Couples are wholes and not wholes, what agrees disagrees, the concordant is discordant. From all things one and from one all things.
Fragment 10
Variant translation: From out of all the many particulars comes oneness, and out of oneness come all the many particulars.
κόσμον τόνδε, τὸν αὐτὸν ἁπάντων, οὔτε τις θεῶν οὐτε ἀνθρώπων ἐποίησεν, ἀλλ' ἦν ἀεὶ καὶ ἔστιν καὶ ἔσται πῦρ ἀείζωον, ἁπτόμενον μέτρα καὶ ἀποσβεννύμενον μέτρα
This universe, which is the same for all, has not been made by any god or man, but it always has been, is, and will be an ever-living fire, kindling itself by regular measures and going out by regular measures.
Fragment 30
Variant translations:
The world, an entity out of everything, was created by neither gods nor men, but was, is and will be eternally living fire, regularly becoming ignited and regularly becoming extinguished.
This world . . . ever was, and is, and shall be, ever-living Fire, in measures being kindled and in measure going out.
Eternity is a child playing, playing checkers; the kingdom belongs to a child.
Quoted by Hippolytus, Refutation of all heresies, IX, 9, 4 (Fragment 52), as translated in Reality (1994), by Carl Avren Levenson and Jonathan Westphal, p. 10
Time is a game played beautifully by children.
As quoted in Fragments (2001) translated by Brooks Haxton
Lifetime is a child at play, moving pieces in a game. Kingship belongs to the child.
As quoted in The Art and Thought of Heraclitus (1979) translated by Charles H. Kahn
ἐὰν μὴ ἔλπηται ἀνέλπιστον, οὐκ ἐξευρήσει
He who does not expect will not find out the unexpected, for it is trackless and unexplored.
Fragment 18, as quoted in The Art and Thought of Heraclitus: An Edition of the Fragments (1981) edited by Charles H. Kahn, p. 105
and fate is met, gloriously, or life is lived, praisefully.
Flying/fleeing Pheasant
䷠ ䷡ ⥤ along a 180° K⋅K' axis, or X's transformation
33-34 pair (20200101-20210101=6-7) ➳ [5⋅6⋅7 suite (V⋅VI⋅VII Major Arcana)]
33遯 (dùn), "Retiring" or "retreat" & "yielding". Moving away, one must hand over the baton, before leaving.
Its inner trigram is ☶ (艮 gèn) bound = (山) mountain, &
its outer trigram is ☰ (乾 qián) force = (天) heaven.
互卦nuclear ䷫is 44 姤 (gòu), "Coupling" or "coming to meet" & "meeting". When one must not abuse hospitality.
Its inner trigram is ☴ (巽 xùn) ground = (風) wind, &
its outer trigram is ☰ (乾 qián) force = (天) heaven.
34大壯 (dà zhuàng), "Great Invigorating" or "the power of the great" & "great maturity". Concentrating, one does not let one's thoughts derail.
Its inner trigram is ☰ (乾 qián) force = (天) heaven, &
its outer trigram is ☳ (震 zhèn) shake = (雷) thunder.
互卦nuclear ䷪is 43 夬 (guài), "Displacement" or "resoluteness", "parting", & "break-through". Revelation, stating the case clearly, without any Ἄρης vociferation, or brutality. Once this choice is made, there is no turn away possibility.
Its inner trigram is ☰ (乾 qián) force = (天) heaven, &
its outer trigram is ☱ (兌 duì) open = (澤) swamp.
20200629-20210629 (=33/34 minus 30, the ionisation process: 3/4=III/IIII=III/IV=ImperatriX/Imperator)
The Empress (III) is the third trump or Major Arcana card in traditional Tarot decks. (odd!)
The Emperor (IV) is the fourth trump or Major Arcana card in traditional Tarot decks. (even!)
➥ princeps*: 「道」from Proto-Italic*priisemokaps by syncope.
In historical decks, the Empress sits on a throne, almost always holding a shield or orb in one hand and a sceptre in the other. The shield typically bears an eagle, the heraldic emblem of the Holy Roman Empire.
The Empress can be represented by Ἀφροδίτη, the figure from Greek mythology. The empress connects with XIII the unnamed "Death card", for she is accustomed to life, death and rebirth.
