Help from above

The I Ching is replete with promise of help up above. We do not see that if we are only concerned with the material realm. We read "helper" as some friend, or some such, and in strict divination, this is often the meaning. But there is a deeper level here, and let me tell you, one would be wise to always look for a deeper level. "Seek and ye shall find." But we must seek with the right attitude and the right heart.

Throughout the I Ching, we are being told of this divine help. We often think, "I am not getting any divine help, I must do it myself." Yes, you do have to do it yourself, there is no other way, but we must also be "receptive" (hexagram 2) to the will of heaven. To the "energy" of heaven. For it is through the divine "intake" of heavenly energy, (chi) that we improve ourselves. This is a major part of being spiritual, being open to a divine energy that replenishes us. This energy is stored in the "Tan Tien," which is not something we will go into detail about now.

Needless to say, we are reminded of how the sage, the spiritual advisor relates to us, in passage after passage. Some are more clear than others of course, but we see it in hexagram after hexagram. In hexagram one, the spiritual advisor is tireless in his work to help us. In hexagram two the advisor is receptive to our needs and our desires. In hexagram 3 the advisor helps us to separate the wheat from the chaff and to make sense of things that are initially disorderly, and on and on and on. Hopefully I will get into this later. For here I will just finish up saying, that in hexagram 8 line 5 we learn that the sage is receptive to those who are receptive to him. The sage is open to those who are open, and he exerts no pressure, to get people to join him or learn from him. He simply makes himself available, as the sage is available in hexagram 48, all one has to do is to draw the water.

More later,
Gene