I Ching Readings

☯ From the I Ching, 50. Ting / The Caldron - 鼎

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Above: Li - The Clinging, Fire
Below: Sun - The Gentle, Wind/Wood

The six lines construct the image of Ting, THE CALDRON; at the bottom are the legs, over them the belly, then come the ears (handles), and at the top the carrying rings. At the same time, the image suggests the idea of nourishment. The ting, cast of bronze, was the vessel that held the cooked viands in the temple of the ancestors and at banquets. The heads of the family served the food from the ting into the bowls of the guests. THE WELL (48)
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likewise has the secondary meaning of giving nourishment, but rather more in relation to the people. The ting, as a utensil pertaining to a refined civilization, suggests the fostering and nourishing of able people, which redounded to the benefit of the state.
This hexagram and THE WELL are the only two in the Book of Changes that represent concrete, human-made objects. Yet here too the thought has its abstract connotation.
Sun, below, is wood and wind; Li, above, is flame. Thus together they stand for the flame kindled by wood and wind, which likewise suggests the idea of preparing food.

☯ THE JUDGMENT
THE CALDRON. Supreme good fortune.
Success.
While THE WELL relates to the social foundation of our life, and this foundation is likened to the water that serves to nourish growing wood, the present hexagram refers to the cultural superstructure of society. Here it is the wood that serves as nourishment for the flame, the spirit. All that is visible must grow beyond itself, extend into the realm of the invisible. Thereby it receives its true consecration and clarity and takes firm root in the cosmic order.
Here we see civilization as it reaches its culmination in spirituality. The ting serves in offering sacrifice to the divine -- for which the highest earthly values must be sacrificed. But the truly divine does not manifest itself apart from people. The supreme revelations of the divine might be revealed within any of us, and to venerate those revelations is the veneration of the will of the divine; and should be accepted in humility. This brings inner enlightenment and true understanding of the world, and leads to great good fortune and success.

☯ THE IMAGE
Fire over wood:
The image of THE CALDRON.
Thus the superior person consolidates their fate
By making their position correct.
The fate of fire depends on wood; as long as there is wood below, the fire burns above. It is the same in human life; there is, in people, likewise a fate that lends power to their lives. And if they succeed in assigning the right place to life and to fate, thus bringing the two into harmony, they put their fate on a firm footing. These words contain hints about fostering of life as handed on by oral tradition in the secret teachings of Chinese yoga.

Notes:
1) A Ting is a ritual vessel. It is somewhat different than a cauldron or crucible, so the word Ting has been used above where feasible.
2) The other three hexagrams dealing with nourishment are 5: Hsü/Waiting (Nourishment), 27: I/The Corners of the Mouth (Providing Nourishment) and 48: Ching/The Well.
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Your consultation might include the hexagram Ting/The Cauldron, and a whole lot more. Send a message to-day to schedule a reading, and see what the Book of Changes has in store for you!
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Pic: Fire over Wood. Michaux State Forest, PA; June 2016.

☯ From the I Ching, #49. Ko / Revolution (Molting) - 革

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Above: Tui - The Joyous, Lake
Below: Li - The Clinging, Fire

The Chinese character for this hexagram means in its original sense an animal's pelt, which is changed in the course of the year by molting. From this word is carried over to apply to the "moltings" in political life, the great revolutions connected with changes of governments.
The two trigrams making up the hexagram are the same two that appear in K'uei, OPPOSITION (38),
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that is, the two younger daughters, Li and Tui. Bt while, there, the elder of the two daughters is above, and what results is essentially only an opposition of tendencies, here the younger daughter is above. The influences are in actual conflict, and the forces combat each other like fire and water (lake), each trying to destroy the other. Hence the idea of revolution.

☯ THE JUDGMENT
REVOLUTION. On your own day
You are believed.
Supreme success,
Furthering through perseverance.
Remorse disappears.
Political revolutions are extremely grave matters. They should be undertaken only under stress of direst necessity, when there is no other way out. Not everyone is called to this task, but only one who has the confidence of the people, and even them only when the time is ripe. They must then proceed in the right way, so that they gladden the people and, by enlightening them, prevents excesses. Furthermore, they must be quite free of selfish aims and must really relieve the need of the people. Only then do they have nothing to regret.
Times change, and with them their demands. Thus the seasons change in the course of the year. In the world cycle also there are spring and autumn in the life of peoples and nations, and these call for social transformations.

