Other titles: The Creative, The Symbol of Heaven, The Creative Principle, Force, The Key, Creativity, The Originating, Creative Power, Primal Power, Yang, The Life Force, Kundalini, God the Father
Judgment
Legge:The Dynamic represents what is great and originating, penetrating, advantageous, correct and firm.
Wilhelm/Baynes:The Creative works sublime success, furthering through perseverance.
Blofeld: The Creative Principle . Sublime Success! Persistence in a righteous course brings reward.
Liu:The Creative brings great success, benefiting all through perseverance.
Ritsema/Karcher:Force: Spring Growing Harvesting Trial. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of the primal spirit power that both creates and destroys. It emphasizes that dynamic, unwearied persisting, the action of Force, is the adequate way to handle it. To be in accord with the time, you are told to: persist!]
Shaughnessy:The Key: Primary reception; beneficial to determine.
Cleary(1):Heavencreates, develops, brings about fruition and consummation.
Cleary(1): The creative is successful; this is beneficial if correct.
Wu:The Originator is primordial, pervasive, prosperous and persevering.
The Image
Legge: Heaven, in its motion, gives the idea of strength. The superior man, in accordance with this, nerves himself to ceaseless activity.
Wilhelm/Baynes: The movement of heaven is full of power. Thus the superior man makes himself strong and untiring.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes the power of the celestial forces in motion, wherewith the Superior Man labors unceasingly to strengthen his own character.
Liu: Heaven moves powerfully; the superior man strengthens himself unceasingly.
Ritsema/Karcher: Heaven moves persistingly. A Chun tzu uses originating strength not to pause.
Cleary(1): The activity of heaven is powerful; superior people thereby strengthen themselves ceaselessly.
Wu: Heaven moves in full strength. Thus the jun zi strives ceaselessly to be self-reliant.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: All things owe their inception to the vast and originating power of The Dynamic. It contains all the meaning of the word: Heaven. Clouds move, rain falls, and the myriad things appear in their created forms. The sages comprehend the link between the end and the beginning. They understand how the changes of the six lines of the hexagram are accomplished, each in its season, and with this knowledge they ascend toward Heaven as though mounted on six dragons. The intent of The Dynamic is to transform everything so that it reflects its correct nature as originally conceived by the mind of Heaven. Thereafter, this great harmony is preserved in union and firm correctness. The sage appears aloft, high above all things, and the myriad states are harmoniously united.
Legge: For the Chinese, the dragon has been from the earliest times a symbol of dignity, wisdom, sovereignty and sagehood. It is the symbol of the superior man, and especially the "great man," exhibiting all the virtues and attributes of Heaven. Although the dragon's home is in the water, it can disport itself on land, and also fly through the air.
The sage rules in the world of men as Heaven rules nature. He sees the connection between the end and the beginning as the law of cause and effect in the operations of nature and human affairs. The various steps in that course are symbolized by the lines of the hexagram, and the ideal sage, conducting his ideal government, is represented as driving through the sky in a carriage drawn by six dragons.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment:The Dynamic is the life force itself.
The Superior Man tirelessly furthers the Great Work of Transformation.
The image of a dragon appears in every line of this hexagram, except the third. Like most symbols, the dragon has both a positive and a negative aspect. In Western myth, it is usually an adversary which the hero must conquer before he can obtain a treasure or often, a captive maiden. The Chinese, on the other hand, regard the dragon positively. Blofeld comments:
In China, the dragon has always been regarded as a highly admirable creature of celestial origin. Dragons provide rain; make rivers run and rule the ocean. The European dragon is clearly of another species.
This seeming anomaly may say more about how east and west perceive the forces of nature, rather than refer to any true differences in the forces perceived.
Wilhelm compares the dragon to the electrical energy within a thunderstorm -- as lightning it can destroy us, but in the form of electricity it can be harnessed to do useful work. A dragon is nothing if not a huge serpent, and this suggests the idea of the "serpent power," or Kundalini energy which when aroused in the human body has been likened to a sudden jolt of electricity running up from the base of the spine to the top of the head. The Kundalini force is equated in turn with sexual energy -- dynamic power which ensures the continuance of all but the most primitive of living organisms. Without the powerful energy of sexuality, life as we know it could not exist.
