The I Ching or Book of Changes (127 page)

a
) He shoots a pheasant.

It drops with the first arrow.

In the end this brings both praise and office.

b
) In the end he rises through praise and office.

This line, which is yielding, and in the central place outside,
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is the wanderer. Being central and devoted, it succeeds in gaining friends below (the nine in the fourth place) and an official position above (nine at the top); thus it rises.

The trigram Li denotes pheasant and weapons. The nuclear trigram Tui is metal, hence the idea of shooting. Tui is also the mouth, hence praise.

Chu Hsi interprets the second sentence as follows: “An arrow is lost.” Grammatically this version is of course also possible.

Nine at the top:

a
) The bird’s nest burns up.

The wanderer laughs at first,

Then must needs lament and weep.

Through carelessness he loses his cow.

Misfortune.

b
) Being at the top as a wanderer rightly leads to being burnt up.

“Through carelessness he loses his cow.” In the end he hears nothing.

The strong line at the top, whose movement moreover tends upward, loses its foundations. Thus all gaiety leads only to losses, because the line neglects all too much the duties of a wanderer, and even injury does not make it the wiser.

Li is bird and also flame. The place is high up, over the nuclear trigram Sun, hence the image of a nest. The idea of laughing derives from the nuclear trigram Tui, meaning gaiety and mouth. The idea of lamenting derives from the destructive force lurking in Tui. Li is cow; it is lost because of gaiety and carelessness in a high place. There is no hope for this line; it never comes to its senses, because it merely goes on striving further upward, giving no thought at all to return.

57. Sun / The Gentle (Penetrating, Wind)

Although this hexagram is conditioned by the two yin lines, there is only one feminine hexagram, namely Li, THE CLINGING, in which the yin lines are the rulers. They are rulers because they occupy middle places. The two yin lines here are the constituting rulers of the hexagram but cannot be regarded as the governing rulers. The governing ruler is rather the nine in the fifth place, for only one who is in an honored place can “spread his commands abroad and carry out his undertakings.” When therefore it is said in the Commentary on the Decision, “The firm penetrates to the middle and to the correct, and its will is done,” the reference is to the fifth line.

The Sequence

The wanderer has nothing that might receive him; hence there follows the hexagram of THE GENTLE, THE PENETRATING. The Gentle means going into.

This means that the wanderer in his forlornness has no place to stay in, and that hence there follows Sun, the hexagram of homecoming.

Miscellaneous Notes

THE GENTLE means crouching.

The dark line is below, it crouches down beneath the light lines, and through this gentle crouching succeeds in penetrating among the strong lines.

Appended Judgments

THE GENTLE shows the exercise of character. Through THE GENTLE one is able to weigh things and remain hidden. Through THE GENTLE one is able to take special circumstances into account.

Gentle penetration makes the character capable of influencing the outside world and gaining control over it. For thus one can understand things in their inner nature without having to step into the forefront oneself. Herein lies the power of influence. In this position, one is able to make the exceptions demanded by the time, without being inconsistent.

Among the eight trigrams, Sun occupies the southeast, between spring and summer. It means the flowing of beings into their forms, it means baptism and giving life.

THE JUDGMENT

THE GENTLE. Success through what is small.

It furthers one to have somewhere to go.

It furthers one to see the great man.

Commentary on the Decision

Penetration repeated, in order to spread commands abroad.

The firm penetrates to the middle and to the correct, and its will is done.

Both of the yielding lines submit to the strong; therefore it is said: “Success through what is small. It furthers one to have somewhere to go. It furthers one to see the great man.”

This hexagram is constituted by a doubling of the trigram Sun, which means on the one hand gentleness, adaptability, on the other penetration. In the issuing of commands, it is all-important that they really penetrate the consciousness of the subordinates. This is effected by adaptation of the commands to their understanding. A twofold penetration is required: first penetration of a command to the feeling of the vassals, scattering the evil hidden in secret recesses, as the wind scatters clouds; second, a still deeper penetration, to the depths of consciousness, where the hidden good must be awakened. To obtain this effect, commands must be given repetitively.
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The text is further explained in the light of the structure of the hexagram. The strong line that has penetrated to the center—the correct place for it—is the nine in the fifth place; therefore its will is done, and it is favorable to undertake something. The yielding lines in the first and the fourth place obey the firm ruler of the hexagram above them. Hence success is connected with the small, which is furthered by seeing the great man (the nine in the fifth place).

THE IMAGE

Winds following one upon the other:

The image of THE GENTLY PENETRATING.

Thus the superior man

Spreads his commands abroad

And carries out his undertakings.

Of the two winds the first disperses resistances, “spreads his commands abroad,” and the second accomplishes the work, “carries out his undertakings.”

THE LINES

Six at the beginning:

a
) In advancing and in retreating,

The perseverance of a warrior furthers.

b
) “In advancing and in retreating”: the will wavers.

“The perseverance of a warrior furthers.” The will is controlled.

This line is yielding and at the very bottom of the hexagram of THE GENTLE, hence the indecision. But in subordinating itself to the strong line over it, it is sustained by military discipline.

Nine in the second place:

a
) Penetration under the bed.

Priests and magicians are used in great number.

Good fortune. No blame.

b
) The good fortune of the great number is due to the fact that one has attained the middle.

The line is strong but central, hence indicates good fortune. The trigram Sun means wood, and the divided line below stands for legs; hence the image of a bed. The nuclear trigram Tui means mouth and magician. By submitting to the strong ruler of the hexagram, who is of like kind, the line is able to aid the ruler in spreading his commands, because it penetrates to the most secret corners. Priests are the intermediaries between men and gods; magicians serve as the intermediaries between gods and men. Here we have penetration of the realms of the visible and the invisible, whereby it becomes possible for everything to be set right.

Nine in the third place:

a
) Repeated penetration. Humiliation.

b
) The humiliation of repeated penetration comes from the fact that the will exhausts itself.

The third place is intermediate in the relation of the two Sun trigrams: one trigram is at its close, the other just beginning; hence penetration repeated. The nine in the third place is too hard and not central. Although this character is not suitable for gentle penetration to the core of things, it is attempted nonetheless. No result is achieved. Everything remains in a state of irresolute vacillation.

Six in the fourth place:

a
) Remorse vanishes.

During the hunt

Three kinds of game are caught.

b
) “During the hunt three kinds of game are caught.” This is meritorious.

The nuclear trigram Li means weapons, hence the hunt. The six in the fourth place is correct, submits to the ruler, and brings the three lower lines to him. In this way it acquires merit, and averts the remorse that might be occasioned by too much weakness.

Nine in the fifth place: