Chronic & sequential appearances of [sfr] numbers

Juno 2021

40 / 28 / 14

4 / 1 [X] / 5

Mercy/The Crown [Kingdom]/Strength

connections: 4-5 19 Serpent / 1-10 [via 6 & 9] 13 Camel

4 ♃ Zeus — 5 ♂ Ares

 1The Crown  —  6 ☉ Sun - 9 ☽ Moon — X ⨁ Terra

Sĕfirōt

Sefirat HaOmer is the 49-day cycle between the holidays of Passover (when the Jewish people find freedom) and the holiday of Shavuot (the day the Torah was received on Mount Sinai). Counting of the Omer סְפִירַת הָעוֹמֶר‎, Sefirat HaOmer, sometimes abbreviated as Sefira or the Omer is an important verbal counting of each of the forty-nine days starting with the Wave Offering of a sheaf of ripe grain with a sacrifice immediately following the commencement (רֵאשִׁית‎, reishit) of the grain harvest, and the First Fruits festival celebrating the end of the grain harvest, known as Feast of Weeks/Shavuot/Pentecost in Mosaic Law (Hebrew Bible: Deuteronomy 16:9–12, Leviticus 23:10–16); or in the varying current Jewish holidays traditions, the period between the Passover or Feast of Unleavened Bread, and Shavuot. This is the second of the three annual Mosaic Law feast periods.

Baruch Zvi Ring-Memorial Table & Omer Calendar

There is deep meaning in every aspect of this ritual. The word Sefirat comes from the Hebrew root SFR which means to count or to tell, and HaOmer means “the sheaf אֲלוּמָה.” There are agricultural and historical reasons for this marking of time, as well as spiritual meanings marking our journey from slavery to freedom: 

Agricultural Cycle

Passover represents the beginning of the harvest season. In the times of the Temple, Jews would bring a measure of the spring barley harvest to the Temple as a form of gratitude and prayer for a successful harvest. 

There was a ceremony conducted by priests, waving the offerings in the 6 directions which acknowledged the role of G-d in the harvest. Once this ceremony was completed, people could enjoy the harvest. Sefirat HaOmer counts 49 the days between the initial harvest of the simple grains, to the more luxurious grain, wheat. 

Spiritual Rhythms of Hebrew Calendar

Sefirat HaOmer starts in the evening of the second night of Passover when we celebrate our freedom from Egypt - the ultimate Jewish liberation story. 

Yet, once we are freed from the bondage of slavery, we are not fully prepared to stand up as free people. 

Rather, we need to undergo a transformative process to spiritually and psychologically prepare and cleanse ourselves. Once we have fully come into our liberated state, we are ready to receive the Torah on Shavuot - true wisdom, the divine word, direct experience of revelation. 

Sefirat HaOmer counts the days between Passover and Shavuot as a marking of time to prepare ourselves for our freedom. 

It is not enough to be free, we must do the hard work of introspection and self-examination to truly know our freedom. 

Sefirat HaOmer mirrors the journey of the Israelites from Egypt to Sinai - we left as oppressed people and we became liberated through the time we spent in the desert. 

It is a spiritual spring cleaning inviting us into inner transformation. 

What are the Sefirot?

Sefirot can most simply be described as aspects of divine consciousness as laid out in Jewish wisdom; ten manifestations of divine light. 

Sefirot, like Sefirat, come from the root SFR which means to count or to tell. Sefira describes an aspect of God. The Sefirot are often depicted in a diagram called the Tree of Life: 

Jewish wisdom teaches that we are created in the image of the Divine; the body is a physical manifestation of the Divine image. We can connect to the Divine most directly through our connection and relationship to our bodies. The Sefirot are aspects of Divinity in the world that manifest particularly in our bodies. 

The system of Sefirot that we are referencing now comes from 16th century Lurianic Kabbalah. It is a complex system of relationships and aspects between Sefirot. During this time, Kabbalists dedicate each day of the Omer to an opportunity for deeper spiritual connection, developing a system by which each week and every day of the Omer has a unique relationship between two Sefirot. 

Of the 10 Sefirot, three are called “Upper Sefirot,” described as particularly divine and mostly inaccessible to the human experience. Then there are the seven lower Sefirot, understood as the foundational building blocks of humanity. 

The 3 Upper Sefirot

Keter

Crown, G-dhead, point of G-d-contact, unexpressed, above consciousness, uppermost realm, a gesture towards G-d’s perfection, G-d in G-d’s fullest and undifferentiated form, pure, the infinite, divine abundance.

Chochma

Wisdom, rooted in knowledge and experience, an initial point of beginning, the blueprint of creation, a point, exists but does not exist.

Binah

Understanding, ability to perceive and explain the meaning, the process itself, wisdom producing itself in an environment where it can grow and reside, taking on dimension. 

The 7 Lower Sefirot

Chesed 4

Loving-kindness, grace, compassion, divine flow, abundance, river.

Gevurah 5

Strength, discernment, constraint, boundaries, container, judgement, restraint, containment.

Tiferet 6

Beauty, balance, harmony, order, heart space, splendour, trunk, symmetry, the sun.

Netzach

Endurance, victory physical energy, persistence, dedication, Moses-style of leadership.

Hod

Splendour, the glory of physical forms, radiance, diversity, variety, Aaron’s priestly style of leadership.

Yesod 9

Foundation, basis, groundwork, ultimate access and channel that permits communication and transmitting light.

Malchut / Shechina

Indwelling Presence, sovereignty, Divine royalty, manifestation, liminal, does not produce its own light, receiving upper light and delivering. 

