Sep 24 24
Ten of Swords
41. Decrease
38. Opposition
These first few lines are the general aphoristic returns for the week. They are raw and uninterpreted; there to use how you’d like. (The specific readings follow.)
From “M.L.”: I work as a creative director, but my background is in design. Deep down, what I’ve always wanted since I was a kid is to be an artist, but for survival reasons, I decided to set that aside in a parallel space. I think I’ve been distorted by Vignelli’s principle of “Professional Appropriateness,” and I just can’t seem to get my artistic projects off the ground. I’m torn between wanting to create what I truly desire and the need for it to be understood, to make sense (whether as a continuation or a break) within a broader context. This ambivalence has kept me completely stuck for years. I’m fed up with this neurosis that no one around me can understand, and with this need for unanimous acceptance. What situation, exercises, or actions can I take to break out of this cycle?
Art is not an Archimedean point — if anything, like beauty, it is play with distances and is ultimately only a process. As well, art is itself often a neurosis — the compulsion to formalize. Again “art” is not a resolution but a process not at all distinguishable from every other aspect of a person. Perhaps you are like the scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz — you are wanting something that you already have.
One can’t change one’s nature but one can emphasize or de-emphasize wanted aspects of their personality.
The feedback here is to simplify and work on your humility.
Please know that we know that, what might be called dream deferral, when it goes on for years, unfortunately becomes a way of life (we know this all too well, personally). The dream of change can become a dangerous drug.
Yours is a VERY relevant question to a lot of people — it is also a complicated one. We are happy to pitch a follow-up question to the oracle, should you have one — feel free. We know we’d be very interested in the oracle expanding on your topic...
Complete Reading
This week we pulled the Ten of Swords. A severe image to be sure... As opposed to the Death card, which indicates massive change, the Ten of Swords points to an actual end — something has played out, quite completely — but the end was part of a process, not an end intended to be a surprise (this might be clearer in hindsight).
Our first hexagram this week is #41, Decrease. A decrease of means or capital should not be met with hoarding, but rather, a welcome embrace of simplifying one’s life. That is, a forced decrease can be the greatest of gifts. “Decrease does not under all circumstances mean something bad. Increase and decrease come in their own time. What matters here is to understand the time and not to try to cover up poverty with empty pretense.”
There was one change this week of which the specific note is: negative attributes can keep even the most sympathetic friends at a distance — attempts at humility/modesty should be made to lessen the gap.
Our second hexagram, the one that suggests how best to meet the challenges (or the changes) is #38, Opposition. Opposition is a difficult but perpetual scenario in life, therefore it should not be ignored, but studied and taken seriously. When serious opposition is met in an absolutely important matter do not respond with a violent return (that would only bolster resistance) rather, consider committing to producing “gradual effects.” To do this it is wise to remember that “a reasonable, cultured person is never led into baseness or vulgarity… with persons of another sort; regardless of all commingling, they will always preserve their individuality.” As well, without differences, generally, we could not hear, think, see, or even exist really. Respecting the absolute reality of difference is a good starting point for working together.
- A process has reached the end of its movement.
- A decrease in means can often be a gift of a simpler life.
- A lack should not be obfuscated by pretense.
- Humility will help estranged but sympathetic relations to strengthen.
- Do not be drawn into a binary relation with a base or vulgar or dirty dealing person — as you will become equivalent to that energy.
- Respecting the absolute reality of difference is a good starting point for working together.
From “M.L.”: I work as a creative director, but my background is in design. Deep down, what I’ve always wanted since I was a kid is to be an artist, but for survival reasons, I decided to set that aside in a parallel space. I think I’ve been distorted by Vignelli’s principle of “Professional Appropriateness,” and I just can’t seem to get my artistic projects off the ground. I’m torn between wanting to create what I truly desire and the need for it to be understood, to make sense (whether as a continuation or a break) within a broader context. This ambivalence has kept me completely stuck for years. I’m fed up with this neurosis that no one around me can understand, and with this need for unanimous acceptance. What situation, exercises, or actions can I take to break out of this cycle?
Art is not an Archimedean point — if anything, like beauty, it is play with distances and is ultimately only a process. As well, art is itself often a neurosis — the compulsion to formalize. Again “art” is not a resolution but a process not at all distinguishable from every other aspect of a person. Perhaps you are like the scarecrow in the Wizard of Oz — you are wanting something that you already have.
One can’t change one’s nature but one can emphasize or de-emphasize wanted aspects of their personality.
The feedback here is to simplify and work on your humility.
Please know that we know that, what might be called dream deferral, when it goes on for years, unfortunately becomes a way of life (we know this all too well, personally). The dream of change can become a dangerous drug.
Yours is a VERY relevant question to a lot of people — it is also a complicated one. We are happy to pitch a follow-up question to the oracle, should you have one — feel free. We know we’d be very interested in the oracle expanding on your topic...
Complete Reading
This week we pulled the Ten of Swords. A severe image to be sure... As opposed to the Death card, which indicates massive change, the Ten of Swords points to an actual end — something has played out, quite completely — but the end was part of a process, not an end intended to be a surprise (this might be clearer in hindsight).
Our first hexagram this week is #41, Decrease. A decrease of means or capital should not be met with hoarding, but rather, a welcome embrace of simplifying one’s life. That is, a forced decrease can be the greatest of gifts. “Decrease does not under all circumstances mean something bad. Increase and decrease come in their own time. What matters here is to understand the time and not to try to cover up poverty with empty pretense.”
There was one change this week of which the specific note is: negative attributes can keep even the most sympathetic friends at a distance — attempts at humility/modesty should be made to lessen the gap.
Our second hexagram, the one that suggests how best to meet the challenges (or the changes) is #38, Opposition. Opposition is a difficult but perpetual scenario in life, therefore it should not be ignored, but studied and taken seriously. When serious opposition is met in an absolutely important matter do not respond with a violent return (that would only bolster resistance) rather, consider committing to producing “gradual effects.” To do this it is wise to remember that “a reasonable, cultured person is never led into baseness or vulgarity… with persons of another sort; regardless of all commingling, they will always preserve their individuality.” As well, without differences, generally, we could not hear, think, see, or even exist really. Respecting the absolute reality of difference is a good starting point for working together.