One affects to believe what the others have declared. taoscopy.com
Abundance55
Abundance and prosperity surround you, but be mindful not to let them lead to arrogance or distraction. Stay focused and genuine in the present moment to make the most of your opportunities.
↓ Line 1
Meeting the right person or opportunity brings success. There is no error in pursuing this path.
↓ Line 3
Overabundance can obscure vision. Sacrifices may be necessary, but they do not bring blame.
↓ Line 5
Opportunities and recognition are approaching. This brings good fortune.
↓ Gathering Together45
Coming together for a shared purpose; unity and collective effort lead to strength. It's time to rally support and focus on communal goals.
55 Abundance
Other titles: Abundance, Fullness, The Symbol of Prosperity, Greatness, Abounding, Richness, Prolific, Fruitful, Luxuriant, Zenith, Affluence, Correct Action, Lucid Behavior, "Generally means that one will have enough for one's needs with a little over. Does not mean large wealth as a rule." -- D.F. Hook
Judgment
Legge: Expansion of Awareness means progress and development. When the king is enlightened there is no need to fear a change. Let him be as the sun at noon.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Abundance has success. The king attains abundance. Be not sad. Be like the sun at midday.
Blofeld:Abundance -- success! The King inspires them. Do not be sad; it is fitting to be like the sun at its zenith. [Abundance in itself is often good; but it is generally followed by the waning of what was abundant; moreover, as we shall see, there can be abundance of darkness, or anything else unpleasant. (The Judgment itself) may be taken as an auspicious omen.]
Liu: Greatness. Success. The king attains greatness, without sadness; he should be like the sun at midday.
Ritsema/Karcher:Abounding, Growing. The king imagining it. No grief. Properly sun centering. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of profusion and abundance reaching culmination. It emphasizes that exuberantly increasing things to their fullest is the adequate way to handle it...]
Shaughnessy: Abundance: Receipt; the king approaches it; do not be sad. It is proper for the middle of the day.
Cleary (1): Richness is developmental. Freedom from worry when the king is great is suited to midday.
Cleary (2):Richness is success; a king attains this. Do not worry. Take advantage of the sun at noon.
Wu: A sage king will attain abundance. There is no need to worry, for he knows the expedience of observing the midday sun.
The Image
Legge: The superior man, in accordance with this, decides cases of litigation, and apportions punishments with exactness.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Both thunder and lightning come: the image of Abundance. Thus the superior man decides lawsuits and carries out punishments.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes thunder and lightning occurring simultaneously. The Superior Man decides law suits and inflicts the necessary penalties.
Liu: Thunder and lightning coming together symbolize Greatness. The superior man judges lawsuits and imposes punishments.
Ritsema/Karcher: Thunder, lightning, altogether culminating. Abounding. A chun tzu uses severing litigating to involve punishing.
Cleary (1): Thunder and lightning both arrive, abundant. Thus do superior people pass judgment and execute punishment.
Cleary (2): Thunder and lightning both come in richness. Thus do leaders pass judgments and execute punishments.
Wu: Thunder and lightning come together; this is Abundance. Thus the jun zi decides the verdicts and exacts the punishments.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: The greatness of Expansion of Awareness is due to Movement directed by Clarity. Although the king has attained this state, he must still make it greater. But there is no need for anxiety -- let him be as the sun at noon: let his clarity shine on all under the sky. As soon as sun and moon reach zenith their light begins to wane. The intercourse of heaven and earth alternates between abundance and scarcity. It waxes and wanes according to the seasons. How much more so with men or spiritual forces! [Ritsema/Karcher translate "spiritual forces" [Kuei Shen] as: "The whole range of imaginal beings both inside and outside the individual; spiritual powers, gods, demons, ghosts, powers, fetishes." -- Ed.]
Legge: The written Chinese character denoting Expansion of Awarenessis the symbol of being large and abundant -- a condition of prosperity. In human affairs, prosperity often gives place to its opposite. The lesson of the hexagram is to show how the ruler may preserve the prosperity of his state and people. The component trigrams show Motive Force under the direction of Intelligence. A ruler with these attributes will not fail to maintain the progress and development of his kingdom. He is told not to be anxious, but to study how he may always be like the sun at its zenith, cheering and enlightening all.
It must be noted that a change has been introduced in this hexagram in explaining the symbolism of the lines. Normally, for two lines to have a correct relationship one must be female (magnetic) and the other male (dynamic). Here two dynamic male lines make a proper correlation in the first and fourth places.
