his high ideal.