Last year was a number 9 year... number 9 years are generally difficult and
it proved to be so for all of us individually here and as a group. This
upcoming year is a number 1 year ...
Number one is creative, primal power, light-giving, active, strong, firm in
spirit with unrestricted energy and durability.
How this will manifest through this group and our work is, interestingly,
Hexagram number 9: The Taming Power of the Gentle.
***Richard Wilhelm Interpretation***
The wind blows across heaven: the power of gentleness, restraining and
taming.
The wind gathers the clouds, the rising breath of The Creative. It makes
them grow great, but lacks the power to turn them to rain.
The hexagram represents a time when great clouds bring the promise of
moisture and blessing to the land; but no rain falls.
When the strong is temporarily held in leash by the weak, only by gentleness
can the outcome be successful.
In human terms, it represents a servitor who gently restrains a domineering
ruler.
The power of gentleness has success:
Although it can give no rain,
It drives and shapes great clouds.
We are reminded of the time in Chinese history when King Wen served in the
court of the reigning tyrant, Chou Hsin. The time for action on a large
scale had not yet arrived. King Wen could only keep the tyrant somewhat in
check by gentle persuasion.
The situation is not unfavorable. There is the prospect of ultimate
success, but there are still obstacles in the way and we can only take
preparatory measures.
Only through the small means of friendly persuasion can we exert any
influence. The time has not yet come for sweeping measures. However, we may
be able, to a limited extent, to act as a restraining, subduing influence.
The trigrams' attributes: inner strength with outer gentleness show us the
way. To carry out our purpose we need firm determination within and
gentleness and adaptability in external relations.
As the gentle wind shapes the clouds,
So the wise man refines his bearing.
The wind can indeed drive together the clouds in the sky; yet, being nothing
but air, without solid body, it does not produce great or lasting effects.
So also, in times when one can produce no great effect in the outer world,
one should seek to shape the expression of one's being in small ways: one
should seek to refine the outward aspect of one's nature.
No Changing Lines!
**Da Lui interpretation**
Taming the Small Powers implies rest, storage, and preparation. The upper
trigram is Sun, wind, the lower is Ch'ien, heave or sky, while the nuclear
trigrams are Li, the sun, and Tui, clouds: the wind blows and clouds
accumulate in the sky, covering up the sun. It is going to rain, but no
yet.
This situation symbolizes the preparation which precedes a new development;
after battle - hexagram 8 - comes unification - hexagram 8 - and then rest
and preparation.
Hsiao Ch'u is favorable for new undertakings. Although there may be
confusion and difficulty, one should be patient, for success will come in
the end. For love and marriage, this hexagram indicates temporary trouble
and suspicion which will eventually be resolved.