➥ Tetraphobia(from Ancient Greekτετράς (tetrás) 'four', and Ancient Greekφόβος (phóbos) 'fear') is the practice of avoiding instances of the digit 4. It is a superstition most common in East Asian nations, as the Chinese word for four (四 sì), sounds quite similar to the word for death (死 sǐ).
➥ According to Waite's The Pictorial Key to the Tarot, The Empress is the inferior (as opposed to nature's superior) Garden of Eden, the "Earthly Paradise". Waite defines her as a Refugium Peccatorum — a fruitful mother of thousands (萬物之母): "she is above all things universal fecundity and the outer sense of the Word, the repository of all things nurturing and sustaining, and of feeding others."
The Empress is a mother, a creator, and nurturer. In many decks, she can be shown as pregnant. She can represent the creation of life, romance, art, or business. The Empress can represent the germination of an idea before it is ready to be fully born, and the need to be receptive to change.
The Emperor sits on a ram3-adorned throne, a symbol of Ἄρης• (Árēs4) Mars, God of courage & war. Another ram head can be seen on his cloak. His long white beard bearing the symbol of "wisdom". He holds ☥an Ankh sceptre in his right hand, and a globe, symbol of domination, in his left. The Emperor sits atop a stark, barren [☶ (艮 gèn) bound = (山)] mountain, a sign of "sterility of regulation, and unyielding power." He symbolizes the top of the secular hierarchy and the ultimate male ego. Like the white-bearded Gandalf the White, the Emperor is the absolute ruler of the world. The trump represents Stability (52艮 gèn), power, protection, realization; a great person; aid, reason, conviction also authority and will. Or, Reversed: Benevolence, compassion, credit; also confusion to enemies, obstruction, immaturity.
雉: Symbolic Pheasant Messages:
Using one's gifts to get what one wants.
Knowing when to express oneself and when to refrain from doing so.
Being aware of when to protect oneself and our loved ones.
Being creative, productive, and tapping into the passions that burn within us.
It is important to note the element of balance in having this totem, and the pheasant’s environment is our indication. It is a riot of glam & colour, but ever-ready to slip into the tall grasses or sheltering shrubbery when it must. In other words, the pheasant can be a show-off, but it is always ready to retract its wiles when the time calls for it.
This a powerful metaphor of our lives. We can show our bright colours of creativity, and influence in the world – but we must know the proper time in which to do so. The pheasant reminds us that no matter how vibrant & original we may be if we carelessly throw our gifts out at inappropriate times, or to non-listening audiences, our efforts are in vain.
Over the aeons, the pheasant has had “self-preservation” hard-wired in their bodies, and itknows when to go. The pheasant spirit animal is an attractive & powerful totem that craves wide open spaces to roam free and spread its wings. Its symbolism is also about the value of balance in areas of spirituality. Being an air animal totem, the pheasant deals with thought, dreams, aspiration, spirituality, and things that lift us into higher states of consciousness. However, although an air creature, the pheasant rarely flies, and when it does, it is in short bursts and without much air time. This is symbolic of our ability to reach ever-increasing heights in our spiritual understanding, but that, simultaneously, we must recognize the need for groundedness. There is a reason air balloons have sandbags. Let us be lifted, be inspired, climb ever higher on our path, to spiritual awareness – but the grounded pheasant reminds us to keep our feet on the ground too.
31 咸(xián), "Conjoining" or "influence (wooing)" and "feelings". (N odd)
Its inner trigram is ☶ (艮 gèn) bound = (山) mountain, and
its outer trigram is ☱ (兌 duì) open = (澤) swamp.
1, 乾 (qián), "Force", a new force 'within' a new playfield (N odd)
5,需 (xū), "Attending" or "waiting", "moistened", and "arriving". (Y odd)
Its inner (lower) trigram is ☰ (乾 qián) force = (天) heaven, and
its outer (upper) trigram is ☵ (坎 kǎn) gorge = (水) water.
7, 師 (shī), "Leading" or "the army" and "the troops". (D odd)
Its inner (lower) trigram is ☵ (坎 kǎn) gorge = (水) water, and
its outer (upper) trigram is ☷ (坤 kūn) field = (地) earth.