When the dragon remains unconquered in the cave-like depths of the unconscious, the life force autonomously rules our lives and we become passive vehicles for random desires and appetites. This "electricity" will flow wherever it finds a circuit of least resistance, and under these conditions an individual's life is largely "created" by chance and circumstance. When one begins the Work, the task of Individuation, one assumes the role of the hero or warrior, who does battle with the dragon in order to bring it under his will. This is a great struggle, and success is not guaranteed, but if one is able to control the primordial power of the life force, the treasure (or the maiden, which in the male psyche amounts to the same thing), is obtained. This is tantamount to attaining a higher level of consciousness -- in its highest form it constitutes "enlightenment."
The symbolism of all of the hexagrams works on many different levels, and this is especially true of the first two, which must be studied together for a full comprehension of each. (Kabbalists, for example, will recognize in these two figures the same forces found in Chokmah and Binah on the Tree of Life.) For the purposes of this comparison it must be noted that the first hexagram symbolizes Heaven, and the second symbolizes Earth: Force and Form. (As consciousness is to the body it inhabits, so Force is to Form and Heaven to Earth.) Form is magnetic, or "negative" in polarity, and Force is dynamic, or "positive."
In esoteric symbolism "Heaven" does not mean the universe above us -- it means the consciousness within us. This polarity is also reflected in the relationship between the ego and the Self -- in a properly regulated psyche, the ego is always magnetic to the dynamic Self.
There is an invisible universe within the visible one, a world of causes within the world of effects. There is force within matter, and the two are one, and are dependent for their existence on a third, which is the mysterious cause of their existence. There is a world of soul within a world of matter, and the two are one, and caused by the world of spirit.
F. Hartmann -- Paracelsus: Life and Prophecies
SUGGESTIONS FOR MEDITATION
To get a fuller grasp of the numinously beautiful structure of the I Ching and the transcendent reality which it reflects, one should meditate on each of the hexagrams as often as possible -- one can never exhaust their meaning. The first two hexagrams (because they are the "cosmic parents" of all the others), are especially rich in their associations. Here are a few suggestions for meditation:
1. Compare and contrast the general ideas in the first three hexagrams, noting how the third is a logical progression of the first two.
2. The Confucian commentary on The Dynamic is particularly rich in meaning. Read it over and over again -- it contains the principles of the Work as outlined in more detail in the other hexagrams. Compare the sixth sentence with the ideas in hexagram number twenty, Contemplation.
3. Compare the first two hexagrams with hexagram number eleven, Harmony, and number twelve, Divorcement, noting the implications of the symbolism in terms of the proper management of the Work.
Legge: In the first line, dynamic, we see its subject as the dragon lying hid in the deep. It is not the time for active doing.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Hidden dragon. Do not act.
Blofeld: The concealed dragon refrains from action.
Liu: The hibernating dragon does not act.
Ritsema/Karcher: Immersed dragon, no availing-of.
Shaughnessy: Submersed dragon; do not use.
Cleary(1): Hidden dragon: Do not use it.
Cleary(2): The hidden dragon is not to be employed.
Wu: The dragon lying submerged is not to be used.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: This appears from the dynamic and undivided line being in the lowest place. Wilhelm/Baynes: For the light-giving force is still below. Blofeld: The life- sustaining force is still submerged. Ritsema/ Karcher: Yang located below indeed. Wu: Because the yang is in the lowest position.
The Master said:"There he is, with the powers of the dragon, and yet lying hid. The world cannot influence him, for he does not pander to its approval. He lives withdrawn from the world without regret, and its disapproval doesn’t bother him. He rejoices in this opportunity to further his work, but if circumstances do not favor this he can as easily retire. He cannot be separated from the source of his being. This is the dragon lying hid."
Miscellaneous notes: The position is too low. The dynamic power is stored up and hidden. This is the originating power which is the source of life and growth. The actions of the superior man demonstrate his virtue every day, but when concealment is required he restrains the full expression of his work and takes no action.
Legge: The dragon can be the symbol of the superior man, or the great man -- the sage on the throne.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: At the outset, the man is unknown, like a dragon lying hidden. The occasion is not yet ripe for his appearance. He is not moved by public opinion and the desire for fame. He bides his time in self-confidence and silence.
