Nov 01 22
Four of Swords
37. The Family [The Clan]
03. Difficulty at the Beginning
General:
Isabelle M asks: How does one keep their creative passion flowing while their financial future is so unknown?
Isabelle, what is most consistent in your conscious intellect? Are you organized? Organized to a fault? Pretty loose? What is your support structure like? Is there a structure? Are you trying to develop a support structure for your “creative passion”? (These are not rhetorical questions but sincere.)
Since “creative passion” is not general — it is a personal force or magnetism toward a particular idea or aesthetic or way of being — and a secure financial future is a kind of defensible space in which said "creative passion" wants to sit — fostering and protecting intimacy is going to be your main thing. Passion is not often related to organization — but it should be — like there is no freedom without discipline or limits. Establishing financial security for creative passion is sought and planned for — it won't just occur.
And jeez could there be a better line to directly answer your query?
Again you ask: How does one keep their creative passion flowing while their financial future is so unknown?
Answer: “In order to find one’s place in the infinity of being, one must be able both to separate and to unite.”
Every aspect of the world is inherently insecure (financially or otherwise) — after all we are some kind of standing wave in the shape of "apes" — padding around on an oblate spheroid floating in blackness — passionate care for the self (and then out of that) others, is the only way to proceed — in such cosmic insecurity.
Complete Reading: This week we pulled the Four of Swords. The number four in the minor arcana indicates stability or steadiness. The suites of swords deals with intellect and consciousness. In combination, there is occasion to think about that which is stable in one’s own thinking or cognizing — like, if there is a particular problem, or a need of solution, answers may be found by looking at the most constant tendencies of your intellect. Are you too analytical? Are you not analytical enough? Is your intellect typically powerful?
Our first hexagram this week is #37, The Family (The Clan). We relate the following fairly often, as it seems important to say when undertaking an exercise utilizing a text that is at least 2000 years old. There are certain aspects of the I Ching that are irrelevant on the surface but wholly maintain their relevance in intention — like when it speaks of “the family” or “woman” and “man” (among other related things) it is speaking in a manner 2000 years old. But we have found zero distortion in the aphoristic content of the text overall. Like here with this hexagram, there are confident definitions about the roles of men, women and children in the household. On the surface it is silly to our age, to “A” even think in terms of head of household (as it is often healthiest when a completely shared duty — at least in intent) and “B” a head of household role is obviously not gender determined. So what can we take from here? With a line like “The family is society in embryo; it is the native soil on which performance of moral duty is made easy through natural affection, so that within a small circle a basis of moral practice is created, and this is later widened to include human relationships in general.” All Good begins with genuine intimacy (intimacy only can occur on a small scale). You must be honest with yourself first and foremost in this world, then with those closest to you. If you live by yourself with no friends or family (btw, the person writing this doesn’t speak to anyone in their family) you still have a certain inner structure that desires order from sincere rapport (this is intimacy). There were two changes this week, of which the specific notes are: honesty naturally begets responsibility (and leadership) and when leading an intimate group there must be balance between discipline and freedom.
Our second hexagram, the one that suggests how best to meet the challenges (or the changes) is #3, Difficulty at the Beginning. There is danger at the very beginning of processes as emergence becomes deterministic when rhythm eventually arrives (parenting and childhood is a good example here). Therefore it is important, when starting processes, to be highly aware — so yes, give your full attention to organizing emergent features BEFORE they eventually and definitely hit their rhythm. Also, included in this hexagram is a line of profound beauty/wisdom: “In order to find one’s place in the infinity of being, one must be able both to separate and to unite.”
- Look for answers to problems using the basic powers and tendencies of your intellect (do not seek out new ways of cognizing).
- Keep in mind this sequence: All Good begins with genuine intimacy. Honesty about intimacy naturally begets responsibility (and leadership). Leadership requires a loving balance of discipline and freedom.
- Give your full attention to organizing emergent features (the beginning details/stages) — as all emergence eventually becomes rhythm (which is much harder to manipulate — if at all).
Isabelle M asks: How does one keep their creative passion flowing while their financial future is so unknown?
Isabelle, what is most consistent in your conscious intellect? Are you organized? Organized to a fault? Pretty loose? What is your support structure like? Is there a structure? Are you trying to develop a support structure for your “creative passion”? (These are not rhetorical questions but sincere.)
Since “creative passion” is not general — it is a personal force or magnetism toward a particular idea or aesthetic or way of being — and a secure financial future is a kind of defensible space in which said "creative passion" wants to sit — fostering and protecting intimacy is going to be your main thing. Passion is not often related to organization — but it should be — like there is no freedom without discipline or limits. Establishing financial security for creative passion is sought and planned for — it won't just occur.
And jeez could there be a better line to directly answer your query?
Again you ask: How does one keep their creative passion flowing while their financial future is so unknown?
Answer: “In order to find one’s place in the infinity of being, one must be able both to separate and to unite.”
Every aspect of the world is inherently insecure (financially or otherwise) — after all we are some kind of standing wave in the shape of "apes" — padding around on an oblate spheroid floating in blackness — passionate care for the self (and then out of that) others, is the only way to proceed — in such cosmic insecurity.
Complete Reading: This week we pulled the Four of Swords. The number four in the minor arcana indicates stability or steadiness. The suites of swords deals with intellect and consciousness. In combination, there is occasion to think about that which is stable in one’s own thinking or cognizing — like, if there is a particular problem, or a need of solution, answers may be found by looking at the most constant tendencies of your intellect. Are you too analytical? Are you not analytical enough? Is your intellect typically powerful?
Our first hexagram this week is #37, The Family (The Clan). We relate the following fairly often, as it seems important to say when undertaking an exercise utilizing a text that is at least 2000 years old. There are certain aspects of the I Ching that are irrelevant on the surface but wholly maintain their relevance in intention — like when it speaks of “the family” or “woman” and “man” (among other related things) it is speaking in a manner 2000 years old. But we have found zero distortion in the aphoristic content of the text overall. Like here with this hexagram, there are confident definitions about the roles of men, women and children in the household. On the surface it is silly to our age, to “A” even think in terms of head of household (as it is often healthiest when a completely shared duty — at least in intent) and “B” a head of household role is obviously not gender determined. So what can we take from here? With a line like “The family is society in embryo; it is the native soil on which performance of moral duty is made easy through natural affection, so that within a small circle a basis of moral practice is created, and this is later widened to include human relationships in general.” All Good begins with genuine intimacy (intimacy only can occur on a small scale). You must be honest with yourself first and foremost in this world, then with those closest to you. If you live by yourself with no friends or family (btw, the person writing this doesn’t speak to anyone in their family) you still have a certain inner structure that desires order from sincere rapport (this is intimacy). There were two changes this week, of which the specific notes are: honesty naturally begets responsibility (and leadership) and when leading an intimate group there must be balance between discipline and freedom.
Our second hexagram, the one that suggests how best to meet the challenges (or the changes) is #3, Difficulty at the Beginning. There is danger at the very beginning of processes as emergence becomes deterministic when rhythm eventually arrives (parenting and childhood is a good example here). Therefore it is important, when starting processes, to be highly aware — so yes, give your full attention to organizing emergent features BEFORE they eventually and definitely hit their rhythm. Also, included in this hexagram is a line of profound beauty/wisdom: “In order to find one’s place in the infinity of being, one must be able both to separate and to unite.”