The Ritual Itself: How to Count The Omer

After nightfall, but before dawn while standing, some recite this before:

The Ritual Itself: How to Count The Omer

After nightfall, but before dawn while standing, some recite this before:

“Hineni muchan um’zuman l’kayem mitzvat aseh shel s’firat ha’omer k’mo shekatuv baTorah:  טו  וּסְפַרְתֶּם לָכֶם, מִמָּחֳרַת הַשַּׁבָּת, מִיּוֹם הֲבִיאֲכֶם, אֶת-עֹמֶר הַתְּנוּפָה:  שֶׁבַע שַׁבָּתוֹת, תְּמִימֹת תִּהְיֶינָה.

15 And ye shall count unto you from the morrow after the day of rest, from the day that ye brought the sheaf of the waving; seven weeks shall there be complete;

טז  עַד מִמָּחֳרַת הַשַּׁבָּת הַשְּׁבִיעִת, תִּסְפְּרוּ חֲמִשִּׁים יוֹם; וְהִקְרַבְתֶּם מִנְחָה חֲדָשָׁה, לַיהוָה.

16 even unto the morrow after the seventh week shall ye number fifty days, and ye shall present a new meal-offering unto the LORD.

Behold, I am ready and prepared to fulfil the mitzvah of counting the omer, as it says in the Torah:

‘You shall count from the eve of the second day of Pesach when an omer of grain is to be brought as an offering, seven complete weeks. The day after the seventh week of your counting will make fifty days.’”

— (LEVITICUS 23:15-16)

Then, recite the first blessing:

Baruch atah Adonai elohaynu melech ha’olam ahser kidshanu b ‘mitzvotav v’tivanu al sefirat haomer. 

Blessed are You, God, Source of all time and space*, You make us holy through Your commandments and commanded us to count the Omer.

Then, the second blessing:

Hayom (number) yamim l’Omer, she’hem shavuah (number) v’yom (number) l’Omer.

Today is the (number) day, which makes (number) weeks and (number) days of the Omer. 

Some people also: 

Recite Psalms 67:1-8

For the leader; with instrumental music. A psalm. A song. May God be gracious to us and bless us; may He show us a favour, selah that Your way be known on earth, Your deliverance among all nations. Peoples will praise You, O God; all peoples will praise You. Nations will exult and shout for joy, for You rule the peoples with equity, You guide the nations of the earth. Selah. The peoples will praise You, O God; all peoples will praise You. May the earth yield its produce; may God, our God, bless us. May God bless us, and be revered to the ends of the earth.

Chant the names of the pair of the Sefirot 112 times 

(6*18 - 6 for 6 directions and 18 for life = 108, and then 4 times for the 4 letters of YHVH, God’s name) *replaced for each week:

Chesed: Source of Lovingkindness

Gevurah: Source of Power

Tiferet: Source of Beauty

Netzach: Source of Endurance

Hod: Source of Splendor

Yesod: Source of Foundation

Malchut: Source of Royalty

40 / 28 / 14

䷧  ䷛  ䷍

When the hand opens to reveal its unbroken line — 

the host rumbles in the belly.

Hexagram 40 is named 解 (xiè), "Taking-Apart" or "deliverance" & "untangled".

• Its inner trigram is ☵ (坎 kǎn, 29) gorge = (水) water.
• Its outer trigram is ☳ (震 zhèn, 51) shake = (雷) thunder.

䷧ Unicode name: Hexagram for DELIVERANCE

LIBERATION

Other titles: Deliverance, The Symbol of Loosening, Release, Eliminating Obstacles, Taking-apart, Untangled, Solution, Dissolution, Relief, Unloose, Release of Tension

Hexagram 28 is named 大過 (dà guò), "Great Exceeding" or "preponderance of the great", "great surpassing" and "critical mass".

• Its inner trigram is ☴ (巽 xùn, 57) ground = (風) wind.
• Its outer trigram is ☱ (兌 duì, 58) open = (澤) swamp.

䷛ Unicode name: Hexagram for GREAT PREPONDERANCE

CRITICAL MASS

Other titles: Preponderance of the Great, The Symbol of Great Passing, Excess, Great Excess, The Passing of Greatness, Great Surpassing, Great Gains, Experience, Greater than Great, Greatness in Excess, Dominance by the Mighty, The Passing of Greatness, Excess of the Great, Law of Karma

Hexagram 14 is named 大有 (dà yǒu), "Great Possessing".  or "possession in great measure" and "the great possession".

• Its inner (lower) trigram is ☰ (乾 qián, 1) force = (天) heaven
• Its outer (upper) trigram is ☲ (離 lí, 30) radiance = (火) fire.

䷍  Unicode name: Hexagram for GREAT POSSESSION

WEALTH

Other titles: Possession in Great Measure, The Symbol of Great Possession, Sovereignty, Great Having, Great Possessing, The Great Possessor, Great Wealth, Abundance, Having What is Great, "Often means things other than material possessions or achievement. Count your blessings for they are many." -- D.F. Hook

Judgment

Legge: Wealth means great progress and success.

Wilhelm/Baynes: Possession in Great Measure. Supreme success.

Blofeld: He who possesses much -- supreme success!

Liu: Great Possessions. Great Success.

Ritsema/Karcher: Great Possessing, Spring Growing. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of your relation to an overriding concern or central idea. It emphasizes that organizing all your efforts around this idea is the adequate way to handle it...]

Shaughnessy: The Great Possession: Prime receipt.

Cleary (1): In great possession are creation and development.

Cleary (2): Great possession is a great success.

Wu: Great Wealth is primordial and pervasive.

The Image

Legge: Fire over Heaven -- the image of Wealth. The superior man represses evil and nurtures virtue in accordance with the benevolent will of heaven.

