War, The Yi Jing, And Confucius
The "Heart Of China," Blog with a Point of View
What Goes Around Comes Around
In the article “Yin Yang – Balance Between Dark & Light, War & Peace,“ I write:
“We are all dependent on others in order to achieve our goals. If we desire others to support us, we must also support them. By doing so, we create a cycle of success based on the simple concept of “what goes around comes around.”
Today, the words of Confucius ring a familiar tone, with the situation playing out in Ukraine for all to see. And, when we consider “righteous” actions—acts of saving and protecting, we observe opposing expressions of yin-yang—yang: a portion of humanity sharing and doing all possible; and yin: those more concerned about gas prices and losing familiar comforts.
Yet, whether we choose yang or yin-based involvement, we will not avoid the effects and outcomes. Outcomes that are far-reaching, like the fallout of an atomic war.
Some may turn to the power of the mind to ignore reality—writhing within feeble minds. While others hold out a human hand.
The words of Confucius—expressed long ago, send a message from the past reminding us that we have a choice, and can make a difference. Yet, sadly, in our time of modern medicine and mars-bound spacecraft—we struggle to cure the sickness of hatred, ignorance, and division.
Success Arrives—Or Not
The 64th gua1 of the Yi Jing (I Ching) is called “Wei Ji.” It is the hexagram of “Success Yet-To-Arrive.” The gua combines two trigrams, water and fire.
In this gua, water is located under fire—creating a contradiction. Unlike the 63rd and opposite gua, “Success Has Arrived,” where water is above fire—a natural and logical placement.
Water flows down and fire burns up. When water rests beneath fire basically nothing happens—it’s unsuccessful. Since this is the last of the 64 hexagrams, the fact that it is “unsuccessful,” allows for the cyclic continuation of the 64 hexagrams in the Yi Jing.
Once you reach the end—it’s unsuccessful. You must continue, or ‘back to the drawing board,’ as some may say. Thus, unlike changing weather—all cycles continue to infinity.
Trembling at the Fear of War
In the Chinese classic “诗经 Allegory of Poems,“ one poem describes the destruction brought to the people by the corrupt politics of King You2 of the State of Zhou3 周幽王 (c. ? – 771 BCE), known for the ruthless annihilation of Western Zhou 西周.
In the last stanza of the poem—the most well-known, it reads:
”Trembling at the fear of war, treading carefully, as if walking atop a thin layer of ice—fearful of falling into an abyss.” (战战兢兢，如临深渊，如履薄冰）
In response to the actions of the King of You, Confucius wrote:
“Those in harm’s way are protected; those annihilated survive by their own actions; those destroyed rebuild under their own governance. Therefore, a righteous person, grounded in good—will not forget those in harm’s way, and will help those facing annihilation to survive—to govern, and not face destruction. In this way, the righteous save lives, allowing countries to live on.” (子曰：“危者，安其位这也；亡者，保其存者也；乱者，有其治者也；是故君子安而不忘危，存而不忘亡，治而不忘乱。是以身安而国家可保也。)
Is this the memory of Confucius—a memory kept alive for over 2500 years in the Chinese culture, admonishing us to remember those in harm’s way? To help those being annihilated, and those whose homes are being destroyed?
Hope Is Balance
When we realize the potential of everything we have to lose, perhaps we see the potential that we have too much. Like a spoilt child refusing to share, fearing a possession may not come back, yet, there remains much in possession.
Hope is a word full of life—and life is about balance. Not unlike learning to balance ups and downs, wins and losses, joys and hardships.
The Yi Jing reveals to us that balance is a universal law. When we recognize the universal cycle, we can observe one energy change to another—summer giving way to autumn, and winter giving way to spring. A never-ending cycle that shows us hope, but also reminds us that danger may be just around the corner—with none of us immune to life.
The 64th and final hexagram in the Yi Jing represents the beginning of a new cycle; a fresh spring, and the Phoenix rising from the ashes. Winter giving way to spring, and Success Yet-To-Arrive giving way to success!
Don’t give up! Push through. For with humanity, everything moves in a cycle of hope.
Todd Cornell is the author of Heart Of China, How Mindfulness Changed My Life.
hexagram
Pr. yoh
Pr. joe