20200231➤20210101 (XI/2➤VII)
From a year of passage (IIII = IV: 四: end of a cycle/death/outing)
To a year of quinte° essence* (and 遯² "True Retreat"? Under the αἰγίς "Shield of Athena")
➥ an essential time
䷄ (V) 需 "Attending"
+ 56 易 = stability & ionisation (as a possible entrapment) 4 balance & escape velocity, i.e.
inner trigram ☶ (艮 gèn) bound = (山) mountain,
outer trigram is ☲ (離 lí) radiance = (火) fire 易 ☰ (乾 qián) force = (天) heaven
➥ 遯 (dùn), "Retiring" or "retreat" and "yielding".
Its inner trigram is ☶ (艮 gèn) bound = (山) mountain, and
its outer trigram is ☰ (乾 qián) force = (天) heaven.
▶ ionisation revisited & revised
䷷ 旅:
旅：小亨，旅貞吉。
旅 intimates that (in the condition which it denotes) there may be some little attainment and progress. If the stranger or traveller be firm and correct as he ought to be, there will be good fortune.
彖傳:
旅，小亨，柔得中乎外，而順乎剛，止而麗乎明，是以小亨，旅貞吉也。旅之時義大矣哉！
'旅 indicates that there may be some small attainment and progress:' - the weak (line) occupies the central place in the outer (trigram), and is obedient to the strong (lines on either side of it). (We have also the attributes of quiet) resting closely attached to intelligence (in the component trigrams). Hence it is said, 'There may be some small attainment and progress. If the stranger or traveller be firm and correct as he ought to be, there will be good fortune.' Great is the time and great is the right course to be taken as intimated in Lu!
象傳:
山上有火，旅；君子以明慎用刑，而不留獄。
(The trigram representing) a mountain and above it that for fire form 旅. The superior man, in accordance with this, exerts his wisdom and caution in the use of punishments and not allowing litigations to continue.
䷷旅:
六五：射雉一矢亡，終以譽命。
The fifth SIX, divided, shows its subject shooting a pheasant. He will lose his arrow, but in the end, he will obtain praise and a (high) charge.
➥ ䷠ 遯:
遯：亨，小利貞。
遯indicates successful progress (in its circumstances). To a small extent, it will (still) be advantageous to be firm and correct.
彖傳:
遯亨，遯而亨也。剛當位而應，與時行也。小利貞，浸而長也。遯之時義大矣哉！
遯indicates successful progress:' - that is, in the very retiring which 遯 denotes there is such progress. The strong (line) is in the ruling place, (the fifth), and is properly responded to (by the second line). The action takes place according to (the requirement of) the time. 'To a small extent it will (still) be advantageous to be firm and correct:' - (the small men) are gradually encroaching and advancing. Great indeed is the significance of (what is required to be done in) the time that necessitates retiring.
象傳:
天下有山，遯；君子以遠小人，不惡而嚴。
(The trigram representing) the sky and below it that for a mountain form 遯. The superior man, in accordance with this, keeps small men at a distance, not by showing that he hates them, but by his own. dignified gravity.
A System of Correspondences between the I Ching and Tarot.
The I Ching (the Book of Changes) and the Tarot Cards are two great mantic systems created at different times and entirely different cultures - Zhou China and Medieval Europe respectively.
Both systems do not only deal with divination but also convey the ancient wisdom symbolically and reveal mysteries of the universe and human being.
Both systems contain a fixed set of symbols, each expressed with formal signs (lines of hexagrams, symbols and suits of cards) and symbolic images (aphorisms attached to hexagrams and lines, pictures and divination meanings of cards).
Taking into consideration such essential typological resemblance, one can ask a natural question whether each of these systems expresses concepts meaningful in the context of the corresponding culture only, or the Tarot cards and I Ching hexagrams are different symbolical manifestations of the same archetypical ideas whose universality is deeper than their specific way of representations accepted in one or another culture.
If the assumption about the universal archetypal source of the Tarot an I Ching meanings is correct then there should exist a mutually unique correspondence between hexagrams and cards.
Two principal differences in the structure of these systems are striking even after superficial acquaintance with them. First, these systems have a different number of elements: the Tarot deck contains 78 cards, while the I Ching comprises 64 hexagrams. Second, 64 hexagrams are of equal rank while Tarot cards are divided into 22 Major and 56 Minor Arcana.
Let us note that the number of cards exceeds the number of hexagrams by 14 (78 - 64 = 14). This is an important number for the Tarot since 14 is the number of cards in each suit of the Minor Arcana.