Wilhelm/Baynes: Fire in heaven above: the image of Possession in Great Measure. Thus the superior man curbs evil and furthers good, and thereby obeys the benevolent will of heaven.

Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes fire in the heavens. [When the trigram for heaven is above, whatever is below may be separated from it; when it is below, it indicates fusion or intermixture with what is above. The significance here is that the splendour of a very great man lights up the heavens.] The Superior Man suppresses those who are evil and upholds the virtuous. Most gladly he accords with heaven and carries out its commands.

Liu: Fire over heaven symbolizes Great Possessions. The superior man suppresses evil and honours virtue, and thus follows the will of heaven and waits upon destiny.

Ritsema/Karcher: Fire located above heaven. Great Possessing. A 君子Jūnzǐ uses terminating hate to display improvement. A 君子Jūnzǐ uses yielding to heaven to relinquish fate.

Cleary (1): Fire is in the sky; great possession. Thus does the superior person stop evil and promote good, obeying heaven and accepting its order.

Cleary (2): … Leaders obey nature and accept its order by stopping the bad and promoting the good.

Wu: Fire above and heaven below form Great Wealth. Thus 君子Jūnzǐ suppresses the evil and promotes the good; he abides by the will of heaven to enrich his life.

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: Wealth shows the magnetic line in the central ruler's place, and honoured by the dynamic lines above and below. The figure is composed of the trigrams of Strength and Clarity. The central line of Clarity responds to the central line of Strength, eventuating in timely action. This indicates great progress and success.

Legge: Wealth means "great havings," and symbolizes a kingdom, family or individual in a state of prosperity. The danger in such a position arises from the pride it is likely to engender. Here, however, everything is against that: the place of honour is occupied by a magnetic line so that the ruler will be humble, and all the dynamic lines will respond to her with sympathetic allegiance. The ruler's seat is in the central position of the trigram of Clarity, and hence her strength is directed by intelligence, and all her actions are timely, like the seasons of heaven.

Fire above the sky shines far -- symbolizing the vastness of the territory of wealth. To develop virtue and repress evil is in accordance with the will of heaven, which has given to all men a nature fitted for goodness.

Cleary (2): All states of being have this essence inherent in them and are indeed made of this essence, but all states other than that of complete enlightenment are out of harmony with this essence in some way. Buddhahood is when you accord with this essence.

Wu: As the sun shines brightly high in the sky, both the good and the bad will be exposed. The responsibility of 君子Jūnzǐ is to discriminate between them. He acts in accordance with the nature of goodness (the will of heaven) to enrich his life.

NOTES & PARAPHRASES

Judgment: The greatest kind of Wealth accrues from furthering the Work.

The Superior Man manages his forces in accordance with the goals of the Work.

Wealth is the inverse of the preceding figure, Union of Forces. If the thirteenth hexagram depicts a process of uniting, the fourteenth might be seen as the completion of that process. To have one's inner forces correctly united is indeed Possession in Great Measure, which is the title that Wilhelm gives to this figure.

It is emphasized in the Image that this Wealth must be administered in accordance with the "benevolent will of heaven,” which is to say: the principles of the Work must always guide one's choices if one is not to lose equilibrium and become pauperized by illusion.

The superior man considers a rich possession of moral principles to be honour, and peace in his person to be wealth.

君子以厚德為尊，以平和為富。

週吞一 Zhōu tūn yī

The changing lines between hexagram 28 and hexagram 14

Changing line #1

"Strengthening the Foundation" — The wise person takes the time to lay a firm base on the ground before they act. This requires sincerity & good intentions. By being humble I will proceed well.

Changing line #5

"Dissolving Hierarchies" — This line is a reminder to embrace all ranks, levels & conditions.

Find equality in those that may seem lower than me. By being humble I will find a joyous connection.

Changing line #6

"Trudging through Water" — With fearlessness & persistence, I will pass whatever test lies ahead. Though it may feel like I am drowning,  I keep myself afloat with pure trust.

Saturday, June 5

"The soul, in accord with the Creative Forces, is shown in the manner of how it is applied in spiritual things, mental things, and material things in relationships among one another."   (ECRL 261-15)

名可名，非常名。
道可道，非常道。

無名天地之始；有名萬物之母。
故常無欲，以觀其妙；常有欲，以觀其徼。
此兩者，同出而異名，同謂之玄。
玄之又玄，衆妙之門。

1. The Way that can be followed is not the eternal Way

The Way that can be followed is not the eternal Way.
The name that can be named is not the eternal name.
The nameless is the origin of heaven and earth
While naming is the origin of the myriad things.
Therefore, always desireless, you see the mystery
Ever desiring, you see the manifestations.

These two are the same —
When they appear they are named differently.

This sameness is the mystery,
Mystery within mystery;
The door to all marvels.

Daode jing
Translated by Charles Muller, Toyo Gakuen University, updated 2004
http://www.acmuller.net/con-dao/daodejing.html

A. Charles Muller
武蔵野大学教育学部教授、東洋学園大学教授
Professor, Faculty of Education, Musashino University, Toyo Gakuen University

1
The Way that can be told of is not an Unvarying Way;
The names that can be named are not unvarying names.
It was from the Nameless that Heaven and Earth sprang;
The named is but the mother that rears the ten thousand creatures, each after its kind.
Truly, “Only he that rids himself forever of desire can see the Secret Essences”;
He that has never rid himself of desire can see only the Outcomes.
These two things issued from the same mould, but nevertheless are different in name.
This “same mould” we can but call the Mystery,
Or rather the “Darker than any Mystery”,
The Doorway whence issued all Secret Essences.

Daode jing

English version by Arthur Waley, 1934

Liberation through achieving Critical Mass

Maxwell-Boltzmann distribution

Critical Mass:
The size or number that something needs to reach before a particular change or development can happen.