Wing: The time is not ripe for action. You have all the Creative Power that you need to achieve your aim, but you must wait for the opportune moment. If necessary, you may direct activities from behind the scenes.
Editor: The image suggests the dragon in its cave. The forces of the unconscious psyche are hidden from conscious awareness and constitute a potential threat. To take action under such circumstances would at the very least be to risk an unpleasant or unmanageable confrontation with a superior force. Since this is the bottom line of the hexagram, the image reminds us of the serpent power, or Kundalini, lying coiled and asleep at the base of the spine. Those who have experienced the premature and uncontrolled release of this force have attested to its extremely negative qualities -- both physical pain and acute psychological stress are commonly described. If this is the only changing line, the hexagram becomes number forty-four,Temptation, the corresponding line of which reads in part: "...If she moves in any direction, evil will appear." This reinforces the idea of taking no action whatsoever under the prevailing conditions, despite your possible temptation to do so.
The unconscious is not a demoniacal monster, but a natural entity which, as far as moral sense, aesthetic taste, and intellectual judgment go, is completely neutral. It only becomes dangerous when our conscious attitude to it is hopelessly wrong. To the degree that we repress it, its danger increases.
Jung -- The Practice of PsychotherapyA. There are concealed forces in the situation. Take no action when you are unaware of the hidden consequences.
B. Energy is gathering in the unconscious psyche. Leave it alone -- it will express itself when the time is ripe.
Legge: The second line, dynamic, shows the dragon appearing in the field. It will be advantageous to meet with the great man.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Dragon appearing in the field. It furthers one to see the great man.
Blofeld: The dragon is perceived in an open place; it is advantageous to visit a great man.
Liu: The dragon is seen on the field. There is benefit in meeting a great man.
Ritsema/Karcher: Visualizing dragon located-in the fields. Harvesting: visualizing great people.
Shaughnessy: Appearing dragon in the fields; beneficial to see the great man.
Cleary(1): Seeing the dragon in the field: It is beneficial to see a great person.
Wu: There appears the dragon in the field. It will be advantageous to see the great man.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: The diffusion of virtuous influence has been wide. Wilhelm/Baynes: Already the influence of character reaches far. Blofeld: The great man's deeds are everywhere distributed. Ritsema/Karcher: Actualizing-tao spreading-out throughout indeed. [Actualize-tao: ...ability to follow the course traced by the ongoing process of the cosmos... Linked with acquire, TE: acquiring that which makes a being become what it is meant to be.]Wu: Because his virtue is being widely recognized.
The Master said:"There he is, with the qualities of the dragon, and occupying exactly the central place. His everyday speech and conduct is natural and without affectation. He is on guard against depravity, and thereby preserves his inner virtue. The world recognizes his power because he does not call attention to it. Such expressions of integrity are the qualities of a ruler, and transform the world."
Miscellaneous notes: The time still requires him to be unemployed. All under Heaven begins to be adorned and brightened. The correct accumulation of power creates beneficial results. The superior man consolidates his perceptions and evaluates their implications with bemused detachment, as befits a virtuous ruler.
Legge: We have the superior man developing, by means of the processes described, into the great man, with the attributes of a ruler, the appearance of whom is a blessing to men.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: A transformation ensues. The man appears among his peers, although not yet in a position of authority. His virtues are displayed, and his goodness becomes known. The prognosis is good for his impact upon the world. It is propitious to see him.
Wing: Take note of a person who is active in the field of your interest. Although he may not be in a position of Creative Power, his conduct is above reproach and therefore he has significant influence. It would be to your advantage to align yourself with him.
Editor: A field is a wide and open place where movement is relatively unrestricted. The dynamic force here has room to move in any direction. To ensure that this energy moves in the proper direction, we are counseled to maintain a firm connection with "the great man" -- the best that is in us, our highest intuition or inner voice: the Self. The imagery of the line therefore suggests the expansion of awareness, or of coming into one's power. It does not necessarily counsel action.