In the Image, lightning appears as the natural phenomenon of which Clarity is the symbol in the lower trigram. The virtues of Clarity and Movement are required of the superior man in judging litigation.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: Don't grieve when the truth hurts: a loss of illusion is a gain in awareness. Once truly attained, enlightenment cannot be lost, it can only be increased.
The Superior Man acts with clarity by accurately evaluating cause and effect. [Or: The objective assessment of any contradiction is the road to comprehending it.]
The fifty-fifth hexagram is very intriguing in that it appears to have a misleading title in the original Chinese, which is usually translated as Abundance,Fullness, Prosperity, etc. All of the internal clues, plus empirical experience with the figure have convinced me that the title Expansion of Awareness is a more accurate description of the forces operating in this hexagram. Here is my reasoning:
First, the component trigrams of Clarity and Movement portray action directed by clear comprehension, as well as awareness itself in motion or expansion. The title of Abundance seems misleading because it suggests a relatively static condition, whereas the combined trigrams in the figure symbolize Clear Movement. These trigrams appear in reverse sequence in hexagram number twenty-one, Discernment, which symbolizes the act of comprehending -- a dynamic function of consciousness described in the Image here as a quest for justice: "Thus the superior man decides lawsuits and carries out punishments." (Wilhelm) Notice also that the message for the superior man in this Image is almost identical with that in Discernment:"Thus the kings of former times made firm the laws through clearly defined penalties." (Wilhelm) The ancient kings can always be taken as symbolic of archetypal forces (the "gods"), so their laws are those of nature, not of humankind. Interpreted broadly, both messages counsel us to: "Comprehend the law of Tao, or suffer the penalties of ignorance." Which is to say: "expand your awareness."
Second, note the message in the Judgment. Most of the translators render this by comparing the king at the peak of his power with the sun at the peak of its illumination at noon. The sun is the symbol of clarity and enlightenment, and the sun at its zenith therefore symbolizes a high point of awareness.
Third, notice that lines two, three and four depict an eclipse of the sun through its waxing, full and waning phases. This suggests ignorance gradually evolving toward comprehension, which is finally attained in line five. The progression in the hexagram is from ignorance to clarity, and then in line six, ignorance within clarity -- i.e., an image of one who remains obtuse while surrounded by the light of illumination.
Fourth, the combined trigrams of shock and light (thunder and lightning) suggest a sudden and numinous illumination: the sort of en-light-enment (expansion of awareness) described by Yogis:
Suddenly, with a roar like that of a waterfall, I felt a stream of liquid light entering my brain through the spinal cord ... The illumination grew brighter and brighter, the roaring louder, I experienced a rocking sensation and then felt myself slipping out of my body, entirely enveloped in a halo of light ... I was no longer myself, or to be more accurate, no longer as I knew myself to be, a small point of awareness confined in a body, but instead was a vast circle of consciousness in which the body was but a point, bathed in light and in a state of exaltation and happiness impossible to describe. Gopi Krishna --Kundalini, the Evolutionary Energy in Man
It is possible that the written character translated into English as Abundance has these associations in Chinese. Unfortunately, the title of Abundance itself does not immediately suggest in the English language the ideas that are integral in the symbolism of the hexagram.
Line 1
Legge: The first line, dynamic, shows its subject meeting with his mate. Though they are both of the same character, there will be no error. Advance will call forth approval.
Wilhelm/Baynes: When a man meets his destined ruler, they can be together ten days, and it is not a mistake. Going meets with recognition.
Blofeld: On meeting a prince of equal rank, though he accepts his hospitality for ten days, he is not at fault -- progress is made in winning respect!
Liu: When a man meets a deputy ruler, there will be harmony between them for ten days. No blame. Setting forth will lead to progress.
Ritsema/Karcher: Meeting one's equal lord. Although a decade, without fault. Going possesses honor.
Shaughnessy: Meeting his consort's ruler; it is only the ten-day week; there is no trouble; in going there will be elevation.
Cleary (1): Meeting your director, even as equals there is no blame. If you go on, there will be exaltation.
Cleary (2): Meeting your partner, etc.
Wu: He meets with his matched partner. Although they are of the same kind, there will be no error. The meeting is favorable.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: If the subject of this line seeks to overpass that similarity, there will be calamity. Wilhelm/Baynes: More than ten days is harmful. Blofeld: Were he to exceed that time, he would invite calamity upon himself. [It is all very well to accept the hospitality of our equals, but accepting too much of it will ultimately lead to trouble.] Ritsema/Karcher: Exceeding a decade, calamity indeed. Cleary (2): If you carry the equality too far, there will be disaster. Wu: It will be perilous if he tries to outshine his partner.