At the point of critical mass, there is a tipping point after which it can be said and felt that the movement we have created has a life of its own.

28 ― Critical Mass ― Crossing the Chasm ― 29

Hexagram 40

Hexagram 40 is named 解 (xiè), "Taking-Apart" or "deliverance" & "untangled".

• Its inner trigram is ☵ (坎 kǎn, 29) gorge = (水) water.
• Its outer trigram is ☳ (震 zhèn, 51) shake = (雷) thunder.

䷧ Unicode name: Hexagram for DELIVERANCE

LIBERATION

Other titles: Deliverance, The Symbol of Loosening, Release, Eliminating Obstacles, Taking-apart, Untangled, Solution, Dissolution, Relief, Unloose, Release of Tension

Judgment

Legge: Liberation finds an advantage in the southwest. When the operation is completed, a return to stability brings good fortune. If operations are incomplete, it is best to finish them quickly.

Wilhelm/Baynes: Deliverance. The southwest furthers.

• If there is no longer anything (Sic) where one has to go, Return brings good fortune.
• If there is still something (Sic) where one has to go, hastening brings good fortune.

Blofeld: Release. The west & south are favourable.

• Those with nothing to gain from going forward will find good fortune by turning back;
• Those who do have much to gain from going forward must hasten to be sure of doing well.

[This is not a time to stay where we are. If we have no good reason to advance, it is best to retreat.]

Liu: Liberation. The southwest benefits.

• If there is nothing for one where one has to go, then returning brings good fortune.
• If there is something in a place where one can go, then going quickly leads to good fortune.

Ritsema/Karcher: Taking-apart. Harvesting: Western South. Without a place to go: one's coming return significant. Possessing directed going: Daybreak significant. [This hexagram describes my situation in terms of reflection and release from tension. It emphasizes that analyzing and understanding things in order to be delivered from compulsion is the adequate way to handle it...]

Shaughnessy: Untangled: Beneficial to the southwest; there is nowhere to go; his coming in return is auspicious; there is someplace to go to spend the night; auspicious.

Cleary (1): For liberation, the southwest is beneficial.

• When going nowhere, the return brings good fortune;
• When going somewhere, promptness brings good fortune.

Cleary (2): For solution, the southwest is beneficial. Going nowhere, coming back is fortunate, etc.

Wu: Relief indicates an advantage in the southwest.

• If he undertakes to do something without a cause, it will be auspicious for him to return to his former station.
• If he undertakes to do something with a cause, it will be auspicious for him to do it early.

The Image

Legge: Liberation shows a thunderstorm clearing the atmosphere. The superior man, in accordance with this, forgives errors and deals gently with crimes.

Wilhelm/Baynes: Thunder & rain set in the image of Deliverance. Thus the superior man pardons mistakes and forgives misdeeds.

Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes thunder and rain bringing release. The Superior Man tends to forgive wrongs & deals leniently with crimes. [The component trigrams suggest that a certain amount of forceful action is required.]

Liu: Thunder and rain come, symbolizing Liberation. The superior man forgives errors & pardons criminals.

Ritsema/Karcher: Thunder, rain, arousing. Taking-apart. 

君子Jūnzǐ uses forgiving excess to pardon offences.

Cleary (1): Thunder & rain act, dissolving. Thus do superior people forgive faults and pardon crimes.

Cleary (2): Thunder & rain – solution. Etc.

Wu: There come thunder and rain; this is Relief.

Thus the 君子Jūnzǐ pardons inadvertent transgressors & extenuates (Sic) criminal offenders.

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: Liberation shows the trigram of Movement above the trigram of Danger — through movement, there is an escape from peril. An early movement to the southwest wins the allegiance of the masses and returns the state to normalcy and equilibrium. When heaven and earth are freed from the grasp of winter, we have thunder and rain. When these come, the buds of the fruit-producing vegetation begin to open. Great indeed are the phenomena in the time of liberation.

Legge: The written Chinese character for Liberation is the symbol of unloosing — untying a knot or unravelling a complication. This hexagram denotes a condition in which the obstruction and difficulty of the preceding figure have been removed. The lesson is how this new and better state of the kingdom should be dealt with. If no tasks remain to be completed, the sooner things resume their normal course the better. If further operations are necessary, let them be accomplished without delay. The 康熙 Kāngxī editors say that moving to the south and west is the same as returning to normality.

Thunder & rain clear the atmosphere, and a feeling of oppression is relieved. The images of springtime in the Confucian commentary refer to the gentle policy of a conquering ruler who forgives the opposition of those who cease to offer resistance.

NOTES & PARAPHRASES

Judgment: Do what obviously needs to be done and return to stability as soon as possible.

The Superior Man forgives, forgets, and bears no grudges.

(i.e., Stability is more important than fixing blame or haggling over who is right.)

If the thirty-ninth hexagram of Impasse is turned upside down it becomes the fortieth hexagram of Liberation or Deliverance. The two figures represent opposite situations: if Impasse creates tension, then Liberation releases it. The upper trigram of Movement ascends to escape from the lower trigram of Danger, giving us an unambiguous image of freedom and relief.

"Apart from all personification, the whole space in which life finds itself has a malevolently spiritual character, and the "demons" themselves are as many spatial realms as persons. To overcome them is the same thing as to pass through them, and in breaking through their boundaries this passage at the same time breaks their power and achieves the liberation from the magic of their sphere."