We should watch the activity of the Self within ourselves and try to make it an influence in our actual life. If for instance I have a dream that I should do something (since our hypothesis is that the dream is so to speak a letter from the Self), that would be an activity from the archetype of the Self, and to give that to the dragon to eat would mean that I make it valid for the body of my actual physical life, i.e., my decision, whether I do this or that, from morning to evening.
M.L. Von Franz -- Alchemical Active ImaginationA. You are beginning to get the idea -- stay connected to avoid going astray.
B. Power accumulates -- stay in touch with your highest potential to ensure that this energy stays focused on the Work.
Legge: In the third line, dynamic, we see its subject as the superior man
active and vigilant all the day, and in the evening still careful and
apprehensive. The position is dangerous, but there will be no mistake.
Wilhelm/Baynes: All day long the superior man is creatively active. At nightfall his mind is still beset with cares. Danger. No blame.
Blofeld: The superior man busies himself the whole day through and evening finds him thoroughly alert. Trouble threatens, but he is not at fault.
Liu: The superior man works creatively the whole day, and is cautious in the evening. Danger. No blame.
Ritsema/Karcher: A Chun tzu completing the day: Force, Force. Nightfall, awe, like adversity. Without fault.
Shaughnessy: The gentleman throughout the day is so initiating; at night he is ashen as if in danger; there is no trouble.
Cleary (1): A superior person works diligently all day, is careful at night. Danger, but no error.
Wu: The jun zi should follow the way of The Dynamic all day long. He should keep himself alert in the day as well as in the evening. If so, he will be free from error, despite alarming situations.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: This refers to the treading of the proper path over and over again. Wilhelm/Baynes: One goes to and fro on the right path. Blofeld: He goes over his work again and again. Ritsema/Karcher: Reversing returning tao indeed. Wu: Take into consideration the principle of cyclic reversion.
The Master said:"The superior man evolves through faithful devotion to his work; and he ensures its endurance by the awareness and control of his speech. His comprehension of fundamental principles enables him to attain his goals, but once attained, he does not exceed their proper limit. Exalted without pride, abased without fear, vigilant in his actions and attentive to the requirements of the time, he copes with danger without error."
Miscellaneous notes: Now he does his proper business. He acts according
to the requirements of the time. He is doubly strong, but beyond the center -- neither in Heaven above, or the field below. Vigilance and concern in a perilous position insure against error.
Legge: The dynamic line is in its proper place. In the exercise of his caution he will refrain from any improper action.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The man's fame begins to spread. Such periods of transition are always unsettling. There is tension in the air. But the man retains his integrity and avoids being swept along by the masses, which flock to him. He remains active, vigilant, careful, and apprehensive. The prevention of mistakes under perilous circumstances is ever on his mind.
Wing: A new world of Creative Power is opening to you. Others will become aware of this and attach themselves to you in hopes that they may use your gain in influence for their own aims. There is danger in this, for your energies may become distracted before they are stabilized. If you hold fiercely to your vision and integrity you will be protected.
Editor: This line marks the threshold between the lower and upper trigrams, and suggests a place of transition -- a kind of no-man's land where forces advance and retreat as conditions require. The superior man is the warrior in the service of the Work, and although he is consciously aware of his task (he is vigilant during the day), he must remain alert to unconscious (night, or evening) factors which might usurp his judgment. This is alluded to in the Confucian commentary in terms of the awareness and control of speech. The control of language is extremely difficult, for it is by means of spontaneous remarks that unconscious forces often manage to express themselves despite all of our intentions to the contrary. It is for this reason that a common discipline of inner work is the strict control of expression -- for example, the vow not to use the word "I" in conversation. (Aleister Crowley is said to have demanded that his disciples slash their arms with a razor every time they broke this rule!) Ritsema/Karcher render "adversity," (LI) as: "Danger, threatening, malevolent demon ... It indicates a spirit or ghost that seeks revenge by inflicting suffering upon the living. Pacifying or exorcizing such a spirit can have a healing effect." If this is the only changing line, the new hexagram created is number ten, Cautious Advance, which repeats the image of careful vigilance as well as the idea in the Confucian commentary of "Treading the proper path over and over again." Compare with line 3 of Hexagram 10.
The psyche is a self-regulating system that maintains its equilibrium just as the body does. Every process that goes too far immediately and inevitably calls forth compensations, and without these there would be neither a normal metabolism nor a normal psyche. In this sense we can take the theory of compensation as a basic law of psychic behavior. Too little on one side results in too much on the other.