☯ THE IMAGE
Fire in the lake: the image of REVOLUTION.
Thus the superior person
Sets the calendar in order
And makes the seasons clear.
Fire below and the lake above combat and destroy each other. So, too, in the course of the year a combat takes place between the forces of light and the forces of darkness, eventuating in the revolution of the seasons, and a person is able to adjust themselves in advance to the demands of the different times.
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Your consultation might include the hexagram Ko/Revolution (Molting), and a whole lot more. Send a message to-day to schedule a reading, and see what the Book of Changes has in store for you!
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Pic: Lake over Fire -- Yosemite National Park, CA; July 2013.

☯ From the I Ching, #48. Ching/The Well

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Above: K'an - The Abysmal, Water
Below: Sun - The Gentle, Wind/Wood

Wood is below, water above. The wood goes down into the earth to bring up water. The image derives from the pole-and-bucket well of ancient China. The wood represents not the buckets, which in ancient times were made of clay, but rather the wooden poles by which the water is hauled up from the well. The image also refers to the world of plants, which lift water out of the earth by means of their fibers.
The well from which water is drawn conveys the further idea of an inexhaustible dispensing of nourishment.

☯ THE JUDGMENT
THE WELL. The town may be changed,
But the well cannot be changed.
It neither decreases nor increases.
They come and go and draw from the well.
If one gets down almost to the water
And the rope does not go all the way,
Or the jug breaks, it brings misfortune.
In ancient China the capital cities were sometimes moved, partly for the sake of more favorable location, partly because of a change in dynasties. The style of architecture changed in the course of centuries, but the shape of the well has remained the same from ancient times to this day. Thus the well is the symbol of that social structure which, evolved by mankind in meeting its most primitive needs, is independent of all political forms. Political structures change, as do nations, but the life of humans with its needs remains eternally the same - this cannot be changed. Life is also inexhaustible. It grows neither less nor more; it exists for one and for all. The generations come and go, and all enjoy life in its inexhaustible abundance.
However, there are two prerequisites for a satisfactory political or social organization of humankind. We must go down to the very foundations of life. For any merely superficial ordering of life that leaves its deepest needs unsatisfied is as ineffectual as if no attempt at order had ever been made.
Carelessness -- by which the jug is broken -- is also disastrous. If, for instance, the military defense of a state is carried to such excess that it provokes wars by which the power of the state is annihilated, this is a breaking of the jug.
This hexagram applies also to the individual. However people may differ in disposition and in education, the foundations of human nature are the same in everyone. And every human being can draw in the course of their education from the inexhaustible wellspring of the divine in their nature. But here likewise two dangers threaten: a person may fail in their education to pe*****te to the real roots of humanity and remain fixed in convention -- a partial education of this sort is as bad as none -- or they may suddenly collapse and neglect their self-development.

☯ THE IMAGE
Water over wood: the image of THE WELL.
Thus the superior person encourages the people at their work,
And exhorts them to help one another.
The trigram Sun, wood, is below, and the trigram K'an, water, is above it. Wood sucks water upward. Just as wood as an organism imitates the action of the well, which benefits all parts of the plant, the superior person organizes human society, so that, as in a plant organism, its parts co-operate for the benefit of the whole.
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Your consultation might include the hexagram Ching/The Well, and a whole lot more. Send a message to-day to schedule a reading, and see what the Book of Changes has in store for you!
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Pic: Water over wood. Pine Grove State Park, PA; August 2020.

☯ From the I Ching, #47. K'un / Oppression (Exhaustion)

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Above: Tui - The Joyous, Lake
Below: K'an - The Abysmal, Water

The lake is above, water below; the lake is empty, dried up. Exhaustion is expressed in yet another way: at the top, a dark line is holding down two light lines; below, a light line is hemmed in between two dark ones. The upper trigram belongs to the principle of darkness, the lower to the principle of light. Thus, everywhere superior people are oppressed and held in restraint by inferior people.

☯ THE JUDGMENT
OPPRESSION. Success. Perseverance.
The great person brings about good fortune.
No blame.
When one has something to say,
It is not believed.
Times of adversity are the reverse of times of success, but they can lead to success if they befall the right person. When a strong person meets with adversity, they remain cheerful despite all danger, and this cheerfulness is the source of later successes; it is that stability which is stronger than fate. They who let their spirit be broken by exhaustion certainly have no success. But if adversity only bends a person, it creates in them a power to react that is bound in time to manifest itself. No inferior person is capable of this. Only the great person brings about good fortune and remains blameless. It is true that for the time being outward influence is denied them, because their words have no effect. Therefore in times of adversity it is important to be strong within and sparing of words.