H. Jonas —The Gnostic Religion

Legge's commentary — in the preceding hexagram — explains that the "southwest" is the direction of "earth," the fertile lowland where life is natural and uncontrived. Confucius tells us here that an early move in this direction will win the "allegiance of the masses." Psychologically interpreted, this refers to the inner kingdom of the psyche, where “the masses” are the drives, emotions and archetypal complexes which make up our being. The symbolism suggests a conscious freeing up of inner tension.

"These forces, therefore, must not be left to run wild, but should be disposed of in harmless ways or, better still, used for constructive purposes: creative activities of various kinds; the rebuilding of our personality, contributing to our Psychosynthesis."

Roberto Assagioli — Psychosynthesis

Hexagram 28

Hexagram 28 is named 大過 (dà guò), "Great Exceeding" or "preponderance of the great", "great surpassing" and "critical mass".

• Its inner trigram is ☴ (巽 xùn, 57) ground = (風) wind.
• Its outer trigram is ☱ (兌 duì, 58) open = (澤) swamp.

䷛ Unicode name: Hexagram for GREAT PREPONDERANCE

CRITICAL MASS

Other titles: Preponderance of the Great, The Symbol of Great Passing, Excess, Great Excess, The Passing of Greatness, Great Surpassing, Great Gains, Experience, Greater than Great, Greatness in Excess, Dominance by the Mighty, The Passing of Greatness, Excess of the Great, Law of Karma

Judgment

Legge: Critical Mass depicts a weak beam. Under such conditions, it is advantageous to move in any direction. Success is indicated.

Wilhelm/Baynes: Preponderance of the Great. The ridgepole sags to the breaking point. It furthers one to have somewhere to go. Success.

Blofeld: Excess! The ridgepole sags. It is favourable to have some goal (or destination) in view. Success! [A glance at the hexagram will show that it is too heavy in the middle and too weak at the ends. A number of firm lines is generally auspicious, but there can be too much of a good thing!]

Liu: Great Excess. The ridgepole is crooked. It benefits to go anywhere. Success.

Ritsema/Karcher: Great Exceeding, the ridgepole sagging. Harvesting; possessing directed going. Growing. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of our connection to a ruling principle. It emphasizes that pushing the guiding idea beyond ordinary limits and accepting the results is the adequate way to handle it...]

Shaughnessy: Great Surpassing: The ridgepole bows upward; beneficial to have someplace to go; receipt.

Cleary (1): When the great is excessive, the ridgepole bends. It is good to go somewhere; that is developmental. [When the ridgepole snaps, the whole house falls down. In the same way, practitioners of 道 the Dào who promote 陽 too much, who do not know when enough is enough, who can be great but cannot be small, suffer damage to their spiritual house.]

Cleary (2): When greatness passes, the ridgepole bends. It is beneficial to have somewhere to go, for we will succeed.

Wu: Excess of the Great indicates a beam that warps. It will be advantageous to have undertakings. It will be pervasive.

The Image

Legge: The image of trees beneath a marsh forms Critical Mass. The superior man, in accordance with this, fearlessly stands alone and stays retired from the world without regret.

Wilhelm/Baynes: The lake rises above the trees: the image of Preponderance of the Great. Thus the superior man, when he stands alone, is unconcerned, and if he has to renounce the world, he is undaunted.

Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes a forest submerged in a great body of water. The Superior Man, though standing alone, is free from fear; he feels no discontent in withdrawing from the world.

[This is suggested by the component trigrams. Water is necessary for the nourishment of the trees, but too much of it can cause serious damage.]

Liu: The lake rising over the trees symbolizes Great Excess. The superior man, when isolated, is undisturbed. If he has to retreat from society, he feels no regret.

Ritsema/Karcher: Marsh submerging wood. Great Exceeding.

君子Jūnzǐ uses solitary establishing not to fear.

(君子Jūnzǐ uses) retiring-from the age without melancholy.

Cleary (1): Moisture destroys wood in excess. Thus superior people stand alone without fear and leave society without distress.

Cleary (2): Moisture destroys wood. Developed people, etc.

[Only when sustained by the power to stand alone without fear and avoid society without distress can learning to be firmly rooted and development have a proper basis; then it is possible to refine and support the mediocre.]

Wu: Marsh covers over wood.

This is Excess of the Great.

Thus the 君子Jūnzǐ stands alone without fear and withdraws from the world without melancholy.

CONFUCIAN COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: Excess is weakly supported at either end, with weakness in both the lowest and topmost lines. The dynamic lines are in excess, but two of them are in the central positions. The trigrams of Flexibility and Satisfaction indicate that there will be an advantage in moving in any direction whatever — there will be a success. Great indeed is the work to be done during this extraordinary time.

Legge: Extraordinary times require extraordinary skill in their management. The figure shows two magnetic lines at the top and bottom, with four dynamic lines between them — giving the image of a great beam unable to sustain its own weight. Lines two and five are both dynamic and central, however, and from this and the attributes of the component trigrams, a good auspice is obtained.

NOTES & PARAPHRASES

Judgment: A stressful situation is best managed with a comprehensive strategy.

(Or: in the chess game of life, one succeeds by planning several moves in advance.)

The Superior Man serves The Work by going his own way, regardless of public opinion.

Wilhelm titles this hexagram Preponderance of the Great. I prefer R.L. Wing's paraphrase of Critical Mass as more evocative of the figure's meaning in modern terminology.

In Critical Mass, four dynamic lines lurk inside of the hexagram, weakly contained at the top and bottom by two magnetic lines. This energetic concentration could explode in an unpredictable release of force, and hence the Judgment tells us to move now (remember: non-action is also action) to avoid unwanted consequences. (Often the outcome is predictable — let us be prepared to just walk away if and when that is our best move)

Legge’s translation of the Judgment is:

"...It is advantageous to move in any direction whatever. "

This is a different message than Wilhelm's:

"...It furthers one to have somewhere to go."

