The nature of innocence, hexagram 25

The commentary on hexagram twenty five line two says, "We should do every task for its own sake as time and place demand and with an eye to the results. Then each task turns out well and anything we undertake succeeds." In one way this is a continuation of the theme in line one. Line one speaks of innocent action. Line two defines this as doing things for the sake of doing them, and not to contrive an outcome. This goes back again to Lao t'su's principle of nonaction. Manipulation and subterfuge might work for a while, but eventually the actions will boomerang back on the perpetrator. It would be wise to stay away from such activities. When we simply do what is right because it is right, without worrying about the outcome, we find that normally things turn out well. Ths is a universal principle and this principle applies at all times, not just when we receive this hexagram.

In relationships we must apply principles consistently, and follow these principles even when it seems counterproductive. We do what is right. Even if it seems not to be going well, in the long run it will, because we do not always realize what is best for us in the long run. We go by the initial perception only, and do not recognize the longer term outcome of our actions. We have ideas about the rightness or wrongness of the outcome, but we are limited in our perspective, and what appears to be disaster is often a good thing.

These principles will only appeal, and make sense, to those who have a deeper understanding of the nature of the universe. It will be a requirement to understand that the universe has a consciousness, and an intelligence. Without this understanding the deeper elements of the I Ching will make no sense and will be indecipherable. We look for answers from what appears to us to be nothing more than a machine which will automatically give us the answers we want. It doesn't work that way. We are leaving out the spiritual aspect of its nature. If we do so, we will not be able to gain spiritual knowledge that helps us to know and understand ourself and grow spiritually. It is absolutely essential that one understand this principle of universal consciousness. Without this knowledge you will never truly understand the I Ching, and will not be able to tap its true richness. It will be like the well, (hexagram 48) that has not been lined, and/or is not being used. You may get some good answers to many of your questions, but you will continue to live your life in frustration, and will continue to feel like a victim of circumstances even when you get good answers. The I Ching is meant to teach you, especially about yourself, not just inform you about the next course of action. As Confucius says in the commentary on the image, "He who departs from innocence, what does he come to? Heaven's will and blessings do not go with his deeds."

Hexagram fifteen tells us that we are a part of the greater whole, and in order to access that greater part of us, we must have humility. Cunning and manipulation do not form any part of humility, and that greater knowledge, that greater awareness, the higher self within each of us cannot be accessed if we have the wrong attitudes or the wrong desires. Without humility we are cut off from universal circuits; we cannot access our higher selves. We cannot make our relationships, or our careers work, we cannot accomplish tasks in a way that they turn out to be a blessing. We must become aware of this greater consciousness that is aware of all things. and has more information and more access to "hidden lines" than we do.