Jung -- The Practice of Psychotherapy
A. Although you are consciously devoted to the Work, you must watch out for unconscious elements in your psyche which would hinder your progress.
B. Monitor your words and deeds.
C. Be very careful now in what you do.
Legge: In the fourth dynamic line we see its subject as the dragon looking as if he were leaping up, but still in the deep. There will be no mistake.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Wavering flight over the depths. No blame.
Blofeld: Leaping about on the brink of a chasm, he is not at fault.
Liu: The dragon leaps from the abyss. No blame.
Ritsema/Karcher: Maybe capering located-in the abyss. Without fault.
Shaughnessy: And now jumping in the depths; there is no trouble.
Cleary(1): Sometimes leaping, or in the abyss: no error.
Cleary(2): One may leap in the abyss. No error.
Wu: The dragon may leap out of the abyss. There will be no blame.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: He seems to be leaping up, but is still in the deep. If he advances there will be no error. Wilhelm/Baynes: Advance is not a mistake. Blofeld: For him to advance would involve no fault. Ritsema/Karcher: Advancing without fault indeed. Wu: It is blameless to proceed.
The Master said:"Without a permanent home either above or below, the superior man yet commits no error. He advances or retreats as circumstances require and conforms to the law of his nature. The superior man, devoted to his work and the evolution of his virtue, advances only at the proper time, and therefore avoids mistakes."
Miscellaneous notes: He tests himself. A change is in process. The power is not central: neither in Heaven above, nor in the field beneath, nor in the human realm between them. Because he is perplexed and anxious about his choices he will incur no blame.
Legge: Both the third and fourth lines of any hexagram belong to man, and are intermediate between those of Heaven above and those of Earth beneath. K'ung Ying-ta, to explain the difficulty in what is said on this fourth line, says that man is actually nearer to Earth than to Heaven, and is aptly represented therefore by the third line and not by the fourth. In any event, the subject of this fourth line will move very cautiously, and so escape blame.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: After a while the man is confronted with a choice for public service in world affairs or solitude in further personal development. Either is appropriate if pursued in virtue and at the proper time.
Wing: A time of choice is at hand. Because of amplification in your Creative Power you must decide whether to enter the public eye and serve society, or whether to withdraw and work on your inner development. Follow your deepest intuition and you will not make a mistake.
Editor: The fourth line bears a certain similarity to the third: as the lowest line of the upper trigram, it is also in a threshold position of transition. Although hesitation and uncertainty are implied, one is counseled to take action when it is appropriate to do so. This implies that you are on the right track, but that certain self-confidence is required. The line can sometimes just portray a confused situation.
Every advance in culture is, psychologically, an extension of consciousness, a coming to consciousness that can take place only through discrimination. Therefore an advance always begins with individuation, that is to say with the individual, conscious of his isolation, cutting a new path through hitherto untrodden territory. To do this he must first return to the fundamental facts of his own being, irrespective of all authority and tradition, and allow himself to become conscious of his distinctiveness.
Jung -- The Structure and Dynamics of the PsycheA. Keep trying.
B. The will is being tested through a transitional period. The power for advancement depends upon the self- confidence that comes with knowing you have made a correct choice.
C. To stay on top of a changing situation, keep the faith and play it by ear.
Other titles: View, The Symbol of Steady Observation, Looking Down, Observation, Viewing, Looking Up, Observing, Admiration, To Examine, Rulers and Their Subjects, Introspection, Perception, Contemplation of the Work
Judgment
Legge: Contemplation shows us a worshipper who has purified himself, but must still present his sacrifice with that dignified sincerity which inspires reverence.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Contemplation . The ablution has been made, but not yet the offering. Full of trust they look up to him.
Blofeld: Lookingdown.[This word often means “contemplation" and I have so translated it when the context so requires.] The ablution has been performed, but not the sacrifice. Sincerity inspires respect. [This is generally understood to mean that the first step has been taken or that one has bound oneself to follow a certain course...but that the main duties are yet to be performed.]
Liu:Observation. The hand-washing ritual is completed, but the sacrifice is still to come. All done and looked upon with sincerity.