☯ THE IMAGE
There is not water in the lake:
The image of EXHAUSTION.
Thus the superior person stakes their life
On following their will.
When the water has flowed out below, the lake must dry up and become exhausted. That is fate. This symbolizes an adverse fate in human life. In such times there is nothing a person can do but acquiesce in their fate and remain true to themselves. This concerns the deepest stratum of his being, for this alone is superior to all external fate.
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Your consultation might include the hexagram K'un / Oppression (Exhaustion), and a whole lot more. Send a message to-day to schedule a reading, and see what the Book of Changes has in store for you!
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Pic: The sun, exhausted -- the light being held down by the dark. Somewhere in Idaho; August 2013.

☯ From the I Ching, # 46. Shêng / Pushing Upward

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Above: K'un - The Receptive, Earth
Below: Sun - The Gentle, Wind/Wood

The lower trigram, Sun, represents wood, and the upper, K'un, means the earth. Linked with this is the idea that wood in the earth grows upward. In contrast to the meaning of Chin, PROGRESS (35):
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This pushing upward is associated with effort, just as a plant needs energy for pushing upward through the earth. That is why this hexagram, although it is connected with success, is associated with effort of the will. In PROGRESS the emphasis is on expansion; PUSHING UPWARD indicates rather a vertical ascent-direct rise from obscurity and lowliness to power and influence.

☯ THE JUDGMENT
PUSHING UPWARD has supreme success.
One must see the great person.
Fear not.
Departure toward the south
Brings good fortune.
The pushing upward of the good elements encounters no obstruction and is therefore accompanied by great success. The pushing upward is made possible not by violence but by modesty and adaptability. Since the individual is borne along by the propitiousness of the time, they advance. They must go to see authoritative people. They need not be afraid to do this, because success is assured. But they must set to work, for activity (this is the meaning of "the south") brings good fortune.

☯ THE IMAGE
Within the earth, wood grows:
The image of PUSHING UPWARD.
Thus the superior person of devoted character
Heaps up small things
In order to achieve something high and great.
Adapting itself to obstacles and bending around them, wood in the earth grows upward without haste and without rest. Thus too the superior person is devoted in character and never pauses in his progress.
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Your consultation might include the hexagram Tshêng / Pushing Upward, and a whole lot more. Send a message to-day to schedule a reading, and see what the Book of Changes has in store for you!
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Pic: Daffodils - Pushing Upward. Edgewater, MD; February 2007.

☯ From the I Ching, # 45. Ts'ui / Gathering Together (Massing)

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Above: Tui - The Joyous, Lake
Below: K'un - The Receptive, Earth

This hexagram is related in form and meaning to #8 - Pi, Holding Together:
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In the latter, water is over the earth; here a lake is over the earth. But since the lake is a place where water collects, the idea of gathering together is even more strongly expressed here than in the other hexagram. The same idea also arises from the fact that in the present case it is two strong lines (the fourth and the fifth) that bring about the gather together, whereas in the former case one strong line (the fifth) stands in the midst of weak lines.

☯THE JUDGMENT
GATHERING TOGETHER. Success.
The ruler approaches their temple.
It furthers a person to see the great one.
This brings success. Perseverance furthers.
To bring great offerings creates good fortune.
It furthers one to undertake something.
The gathering together of people in large communities is either a natural occurrence, as in the case of the family, or an artificial one, as in the case of the state. The family gathers about its head. The perpetuation of this gathering in groups is achieved through the reverence of ancestors, where the whole clan is gathered together. Through the collective piety of the living members of the family, the ancestors become so integrated in the spiritual life of the family that it cannot be dispersed or dissolved.
Where people are to be gathered together, such spiritual forces are needed. But there must also be a human leader to serve as the center of the group. In order to be able to bring others together, this leader must first of all be collected within themselves. Only collective moral force can unite the world. Such great times of unification will leave great achievements behind them. This is the significance of the great offerings that are made. In the secular sphere likewise there is no need of great deeds in the time of GATHERING TOGETHER.

☯THE IMAGE
Over the earth, the lake:
The image of GATHERING TOGETHER.
Thus the superior person renews their weapons
In order to meet the unforeseen.
If the water in the lake gathers until it rises above the earth, there is danger of a break-through. Precautions must be taken to prevent this. Similarly where people gather together in great numbers, strife is likely to arise; where possessions are collected, robbery is likely to occur. Thus in the time of GATHERING TOGETHER we must arm promptly to ward off the unexpected. Human woes usually come as a result of unexpected events against which we are not forearmed. If we are prepared, they can be prevented.
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Your consultation might include the hexagram Ts'ui / Gathering Together (Massing), and a whole lot more. Send a message to-day to schedule a reading, and see what the Book of Changes has in store for you!
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Pic: Lake on the Earth. Loch Raven Reservoir, Baltimore. September 2023.