Structure of the Tarot deck
The 22 Major Arcana are divided into 10 Former ones and 12 Latter ones. "XI Arcanum ... starts a new cycle of the Major Arcana which strongly differs from the previous one. ... the system of the first ten Major Arcana dominates over the following Arcana. The Major Arcana of the first cycle are higher than Time, higher than the Principle of Motion itself. ... Correspondingly, all Arcana of the second cycle contain motion in their essence. (V. Shmakov, "The Sacred Book of Thoth"). Thus, it turns out that the Major Arcana are divided into two groups: 10 (I-X) Former Arcana and 12 (XI-XXII) Latter Arcana. 10 Former Major Arcana represent static principles and 12 latter Major Arcana represent dynamic principles.
The Minor Arcana consist of four suits. Each suite, consisting of 14 cards, comprises 10 pip cards from ace to ten and 4 face cards: king, queen, knight and page (there are three face cards in the modern standard 52-card deck since the knights are not included in it). There are four cards of different suits for any number of pips. Each of these tetrads is headed by the corresponding Former Major Arcanum. For example, four aces are headed by the I Major Arcanum, four twos are headed by the II Major Arcanum, four threes are headed by the III Major Arcanum, ... four tens are headed by the X Major Arcanum.
Traditionally the suits of the Tarot are represented by wands, cups, swords and pentacles. In the modern playing deck wands have transformed into clubs, cups into hearts, swords into spades, and pentacles into diamonds.
For each face card, we can find the most proper attribute: the wand suit for a king, the cup suit for a queen, the sword suit for a knight, and the pentacle suit for a page. Thus, among all 16 face cards, we can pick out four "pure" cards whose attribute corresponds to their rank: King of Wands, Queen of Cups, Knight of Swords, and Page of Pentacles. G.O.M., a famous Russian occultist of the early 20th century, calls these four cards the main cards in their suits. The other 12 cards are "mixed" ones. The "Pure" cards represent static principles while the "mixed" cards represent dynamic principles.
So, according to the "statics-dynamics" parameter, the Tarot cards can be divided into two groups: 14 stationary Arcana (10 Former Major Arcana and 4 "pure" face Arcana) and 64 Arcana of motion (12 Latter Major Arcana and 52 Minor Arcana - 40 pip and 12 "mixed" cards).
It turns out to be possible to establish a mutually unique correspondence between the 64 Arcana of motion and 64 Hexagrams of the I Ching.
A brief summary of the Tarot deck structure
22 Major Arcana and 56 Minor Arcana
56 Minor Arcana = 4 suits * 14 cards = 40 pip cards +16 face cards
The suits: wands, cups, swords and pentacles
Face cards: King, Queen, Knight and Page
22 Major Arcana = 10 Former Major Arcana + 12 Later Major Arcana
64 cards of motion = 40 pip cards + 12 "mixed" cards + 12 Later cards
The Arcana of motion correspond to Hexagrams of the I Ching
The structure of the I Ching and its comparison with the Tarot cards
The I Ching is divided into two parts: the Upper Canon (hexagrams 1-30) and the Lower Canon (hexagrams 31-64).
I Ching hexagrams are grouped into pairs, consisting of a hexagram with an odd number and a following hexagram with an even number. The hexagrams of the pair can be obtained from each other by 180° rotation. The only exceptions are the hexagrams which are invariant under this rotation. In these cases, one hexagram of a pair is obtained from the other by inverting all its lines.
A comparison, between the I Ching hexagrams and Tarot cards, suggests the following rule: the first pairs from the both I Ching Canons (hex.s 1-2 and 31-32) correspond to aces, the second pairs (hex.s 3-4 and 33-34) correspond to twos and so on.
To compare the two systems we used the Rider-Waite Tarot deck (1909). This deck contains the canonical images of the Minor Arcana. These images, based on the tradition of divination meanings of the Minor Arcana, are the results of comparison of pip cards (from two to ten) with the 36 decans of the Zodiac and their planet rulers which were already known in the Hellenistic Egypt.
A careful reading of the aphorisms attached to a hexagram as a whole and its separate lines shows that the accompanying text of each hexagram consists of fragments which can be linked by some plot. These fragments can be used for a reconstruction of a whole story.
The obtained narration and their topics can be compared to the image of the corresponding Tarot card. In most cases, the story of the hexagram clearly correlates with the motif of the card.
A System of Correspondences between I Ching and Tarot
The numeration of Major Arcana is given in accordance with the French system.