Ritsema/Karcher:Viewing: hand-washing and-also not worshipping. Possessing conformity, like a presence. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of something seen from a distance, out of immediate reach. It emphasizes that carefully observing and divining the meaning is the adequate way to handle it...]
Shaughnessy: Looking Up. Washing the hands but not making offering; there is a return with head held high.
Cleary (1): Observing, one has washed the hands but not made the offering; there is sincerity, which is reverent.
Wu:Admiration indicates a worshipper washing his hands in preparation for the offerings, but not participating in it. He shows sincerity and awe.
The Image
Legge: The image of earth and wind moving above it form Contemplation. The ancient kings, in accordance with this, examined the different regions of the kingdom to see the ways of the people, and set forth their instructions.
Wilhelm/Baynes: The wind blows over the earth: the image of Contemplation. Thus the kings of old visited the regions of the world, contemplated the people, and gave them instruction.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes wind blowing across the earth. The ancient rulers visited the different regions to keep watch over their people and carefully instruct them.
Liu: The wind blowing over the earth symbolizes Observation. The ancient kings visited their territories, observed the people, and gave instruction.
Ritsema/Karcher: Wind moving above earth. Viewing. The Earlier Kings used inspecting on-all-sides, viewing the commoners to set-up teaching.
Cleary (1): Wind is over the earth, observing. Thus did the kings of yore set up education after examination of the region and observation of the people.
Cleary (2): Wind travels over the earth – observing.Kings of yore examined the regions and observed the people to set up education. [In Buddhist terms, the ancient Buddhas examined the “regions” of possible experience and observed the people in various states of being, then set up various teachings to accommodate them, just as the wind travels over the earth reaching everywhere.]
Wu: The wind pervades above the earth; this is Admiration. Thus the ancient kings inspected various regions of the country, observed the sentiments of the people, and laid down their instructions.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge:Observation from above -- from the trigram of Flexibility surmounting the trigram of Docility. The ruler is in his correct central position, and thus exhibits his lessons to all below. He has purified himself, but not yet sacrificed. All beneath look to him and are transformed. When we contemplate the spirit-like way of heaven, we see how the four seasons proceed without error. The sages, in accordance with this spirit-like way, laid down their instructions, and all under heaven yield submission to them.
Legge: The Chinese character from which this hexagram is named is used in the sense of both seeing and being seen. The theme is the sovereign and his people -- how he shows himself to them, and how they in turn perceive him. The two dynamic lines at the top belong to the ruler, and the four magnetic lines below represent his subjects. In the Judgment the ruler is portrayed as a worshipper at the commencement of a sacrifice. He is the great Manifester in line five.
The lower trigram symbolizes earth, with the attribute of Docility; the upper trigram symbolizes wind, with the attributes of Flexibility and Penetration. Wind moving above the earth has the widest sweep, and nothing escapes its influence. The personal influence of the ruler effects much, but the ancient kings wished to add to that the power of published instructions which were specially adapted to the character and circumstances of the people.
The spirit-like way of heaven is the invisible order underlying the laws of nature. [Ed. Note: Ritsema/Karcher use the phrase: "Viewing Heaven's spirit tao... The all-wise person uses spirit tao to set-up teaching." Spirit(s), SHEN: independent spiritual powers that confer intensity on heart and mind by acting on the soul, KUEI; gods, daimons. Tao: way or path; ongoing process of being and the course it traces for each specific person or thing; keyword. The ideogram: go and head, leading and the path it creates.]
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: Contemplate your motivations and discern the purity of your intent. "Put your money where your mouth is.” or "Walk your talk.”
The Superior Man evaluates and rectifies his attitudes.
The "ancient kings” in the Image symbolize the creators of an original state of perfection -- an archetypal model toward which the superior man aspires. This idea is common to all mystical traditions, many of which depict this state in the image of an ideal or prototypical man. Here is a summary of the Gnostic conception:
Not only the body but also the "soul" is a product of the cosmic powers, which shaped the body in the image of the divine Primal (or Archetypal) Man and animated it with their own psychical forces: these are the appetites and passions of natural man, each of which stems from and corresponds to one of the cosmic spheres [i.e., planets] and all of which together make up the astral soul of man, his "psyche."