Legge: Line one is dynamic in a dynamic place. His correlate is the dynamic fourth line, which would normally be deemed unfortunate. But here the text calls line four the mate of line one, and makes their belonging to the same category of no account. The lesson taught is that mutual helpfulness is the great instrument for the maintenance of prosperity, and the subject of this line is encouraged to go forward.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: At the outset, the man meets his destined ruler and goes forth with his approval. Mutual helpfulness is required for continued prosperity.
Wing: Associating with someone whose goals are similar to your own will now bring you clarity and energy. It is not a mistake to continue in this close relationship until the project is complete.
Editor: For two yang lines to be in proper correlation seems to contradict the logic upon which theI Ching is founded, yet in this specific instance it is deemed correct. The image suggests the affinity of similar principles or categories. The Confucian commentary may be interpreted to mean that they remain united only to the extent that they are in accord. To make more or less out of the situation than the analogy warrants is to break the connection and lose the truth. Psychologically interpreted, the line can suggest a close connection between ego and Self.
Maturity and development demand a confrontation of the ego and the Self. The necessary adaptation of the ego is challenged by the Self's urge for the ego’s transformation. E.C. Whitmont -- The Symbolic Quest
A. Make a logical connection -- perhaps a highly "intellectual" conceptualization is in order. Focus on the principles of the Work to determine correct action.
B. When correspondences are legitimate, take advantage of them; however, don't make more out of such associations than the reality of the situation warrants.
C. For the moment at least, you are on the right track – this could change later.
D. Tentative or preliminary approval of the query at hand.
Line 3
Legge: The third line, dynamic, shows its subject with an additional screen of a large and thick banner, through which at midday he can see the small Mei star. In the darkness he breaks his right arm; but there will be no error.
Wilhelm/Baynes: The underbrush is of such abundance that the small stars can be seen at noon. He breaks his right arm. No blame.
Blofeld: So copious is the rain that, even at midday, there is obscurity. He breaks his right forearm -- no error!
Liu: Heavy clouds -- a fine drizzle can be seen. He hurts his right arm. No blame.
Ritsema/Karcher: Abounding: one's profusion. Sun centering: visualizing froth. Severing one's right arm. Without fault.
Shaughnessy: Making abundant his screen; in the middle of the day one sees small stars; breaking his right bow, there is no trouble.
Cleary (1): Increasing shade, seeing glimmering stardust at midday. One breaks one’s right arm. No one is to blame.
Cleary (2): With abundant rain, you see the drops in the sunlight. You break your right arm but are not to blame.
Wu: He makes abundance of heavy curtains. His house is so dimmed as if he could see small stars with the sun at noon. He breaks his right forearm. No error.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Great things should not be attempted in such circumstances. His broken arm means that in the end he will not be fit to be employed. Wilhelm/Baynes: One can carry out no great transactions. In the end, one must not try to do anything. Blofeld: There is nothing great we can accomplish now. His breaking his right forearm indicates uselessness up to the very end. [It is not clear whether the omen refers to our own uselessness for the task we have set ourselves or to that of someone on whom we have been depending. We must interpret the line in the context of our enquiry.] Ritsema/Karcher: Not permitting Great Affairs indeed. Completing, not permitting availing-of indeed. Cleary (2): When the rain is abundant, you cannot do great works. When you break your right arm, it cannot be used. Wu: He will not have big achievements. (His arm) will no longer be used again.
Legge: Line three is dynamic in its proper place in the trigram of Clarity. This seems to favor his action, but his correlate is the magnetic sixth line at the extremity of the trigram of Movement. Since the sixth line is powerless, line three has no one to cooperate with him. His situation is worse than that of line two, but his own proper goodness and capacity will save him from error. Mei is a small star in or near the constellation of the Bushel. The light in line three is hidden, and this blindness unfits him for employment.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The prince is so eclipsed that even insignificant personalities push themselves onto the stage. Although the man is in a key position, he is powerless to achieve anything. But he remains free of error.
Wing: Incompetence is at its Zenith. Be patient.