Legge’s version implies an almost hysterical flight from danger while Wilhelm's rendition suggests prior intention and planning. The latter interpretation is definitely what is meant here, as confirmed by Cleary’s Buddhist commentary:

"When the transformative path is flourishing, contaminations easily arise; it is best to set up guidelines and regulations. When meditation work is advanced, ignorance is about to dissolve; it is best to exercise the mind skillfully."

Coupled with Cleary’s translation of the Image as: “Developed people stand alone without fear, avoid society without distress,” the idea is that one should follow one's best intuition and ignore popular illusions, political correctness or inner fears. (Psychologically: conventional thinking, socially conditioned reflexes, knee-jerk responses, etc.). During a time of Critical Mass, pay close attention to direction from the Self to preserve the Work. This is not the time to follow the crowd. Sometimes this can mean that we are obliged to go it alone — one of the Work’s frequent tests (Cf. line 6):

"The 29 Gulf is something that has to leap, and leapt alone, stripped of all hindering burdens, in faith ... It is thus one of the crisis points of spiritual progress because of the great temptation to turn back from the unknown to the apparent safety of known things, and to succumb to this temptation is to lose all the fruits of past endeavour."

G. Knight — A Practical Guide to Kabbalistic Symbolism

SUGGESTIONS for MEDITATION

Comparing the Judgment & Image of this hexagram with those of hexagram number 32, Consistency.

Anthony: We must regain modesty through the effort to rid ourselves of strong elements that cause us to press forward. The strong elements may exist in someone else, causing them to assault us with their fear, mistrust or doubt. Strong refers to the impetuous movement to resolve what is ambiguous... We can meet the challenge by remaining detached and letting things go through their changes... To be truly rich is to remain modest; to be truly powerful is to remain reticent.

Hexagram 40 Changing Line 3

Legge: The third line, magnetic, shows a porter with his burden, yet riding in a carriage. He will only tempt robbers to attack him. However firm and correct he may try to be, there will be cause for regret.

Wilhelm/Baynes: If a man carries a burden on his back and nonetheless rides in a carriage, he thereby encourages robbers to draw near. Perseverance leads to humiliation.

Blofeld: Travelling with both luggage-bearers and a carriage, he attracted the attention of robbers. To persist would bring misfortune. [This could mean that someone bearing luggage on his back rides in a carriage. In any case, the Chinese additional commentaries explain that the passage refers to those who usurp privileges to which they are not entitled by rank or merit.]

Liu: A man carries goods on his back and rides in a carriage — thus invites robbers to come.

To continue brings humiliation.

Ritsema/Karcher: Bearing, moreover riding. Involving outlawry culminating. Trial: abashment.

Shaughnessy: Carrying on the back and riding in a cart brings robbers to arrive; determination is distressful.

Cleary (1): Riding bearing a burden causes enemies to arrive. Even being righteous one is humiliated.

Cleary (2): Carrying and riding bring on enemies. It is right to be humiliated.

Wu: A man bearing a load rides in a carriage. What he swaggers is conducive to robbery. Even though he does nothing wrong, he will be humiliated.

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: For a porter with his burden to be riding in a carriage is a thing to be ashamed of. It is he himself that tempts the robbers to come. On whom besides can we lay the blame? Wilhelm/Baynes: He should really be ashamed of himself. When I myself thus attract robbers, on whom shall I lay the blame? Blofeld: Moreover, his using both of them was shameful. If I were to act thus and bring robbers down on me, who but myself would be to blame? Ritsema/Karcher: Truly permitting the demoniac indeed. Originating from my involving arms. Furthermore whose fault indeed. Cleary (2): Carrying and riding are both disgraceful. One brings attack by oneself – who else is to blame? Wu: It is a shame for a bearer to ride in a carriage. He exposes himself to robbery. Who else is to be blamed?

The Master said: The makers of the 易經 may be said to have known the philosophy of robbery. 易經 says, "He is a burden-bearer, and yet rides in a carriage, thereby exciting robbers to attack him." Burden-bearing is the business of an inferior man. A carriage is the vehicle of a gentleman. When an inferior man rides in the vehicle of a gentleman, robbers will think of taking it from him. When one is insolent to those above him and oppressive to those below, robbers will wish to attack him. Careless laying up of things excites robbery, as a woman's adorning of herself excites to lust. What the 易經 says about the burden-bearer's riding in a carriage, and exciting robbers to attack him shows how robbery is called out.

Legge: The third line is magnetic where it should be dynamic. In the top place of the lower trigram, it suggests a porter riding in a carriage. People will say: "How did he get there? The things cannot be his own." Therefore robbers will attack and plunder him since he can't protect himself or accomplish anything good.

NOTES & PARAPHRASES

修: The man has obtained material goods and comfort and seeks a life of ease that does not suit his nature. Like a woman's self-adornment which excites lust, this way of life merely invites robbers and leads to humiliation.

翼: I have been able to assume a somewhat powerful position, which I do not know how to control. I pretend to be something that I am not. This invites envy. If I continue in this way I shall suffer humiliation at the hands of others who would usurp my position.

Editor: Receiving this line can be a reprimand for an unworthy attitude. It shows one who aspires beyond his station or incorrectly seeks an easy solution to his problems. If this is the only changing line, the hexagram becomes number thirty-two, Consistency, the corresponding line of which begins: "Shows one who does not constantly maintain his virtue..." The idea is that a desire to move ahead quickly tempts one into an improper response to the situation at hand. Sometimes the context of the question can suggest that the "vehicle" (carriage) is the oracle itself — I want it to answer a question I can figure out by myself. The porter's burden is an obvious responsibility or duty. The robbers are anything that would harm the Work.