H. Jonas -- The Gnostic Religion
In the Kabbalah, the template of this archetypal man (named Adam Kadmon) exists in each of the four realms of consciousness corresponding to intuition, intellect, emotion and sensation, and "he" is perceived as androgynous in all of these worlds except the last -- the "sensation” world of our physical spacetime reality.
The Adam of these first three worlds was androgynous. The Adam of the fourth world is the Adam of the expulsion, the Adam of flesh traversing the desert of his exile, and the Adam capable of reproducing himself now that he is no longer androgynous.
C. Ponce -- Kabbalah
Considering that androgyny is one of the symbols used in the Western Mystery Tradition to depict the correct union of male and female forces within the psyche, we quickly recognize that the properly matched male and female correlate lines in theI Ching are a Chinese depiction of the identical concept. Note that the messages of the following three quotations are in complete accord with the goal of the Work as outlined in theI Ching:
Somewhere there is an Adam within each of us in need of restoration, in exile from the Garden. The aim of Kabbalism is the restoration of the divine man in the medium of mortal man. We are the laboratory and we are the workers who work in that space.
C. Ponce --KabbalahWithin our six-foot body we must strive for the form which existed before the laying down of heaven and earth.
The Secret of the Golden FlowerThe destiny of man is to build the Heavenly Jerusalem on Earth. In other words, to civilize a planet. It is the aim of the occultist, in consort with all men of good will, to bring about this heavenly fact into earthly reality. And the only way it will come about is by every man doing the right thing at the right time for twenty-four hours a day.
Gareth Knight -- The Work of a Modern Occult Fraternity
The ancient kings in hexagram number-20 base their laws upon their recognition of diversity among the various forces which make up the kingdom of the psyche. Their divine regulations therefore represent the proper ecology existing between heaven and earth, yin and yang, male and female, Logos and Eros. In this regard, theI Ching's version of the Archetypal Man might be seen as hexagram number-63, Completion, in which the polarity of each of the lines is in perfect correlation. (See the editor's commentary on Hexagram number 11 for further insights into this idea.)
The theme of the hexagram is Contemplationof your situation to see if your attitude meets the archetypal standards of the Work. The worshipper in the Judgment has purified himself for sacrifice but has not yet carried it out. Wilhelm uses the word "ablution” in his translation of the Judgment. An ablution is a ritual cleansing associated with a religious rite:
Ablution: In alchemy ... the adept worker achieves [success] only by purifying his soul of all that commonly agitates it. Washing, then, symbolizes the purification not so much of objective and external evil as of subjective and inner evils ... The principle involved in this alchemic process is that implied in the maxim "Deny thyself."
J. E. Cirlot --Dictionary of Symbols
It is important to note that the sacrifice has yet to be performed: preparation is meaningless until it is acted upon. Psychologically, this refers to intellectual "gnosis" which still needs to be grounded in behavior.
Wisdom is achieved very slowly. This is because intellectual knowledge, easily acquired, must be transformed into `emotional,' or subconscious, knowledge. Once transformed, the imprint is permanent. Behavioral practice is the necessary catalyst of this reaction. Without action, the concept will wither and fade. Theoretical knowledge without practical application is not enough ... Intellectually the answers have always been there, but this need to actualize by experience, to make the subconscious imprint permanent by `emotionalizing' and practicing the concept, is the key.
Brian L. Weiss, MD -- Many Lives, Many Masters
Without changing lines, Contemplation is an oracular invitation for you to consider your situation and especially your motivations in regard to it. One way of doing this is to reduce everything to a brief written statement, including your best conscious conclusions. Then ask for a comment from the oracle -- often it will become apparent that you have been undergoing a kind of examination.
SUGGESTIONS FOR MEDITATION
The ancient kings are mentioned in the Images of both this figure and number twenty-one, Discernment, immediately following. What are the differences between Contemplation and Discernment, as depicted in these images? How does the concept of sacrifice relate to this, as mentioned in the Judgment? Compare the Judgment of this hexagram with hexagrams and lines 17:6, 45:2, 46:2, 46:4, 47:2, 47:5 and 63:5 for further insights on this extremely important tenet of the Work.