Editor: Midday is noon -- normally the zenith of illumination, and hence symbolic of awareness or truth. Here however, a condition equivalent to a full solar eclipse is portrayed. (The exact opposite of the position of the king in the Judgment.) The "small Mei star" is a distant sun, a lesser light: symbolically, a feeble comprehension. Darkness is ignorance, and the right arm represents one's power or ability to act. Blofeld, Liu, Ritsema/Karcher and Cleary (2) state that rain or "froth" is screening the light -- a hint that emotion may be clouding clear perception. (Water symbolizes the emotional realm.) These somewhat confused images nevertheless all agree that clear choice is eclipsed by ignorance: you are essentially powerless, and should refrain from significant action.
I am an empiricist, not a philosopher; I cannot let myself presuppose that my peculiar temperament, my own attitude to intellectual problems, is universally valid. Apparently this is an assumption in which only the philosopher may indulge, who always takes it for granted that his own disposition and attitude are universal, and will not recognize the fact, if he can avoid it, that his "personal equation" conditions his philosophy. Jung -- The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious
A. You are hampered by incomplete data: "There is more to the subject than meets the eye.” Useful action is impeded: Don’t act when you don’t know.
Line 5
Legge: The fifth line, magnetic, shows its subject bringing around her the men of brilliant ability. There will be occasion for congratulation and praise. There will be good fortune.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Lines are coming, blessing and fame draw near. Good fortune.
Blofeld: The variegated beauty of the sky after a storm now appears. Blessings [Unexpected or seemingly unmerited good fortune] and fame are won -- good fortune!
Liu: Glory will come, causing prosperity and recognition. Good fortune.
Shaughnessy: There comes a pattern, celebratory and uplifting; auspicious.
Cleary (1): Bringing beatification, there is glory; this is auspicious.
Cleary (2): Bringing brilliance, there is celebration and praise, etc.
Wu: If he could welcome his notable partner, there would be something to celebrate and praise. Auspicious.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: The good fortune is the congratulation that is sure to arise. Wilhelm/Baynes: It bestows blessing. Blofeld: Here, good fortune connotes the blessings already mentioned. Ritsema/Karcher: Possessing reward indeed. Cleary (2): There is joyful celebration. Wu: His good fortune depends on that there is something praiseworthy.
Legge: Line five is the ruler's place, magnetic herself, but the ruler of the trigram of Movement. She can do little without assistance, but if she can bring into her service the talents of lines one, three and four, and even of two, her magnetic correlate, the results will be admirable. Nothing consolidates the prosperity of a country so much as the cooperation of the ruler and her able ministers.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The modest ruler assembles ministers of brilliant ability around him. Especially is he attracted to men who are sound of heart and sure of getting results.
Wing: Be receptive to the opinions of others. Invite counsel from the most able helpers you know. Such modesty brings unexpected good fortune and rewarding results for all concerned.
Editor: "Brilliant ability" refers to the lines of the lower trigram of Clarity which rise to assist and reinforce the central line in the trigram of Movement. Wilhelm refers to these lines directly; Blofeld calls them "variegated beauty;" Liu, "Glory;" Ritsema/Karcher translate it as "composition"-- ("a well-composed whole and its structure; beautiful creations.") Shaughnessy dubs it a "pattern," etc. – none of the translators use exactly the same term. Because this is the ruler's place, all versions implicitly refer to the imagery in the Judgment: "The king attains abundance. Be not sad. Be like the sun at midday." Note however, that everyone except Blofeld places this in the future: it seems to be a coming event. If this is the only changing line, the hexagram created is number 49, Metamorphosis,suggesting that an Expansion of Awareness may be in the offing: "Comes the dawn!"
For it is the function of consciousness not only to recognize and assimilate the external world through the gateway of the senses, but to translate into visible reality the world within us. Jung --The Structure and Dynamics of the Psyche
A. You are surrounded by forces of enlightenment and lucid action is possible. "Gather your wits about you" -- clarity approaches.
45 Gathering Together
Other titles: Gathering Together, Massing, The Symbol of Gathering into One, Assembling, Congregation, Gathering, Unity, Accord, Making Whole, Focusing, Marshalling One's Forces, Clustering, Finished
Judgment
Legge: When forces are gathering, the King goes to his ancestral temple. For successful progress, maintain firm correctness and see the great man. A large sacrifice brings good fortune -- proceed toward your destination.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Gathering Together . Success. The king approaches his temple. It furthers one to see the great man. This brings success. Perseverance furthers. To bring great offerings creates good fortune. It furthers one to undertake something.