The numbers in brackets are card numbers from the Rider-Waite deck.
The Former Major Arcana, located in the left column of the table, are the main cards for the corresponding row.
On the right from each of the Former Major Arcanum, there are the four Arcana of motion which correspond to the hexagrams of the I Ching.
The number of the hexagram and its name is in the upper part of the cell, the name of the corresponding Tarot card is in the lower part of the cell.
The hexagram is a simple geometric shape that has taken on various meanings in a number of religions and belief systems. The opposing and overlapping triangles used to create it often represent two forces that are both opposing and interconnected.
The Hexagram
The hexagram is a unique shape in geometry. To obtain equidistant points -- those that are an equal distance from one another -- it cannot be drawn in a unicursal manner. That is, you cannot draw it without lifting and repositioning the pen. Instead, two individual and overlapping triangles form the hexagram.
A unicursal hexagram is possible. A six-pointed shape can be created without lifting the pen and this has been adopted by some occult practitioners.
The Star of David
The most common depiction of the hexagram is the Star of David, also known as the Magen David. This is the symbol on the flag of Israel, which Jews have commonly used as a symbol of their faith for the last couple of centuries. This is also the symbol that multiple European communities have historically forced Jews to wear as identification, most notably by Nazi Germany in the 20th-century.
The evolution of the Star of David is unclear. In the Middle Ages, the hexagram was often referred to as the Seal of Solomon, referencing a Biblical king of Israel and son of King David.
The hexagram also came to have Kabbalistic and occult meaning. In the 19th-century, the Zionist movement adopted the symbol. Because of these multiple associations, some Jews, particularly some Orthodox Jews, do not use the Star of David as a symbol of faith.
The Seal of Solomon
The Seal of Solomon originates in medieval tales of a magical signet ring possessed by King Solomon. In these, it is said to have the power to bind and control supernatural creatures. Often, the seal is described as a hexagram, but some sources describe it as a pentagram.
Duality of the Two Triangles
In Eastern, Kabbalistic, and occult circles, the hexagram's meaning is commonly closely tied to the fact that it is composed of two triangles pointing in opposite directions. This relates to the union of opposites, such as male and female. It also commonly references the union of the spiritual and the physical, with spiritual reality reaching down and physical reality stretching upward.
This intertwining of worlds can also be seen as a representation of the Hermetic principle "As above, so below." It references how changes in one world reflect changes in the other.
Finally, triangles are commonly used in alchemy to designate the four different elements. The more rarified elements – fire and air – have point-down triangles, while the more physical elements – earth and water – have point-up triangles.
Modern and Early Modern Occult Thought
The triangle is such a central symbol in Christian iconography as a represent the Trinity and thus spiritual reality. Due to this, the use of the hexagram in Christian occult thought is fairly common.
In the 17th-century, Robert Fludd produced an illustration of the world. In it, God was an upright triangle and the physical world was his reflection and thus downward pointing. The triangles only slightly overlap, thus not creating a hexagram of equidistant points, but the structure is still present.
Likewise, in the 19th-century Eliphas Levi produced his Great Symbol of Solomon, "The Double Triangle of Solomon, represented by the two Ancients of the Kabbalah; the Macroprosopus and the Microprosopus; the God of Light and the God of Reflections; of mercy and vengeance; the white Jehovah and the black Jehovah."
"Hexagram" in Non-Geometric Contexts
The Chinese I-Ching (Yi Jing) is based off 64 different arrangements of broken and unbroken lines, with each arrangement having six lines. Each arrangement is referred to as a Hexagram.
Unicursal Hexagram
The unicursal hexagram is a six-pointed star that can be drawn in one continuous movement. Its points are equidistant, but the lines are not of equal length (unlike a standard hexagram). It can, however, fit inside a circle with all six points touching the circle.
The meaning of the unicursal hexagram is largely identical to that of a standard hexagram: the union of opposites. The unicursal hexagram, however, more strongly emphases the intertwining and ultimate unity of the two halves, rather than two separate halves coming together.
Occult practices often involve the tracing of symbols during a ritual, and a unicursal design better lends itself to this practice.
The unicursal hexagram is commonly depicted with a five-petaled flower in the centre. This is a variation created by Aleister Crowley and is most strongly associated with the religion of Thelema. Another variation is the placement of a small pentagram in the hexagram's centre.
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