"The acceptance of the need to relate to power or powers beyond our personal control and rational comprehension does not necessitate — indeed does not even permit — abandonment of our personal responsibility but rather requires of us that in the domain of the personal life assigned to us our own responsibility must be exerted to the limits."

E.C. Whitmont — The Symbolic Quest

A. "There's no such thing as a free lunch."

Get your head out of the clouds and assume your responsibilities.

B. Did you expect a spiritual helicopter to take you to the top of the mountain?

Hexagram 40 Changing Line "5 — V"

Legge: The fifth line, magnetic, shows the superior man (the ruler) executing his function of removing whatever is injurious to the idea of liberation, in which case there will be good fortune, and confidence in him will be shown even by the inferior men.

Wilhelm/Baynes: If only the superior man can deliver himself, it brings good fortune.

Blofeld: Only the Superior Man brings release. Good fortune!

It is up to lesser men to put their trust in him.

[This could also mean "He has confidence in lesser men."]

Liu: Only the superior man can liberate himself from entanglement. Good fortune.

Thus the inferior man trusts him.

Ritsema/Karcher: 君子Jūnzǐ holding-fast possesses. Taking apart. Significant. Possessing conformity, tending-towards Small People.

Shaughnessy: The gentleman only is untangled; auspicious; there is a return among the little men.

Cleary (1): In this, the superior person has liberation, which is fortunate; there is earnestness in regard to the inferior person.

Cleary (2): The developed person has a solution, which is fortunate. There is sincerity toward a petty person.

Wu: The君子Jūnzǐ is relieved of what has implicated him. This is auspicious. It would be a lesson to the little men.

COMMENTARY

Confucius/Legge: When he removes the barriers to liberation the inferior men will of themselves retire. Wilhelm/Baynes: The superior man delivers himself because inferior men then retreat. Blofeld: But when the Superior Man offers them to be released, they take to their heels. [Perhaps this means the true release involves release from selfishness — a lesson which men of little merit have no desire to learn!] Ritsema/Karcher: Small People withdrawing indeed. Cleary (2): The developed person has a solution. The petty person withdraws. Wu: The君子Jūnzǐ is relieved and the little men will resign.

Legge: Line five is magnetic in a dynamic place, but the place is that of the ruler, whose duty is to promote liberation by removing all barriers to harmony within the kingdom — especially all the inferior men symbolized by the divided lines. He can do this with the help of his dynamic correlate in the second line. Then even the inferior men will change their ways, and conform to his will. "The inferior men retire" means that believing in the sincerity of the ruler's determination to remove all evil men, they either retire of themselves or strive to conform to his wishes.

NOTES & PARAPHRASES

修: The man drives away inferior people through an inner resolve and makes a complete mental and spiritual break. They recognize his earnestness, withdraw of their own accord, and even extend begrudging approval.

翼: In order to eliminate an inferior habit or situation I must first make an inner resolve to overcome it. Only I can save myself. Once I am liberated, inferior elements will retreat into the background and I will win the respect I deserve. Good fortune.

Editor: The context of the line does not lend itself to the usual gender symbolism used in this book. Wilhelm renders this in a conditional sense: "If only the superior man can deliver himself..." Blofeld and Liu say that "only the superior man" can liberate himself. There is the implication that our "superiority" may be in question. I am challenged to take appropriate action to liberate myself from my fetters. This will be in accordance with the ruler's central place and an active balancing of forces as imaged in the relationship with the second line correlate.

"For when the body gets out of equilibrium, we look to which side it inclines in becoming unbalanced and then oppose it with its contrary until it returns to equilibrium. When it is in equilibrium, we remove that counterbalance and revert to that which keeps the body in equilibrium. We act in a similar manner with regard to moral habits."

Maimonides

A. Identify and eliminate the problem or limiting belief. Clear the psyche of inhibitions.

B. If I stop indulging my weaknesses they will eventually leave me alone.

 

Wednesday, June 2

"Life is manifested through electrical forces, and its vibrations are positive and negative - in the atoms and cells of the body - is built by hereditary influences, by the effects of vitamins."   (ECRL 444-2) Life 道 is manifested through electrical forces 電力, and its vibrations 常道 are positive and negative 正負 『正反』、此兩者，同出而異名 —  in the atoms and cells of the body —  life is built: by hereditary influences, by the effects of vitamins 維生素.

Vitamin 1920, originally vitamine (1912), from Latin vīta (“life”) (see vital) + amine (see amino acids). Vitamine coined by Polish biochemist Casimir Funk after the initial discovery of aberic acid (thiamine) when it was thought that all such nutrients would be amines.[1] The term had become ubiquitous by the time it was discovered that vitamin C, among others, had no amine component. In 1920, British biochemist Jack Drummond proposed that the final -e be dropped to deemphasize the amine reference. The ending -in was acceptable because it was used for neutral substances of undefined composition. Drummond also introduced the lettering system of nomenclature (Vitamin A, B, C, etc.) at this same time.

易經 
Hexagram 40 Changing to Hexagram 28

#40.3,5 > #28

Transition page for hexagram #40 to #28.

---

"Deliverance"   is changing to   "Test of Faith"

Hexagram #40 transitioning to hexagram #28 with a total of 2 changing lines.

In this transformation, both the upper and lower trigrams are seen transforming from #40 to #28.

The starting hexagram #40 is built from the upper trigram of Thunder above the lower trigram of Water.

The secondary completed hexagram, #28, deconstructs into a transformed upper trigram of Lake above a transformed lower trigram of Wind.