Blofeld: Gathering Together -- success! The King approaches the temple. It is advisable to see a great man, which will ensure success. Persistence in a righteous course brings reward. Great sacrifices are offered -- good fortune! [These were religious sacrifices, but they may be taken to mean that the time has come for us to make important sacrifices of another sort.] It is favorable to have in view a goal (or destination).
Liu:Gathering. Success. The king attends the temple. It is of benefit to see the great man; this leads to success. Continuance benefits. Offering a great sacrifice leads to good fortune. It benefits one to go somewhere.
Ritsema/Karcher:Clustering, Growing. The king imagines possessing a temple. Harvesting: visualizing Great People. Growing. Harvesting Trial. Availing-of the great: sacrificial-victims significant. Harvesting: possessing directed going. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of collecting and assembling. It emphasizes that bringing people and things together through a common feeling or goal is the adequate way to handle it...]
Shaughnessy: Finished: The king enters into the temple; beneficial to see the great man; receipt; beneficial to determine. Using the great animal offering is auspicious; beneficial to have someplace to go.
Cleary (1): Gathering is developmental. The king comes to have a shrine. It is beneficial to see a great person; this is developmental. It is beneficial to be correct. It is good to make a great sacrifice. It is beneficial to go somewhere.
Cleary (2):Gathering is successful. The king goes to his shrine. It is beneficial to see a great person; this leads to success, etc.
Wu: Congregation indicates that the king comes to his ancestral temple. It will be advantageous to see the great man. There will be pervasion, if persevering. It will be auspicious to use big sacrificial animals in the offerings. It will be good to have undertakings.
The Image
Legge: A marsh above the earth -- the image of Contraction. The superior man, in accordance with this, assembles his weapons in readiness for unseen contingencies.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Over the earth, the lake: the image of Gathering Together. Thus the superior man renews his weapons in order to meet the unforeseen.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes a marshy lake rising above the earth. The Superior Man gathers together his weapons in order to provide against the unforeseen. [This is a time when foresight is required of us, too.]
Liu: The lake on the earth symbolizes Gathering. The superior man keeps his weapons prepared to meet the unexpected.
Ritsema/Karcher: Above marsh with-respect-to earth. Clustering. A chun tzu uses eliminating arms to implement. A chun tzu uses warning, not precautions.
Cleary (1): Moisture rises onto the earth, gathering. Thus do superior people prepare weapons to guard against the unexpected. [When practitioners of the Tao get to where the five elements are assembled and have been returned to the source, when everything acquired is obedient to their will, if they do not know how to prevent danger and take perils into consideration, eventually what has been gathered will again disperse, and they will not be able to avoid the trouble of losing what has been gained… “Weapons” means the tools of wisdom, the work of silent operation of spiritual awareness. When the primordial has been congealed, it is not subject to injury by acquired conditioning, but it is still necessary to dissolve the influence of personal history before nature and life can be stabilized. If there is any remaining contamination, eventually conditioning will reassert itself and the primordial will again become fragmented. Therefore the work of guarding is indispensable.]
Wu: The marsh is above the earth; this is Congregation . Thus the jun zi causes the nation to be armed in preparation for contingencies.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Contraction shows massing for union through Cheerfulness and Obedience. The dynamic line is responded to in his ruling central place, hence the idea of union. With the utmost piety the king presents his offerings to the spirits in his ancestral temple. Union with the great man is effected through correctness. The law of heaven demands a sacrifice. Contemplation of the way forces are gathered shows us the way of heaven, earth and all of nature.
Legge:Contractionmeans collecting together, or things so collected. The hexagram deals with the union between the ruler and his ministers -- between high and low in the kingdom. This state is to be preserved through the influence of religion and the great man, who is a kind of philosopher king who meets the spirits of his ancestors in the temple. Whatever he does will succeed because he is correct and right, and his great sacrifices are in harmony with the times.
The two trigrams represent Docility and Cheerfulness. The dynamic fifth line has his proper magnetic correlate in line two -- which gives the idea of union. Ch'eng-tzu says that the ordinances of heaven are simply the natural and practical outcome of heavenly principle.
A marsh above the earth must be kept in by dykes -- so the Contraction must be preserved by precautionary measures, the chief of which is to be prepared to resist attack from without, and to quell internal rebellion.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: Forces are assembling for integration -- focus inward, sacrifice your autonomy and allow the Self to guide the Work.
The Superior Man pulls himself together to face the unknown and preserve the Work. “Forewarned is forearmed.”