☯ From the I Ching, #44. Kou / Coming to Meet - 姤

Above: Ch'ien - The Creative, Heaven
Below: Sun - The Gentle, Wind

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This hexagram indicates a situation in which the principle of darkness, after having been eliminated, furtively and unexpectedly obtrudes again from within and below. Of its own accord the female principle comes to meet the male. It is an unfavorable and dangerous situation, and we must understand and promptly prevent the possible consequences.
The hexagram is linked with the fifth month [June-July], because at the summer solstice the principle of darkness gradually becomes ascendant again.

☯ THE JUDGMENT:
COMING TO MEET. The maiden is powerful.
One should not marry such a maiden.
The rise of the dark element is pictured here in the image of a bold girl who lightly surrenders herself and thus seizes power. This would not be possible if the strong and light-giving element had not in turn come halfway. The dark thing seems so harmless and inviting that a person delights in it; it looks so innocuous that they imagine they may dally with it and come to no harm.
The inferior person rises only because the superior person does not regard them as dangerous and so lends them power. If they were resisted from the first, they could never gain influence.
The time of COMING TO MEET is important in still another way. Although as a general rule the weak should not come to meet the strong, there are times when this has great significance. When heaven and earth come to meet each other, all creatures prosper; when the ruler's heir and their official come to meet each other, the world is put in order. It is necessary for elements predestined to be joined and mutually dependent to come to meet one another halfway. But the coming together must be free of dishonest ulterior motives, otherwise harm will result.

☯ THE IMAGE:
Under heaven, wind:
The image of COMING TO MEET.
Thus does the ruler's heir act when disseminating their commands
And proclaiming them to the four quarters of heaven.
The situation here resembles that in hexagram 20 - Kuan / CONTEMPLATION - 觀:
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In the latter the wind blows over the earth; here it blows under heaven -- in both cases it goes everywhere. There the wind is on the earth and symbolizes the ruler taking note of the conditions in their kingdom; here the wind blows from above and symbolizes the influence exercised by the ruler through their commands. Heaven is far from the things of earth, but it sets them in motion by means of the wind. The ruler is far from their people, but they set them in motion by means of their commands and decrees.
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Your consultation might include the hexagram Kou / Coming to Meet and a whole lot more. Send a message to-day to schedule a reading, and see what the Book of Changes has in store for you!
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Pic: Heaven over the wind. Probably Mt. Pleasant Rd in Hanover, PA. Mid-1990s.

☯ From the I Ching, # 43. Kuai / Break-through (Resoluteness)

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Above: Tui - The Joyous, Lake
Below: Ch'ien - The Creative, Heaven

This hexagram signifies, on one hand, a break-through after a long accumulation of tension, as a swollen river breaks through its dikes, or in the manner of a cloudburst. On the other hand, applied to human conditions, it refers to the time when inferior people gradually begin to disappear. Their influence is on the wane; as a result of resolute action, a change in conditions occurs, a break-through. The hexagram is linked with the third month [April-May].

☯ THE JUDGMENT
BREAK-THROUGH. One must resolutely make the matter known
At the court of the ruler.
It must be announced truthfully. Danger.
It is necessary to notify one's own city.
It does not further to resort to arms.
It furthers one to undertake something.
Even if only one inferior person is occupying a ruling position in a city, they are able to oppress superior people. Even a single passion still lurking in the heart has power to obscure reason. Passion and reason cannot exist side by side -- therefore fight without quarter is necessary if the good is to prevail.
In a resolute struggle of the good against evil, there are, however, definite rules that must not be disregarded, if it is to succeed. First, resolution must be based on a union of strength and friendliness. Second, a compromise with evil is not possible; evil must under all circumstances be openly discredited. Nor must our own passions and shortcomings be glossed over. Third, the struggle must not be carried on directly by force. If evil is branded, it thinks of weapons; and if we do it the favor of fighting against it blow for blow, we lose in the end because thus we ourselves get entangled in hatred and passion. Therefore it is important to begin at home, to be on guard in our own persons against the faults we have branded. In this way, finding no opponent, the sharp edges of the weapons of evil becomes dulled. For the same reasons we should not combat our own faults directly. As long as we wrestle with them, they continue victorious. Finally, the best way to fight evil is to make energetic progress in the good.