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The starting hexagram #40:
"Deliverance"

The meaning of hexagram #40

"Freedom from hardship" is the meaning of this welcome hexagram. Some challenges will still lie ahead, but the stage has been set for success. We have disentangled ourself from opposing forces. Our projects, ideas and dreams are destined to come to fruition. This is a time to rally our support base, and clear the air of any tensions and grievances. This is a time to forgive and forget. Let worries wash away like water.

---

The changing lines between hexagram 40 and hexagram 28

Changing line #3

"Letting go of Burdens"- Don't try to carry too heavy a load. Diversification is the key here. This is especially true with finances. Don't put all your eggs in one basket

Changing line #5

"Freedom from Bondage"- This line signifies a time of true liberation, a time of inner liberation. The wise person recognizes their freedom within their prison cell walls, and thus realizes internal peacefulness regardless of outer circumstances.

---

The future hexagram #28:
"Test of Faith"

The meaning of hexagram #28

When walking across a thin and bending beam, one must take heart and have faith that it will hold. This hexagram is a reminder to not bend under the weight of burdens. It is also about a great inner test. I may be in some danger for a short time. Only through letting go of the old and embracing the new can success be attained. A gentle strength is required here.

Tuesday, June 1

"The less and less of self, the more and more of 'Your will, not mine, be done in me and through me,' the greater becomes the potential, the greater becomes the harmony, the greater joy is seen in relationships and activities with others." 

(ECRL 1992-1)

道德經 《道德經》第78章

天下莫柔弱於水，而攻堅強者莫之能勝，其無以易之。

弱之勝強，柔之勝剛，天下莫不知，莫能行。

是以聖人云：受國之垢，是謂社稷主；受國不祥，是謂天下王。

正言若反。

78 — Kunesh

Nothing is softer, more flexible, or more giving than water

• nothing can resist it
• nothing can take it away
• nothing can endure it
• there is no way to hurt it.

The flexible overcomes what resists it,
the giving overcomes what takes it,
the soft overcomes the hard,
but who uses this knowledge?
 
Only the person who knows the earth
as intimately as the trees and grasses
can rule the earth,
only the person who accepts
the guilt and evil of humanity
can rule the universe.
Straight tongues seem forked.
Straight talk seems crooked.

78 — Arthur Waley, 1934

Nothing under heaven is softer or more yielding than water;

But when it attacks things hard and resistant there is not one of them that can prevail.

For they can find no way of altering it.

That the yielding conquers the resistant

And the soft conquers the hard is a fact known by all men,

Yet utilized by none.

Yet it is in reference to this that the Sage said

“Only he who has accepted the dirt of the country can be lord of its soil shrines;

Only he who takes upon himself the evils of the country

Can become a king among those who dwell under heaven.”

Straight words seem crooked.

Walter Longmire

Riding yet phoning (away yet in touch)

The title character of Walt Longmire Mysteries, a series of mystery novels written by best-selling author Craig Johnson, and of its televised adaptation – Longmire, a crime drama series developed by John Coveny and Hunt Baldwin.

At the end of the series, Walt decides to retire as sheriff and encourages his daughter Cady to run for sheriff in his place. Instead, Walt begins a search for Lord Anson Hamilton's buried treasure which Lucian Connally claimed to have found before his death. In the series final scene, Walt is shown to finally own a cell phone of his own as he commences his search. Free, roaming and answering a call.

Longmire Name Meaning

English: habitational name from a minor place in the parish of Windermere, Cumbria, named in Middle English as long ‘long’ + myre, mire ‘marsh’, ‘bog’ (Old Norse mýrr). Translates into French as "long bourreau".

Gigi & Gaston

• From Luigi or diminutive of Giorgio.
• Gigi l'amoroso è un singolo di Dalida pubblicato in 7" nel 1974.It is the story of a little Italian singer who king of his village left for the United States for the love of a woman, made a complete fiasco there and returned home.
• Gigi, Il était une fois Gigi or Magical Princess Gigi 魔法のプリンセスミンキーモモ (Mahō no Princess Minky Momo?)
• Gigi is a 1944 novella by French writer Colette. The plot focuses on a young Parisian girl being groomed for a career as a courtesan and her relationship with the wealthy cultured man named Gaston who falls in love with her and eventually marries her. Gigi is a short story written by Colette in 1944, at the age of 71, one of her last writings, ten years before her death. The theme of the short story is that of the demimondaines of the Belle Époque, in Paris, around 1900, and more precisely that of the future of a teenage girl who grows and evolves in this environment, being inspired by the relationship of Yola Henriquet and of the press boss Henri Letellier.
• Gigi is 16 years old, her grandmother and great aunt are educating her so that she will one day become a maintained woman. But Gigi has sympathy for the friend of the family, the seducer Gaston Lachaille.
• Played by Danièle Delorme in a French film directed by Jacqueline Audry, released in 1949, an adaptation of the eponymous novel by Colette, Gigi: Gilberte known as Gigi, the daughter of a demimondaine raised by her grandmother and her aunt. 

Gaston Lachaille, 1944 (Colette)

Gaston Lagaffe, 1957 (André Franquin). The character of Gaston Lagaffe ('Gomer Goof') is derived from stereotypes of the American beatnik, publicized from 1957. The success of the book On the Road (1957) by Jack Kerouac made known the Beat Generation, a radical movement of emancipation inspired by the mode of free and maverick life of jazz musicians, which was abruptly popularized and both mocked by the American mass media. Beatnik stereotypes included pacifism, refusal to work, nonconformity or even eccentricity, love of jazz and the bohemian life, and clothing stereotypes such as long hair, beret, sandals, and duffel. -coat, blue jeans and turtlenecks.

June 1st, 2021, Roland-Garros : Gasquet croque Gaston et s’apprête à retrouver Nadal