Psychologically, Contraction depicts a time when inner components of the psyche assemble for recombination into a new pattern. It is significant that this is the time when “the king goes to his ancestral temple.” That is, the governing intelligence turns toward the template or ideal image of the Work as it exists in its consummate state. (See commentary on hexagram number fifty-nine, Expansion, for further discussion of the symbolism of the ancestral temple.) If the gathering forces integrate in conformity with this archetype, the Work is thereby advanced.
He, therefore, who perceives himself to associate with God, will have himself the similitude of Him. And if he passes from himself as an image to the archetype, he will then have the end of his progression. Plotinus
In addition to being a gestalt of future perfection, the temple is the home of the ancestors: a karmic repository of all that has gone into the Work via the will and intent of former historical ego-personalities. This archetype of "the ancestors" is described by the Lakota shaman, Black Elk, in his Great Vision. Note that the "grandfathers and grandmothers" are present when the people are "walking in a sacred manner" -- i.e., conforming to the ideal archetypal pattern of the Work:
But I was not the last; for when I looked behind me there were ghosts of people like a trailing fog as far as I could see -- grandfathers of grandfathers and grandmothers of grandmothers without number. And over these a great Voice -- the Voice that was the South -- lived, and I could feel it silent. And as we went the Voice behind me said: "Behold a good nation walking in a sacred manner in a good land!"
The Ancestral Temple then, symbolizes the Work in progress as it exists outside of temporal awareness. At death the karmic complexes of the psyche, released from their spacetime ego-body, assume new configurations in hyperspace in accordance with the accomplishments of the just completed lifetime. Ideally, the ancestors and their heirs (choices and their consequences) within the Ancestral Temple undergo purification: this is what Individuation (the Work) is all about.
At the end of the dying process consciousness divides into the consciousness of one's parents and one’s children, and then it moves through these modalities, and then divides again. It's moving forward into the future through the people who come after you, and backward into the past through your ancestors. Terence McKenna --The Archaic Revival
In the multidimensional realms "beyond" our material world, time does not exist. In some way unimaginable to us, past, present and future are consolidated into an eternal Here and Now. Thus our choices in spacetime can have consequences in hyperspace which are inconceivable to us in the current situation. So if the Self (as manifested in the oracle) often seems to be tyrannically unreasonable, it is arguably because of the ego's dimensional myopia.
The Spirit ... may know the most violent love and hatred possible, for it can see the remote consequences of the most trivial acts of the living, provided those consequences are part of its future life. In trying to prevent them it may become one of those frustrators dreaded by certain spirit mediums. It cannot, however, without ... assistance ... affect life in any way except to delay its own rebirth. With that assistance it can so shape circumstances as to make possible the rebirth of a unique nature. W. B. Yeats --A Vision
Such conceptions of cause and effect seem irrational to ordinary awareness, yet quantum physicists hypothesize future events which affect the present as well as the past. The idea is not a new one:
Indeed, the hero of Hebrew myth is not only profoundly influenced by the deeds, words and thoughts of his forebears, and aware of his own profound influence on the fate of his descendants; he is equally influenced by the behavior of his descendants and influences that of his ancestors. Thus King Jeroboam set up a golden calf in Dan, and this sinful act sapped the strength of Abraham when he pursued his enemies into the same district a thousand years previously. Graves and Patai --Hebrew Myths
Should the ego's choices and their consequences not conform to the Self's intent, a rather cancerous growth is implied in which dynamic and magnetic forces are improperly consolidated -- in I Chingterms, dynamic and magnetic are mismatched. Through this "infidelity" of correlates the Work is thus adulterated and falls short of the archetypal ideal.
That the greatest effects come from the smallest causes has become patently clear not only in physics but in the field of psychological research as well. How often in the critical moments of life everything hangs on what appears to be a mere nothing! Jung -- The Phenomenology of the Spirit in Fairytales
Contraction is a compression inward toward a center. Psychologically, this can be regarded as an integration of complexes. Once the implosion completes itself, it is implied that the growth cycle reverses itself to expand away from the center. (Cf., hexagram number fifty-nine, Expansion, in which the ancestral temple is also mentioned.) The following hexagram, Pushing Upward,is the inverse of this one, and depicts a similar upward expansion of energy.
The archetypal themes displayed here are those of Solve et coagula, Implosion-Explosion, Contraction-Expansion, Black Hole-White Hole, Day and Night of Brahma, etc.