☯ THE IMAGE
The lake has risen up to heaven:
The image of BREAK-THROUGH.
Thus the superior person
Dispenses riches downward
And refrains from resting on their virtue.
When the water of a lake has risen up to heaven, there is reason to fear a cloudburst. Taking this as a warning, the superior person forestalls a violent collapse. If a person were to pile up riches for themselves alone -- without considering others -- they would certainly experience a collapse. For all gathering is followed by dispersion. Therefore the superior person begins to distribute while they are accumulating. In the same way, in developing their character they take care not to become hardened in obstinacy but to remain receptive to impressions by help of strict and continuous self-examination.
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Your consultation might include the hexagram Kuai / Break-through (Resoluteness) and a whole lot more. Send a message to-day to schedule a reading, and see what the Book of Changes has in store for you!
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Pic: A Lake in Heaven...? Mammatus clouds - Balmorhea State Park, Texas; June 2013.

☯ From the I Ching, #40 - Hsieh / Deliverance

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Above: Chên - The Arousing, Thunder
Below: K'an - The Abysmal, Water

Here the movement goes out of the sphere of danger. The obstacle has been removed, the difficulties are being resolved. Deliverance is not yet achieved; it is just in its beginning, and the hexagram represents its various stages.

☯THE JUDGMENT
DELIVERANCE. The southwest furthers.
If there is no longer anything where one has to go,
Return brings good fortune.
If there is still something where one has to go,
Hastening brings good fortune.
This refers to a time in which tensions and complications begin to be eased. At such times we ought to make our way back to ordinary conditions as soon as possible; this is the meaning of "the southwest." These periods of sudden change have great importance. Just as rain relieves atmospheric tension, making all the buds burst open, so a time of deliverance from burdensome pressure has a liberating and stimulating effect on life. One thing is important, however: in such times we must not overdo our triumph. The point is not to push on farther than is necessary. Returning to the regular order of life as soon as deliverance is achieved brings good fortune. If there are any residual matters that ought to be attended to, it should be done as quickly as possible, so that a clean sweep is made and no retardations occur.

☯THE IMAGE
Thunder and rain set in:
The image of DELIVERANCE.
Thus the superior person pardons mistakes
And forgives misdeeds.
A thunderstorm has the effect of clearing the air; the superior person produces a similar effect when dealing with mistakes and sins of people that induce a condition of tension. Through clarity they bring deliverance. However, when failings come to light, they do not dwell on them; they simply pass over mistakes, the unintentional transgressions -- just as thunder dies away. They forgive misdeeds, the intentional transgressions, just as water washes everything clean.
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Your consultation might include the hexagram Hsieh / Deliverance and a whole lot more. Send a message to-day to schedule a reading, and see what the Book of Changes has in store for you!

Pic: Thunder over Water - Assateague Island State Park, MD; June 2013.

☯ From the I Ching: # 39. Chien / Obstruction - 蹇

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Above: K'an - The Abysmal, Water
Below: Kên - Keeping Still, Mountain

The hexagram pictures a dangerous abyss lying before us and a steep, inaccessible mountain rising behind us. We are surrounded by obstacles; at the same time, since the mountain has the attribute of keeping still, there is implicit a hint as to how we can extricate ourselves. The hexagram represents obstructions that appear in the course of time but that can and should be overcome. Therefore all the instruction given is directed to overcoming them.

☯ THE JUDGMENT
OBSTRUCTION. The southwest furthers.
The northeast does not further.
It furthers a person to see the great one.
Perseverance brings good fortune.
The southwest is the region of retreat, the northeast that of advance. Here an individual is confronted by obstacles that cannot be overcome directly. In such a situation it is wise to pause in view of the danger and to retreat. However, this is merely a preparation for overcoming the obstructions. One must join forces with friends of like mind and put himself under the leadership of a person equal to the situation: then one will succeed in removing the obstacles. This requires the will to persevere just when one apparently must do something that leads away from their goal. This unswerving inner purpose brings good fortune in the end. An obstruction that lasts only for a time is useful for self-development. This is the value of adversity.

☯ THE IMAGE
Water on the mountain:
The image of OBSTRUCTION.
Thus the superior person turns his attention to themselves
And molds their character.
Difficulties and obstructions throw a person back upon themselves. While the inferior person seeks to put the blame on other persons, bewailing his fate, the superior person seeks the error within themselves, and through this introspection the external obstacle becomes for them an occasion for inner enrichment and education.
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Your consultation might include the hexagram Chien / Obstruction and a whole lot more. Send a message to-day to schedule a reading, and see what the Book of Changes has in store for you!
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Pic: Lyman Run Reservoir, Lyman Run State Park. Galeton, PA. August 2023.



-- This post taken virtually verbatim from the Wilhelm/Baynes translation of the I Ching.