In every moment there is something inside of us which resonates with greater truth. And there is no moment better than right now. The simple curiosity and innocence of childhood is within our experience and can refresh the psyche and increase vitality.  There is a give and take in this universe, we are not alone, all things are connected. Experience is influenced by choice but is created after all from universal energy. Our minds, hearts, beings are made of the same substance as the stars.

I Ching opens up a window into that space of synchronicity. I notice often that the vibratory level of the question is raised through the answer. Thereafter one develops a knack for asking the right questions, because if one doesn’t, the Oracle will indicate something deeper that needs answering. A reading like that tends to be challenging because at first the expectation is limited to the content of the question. It may take conscious effort to connect to the truth of the message.

The greater truth is available as an avenue for growth, relaxation, grounding, expansion. Knowing where you are on your path through life on this planet is a gift, a jewel. Early on in my explorations of the I Ching I recognized the synchronicity of questions and Oracle’s answers, the process places one’s intention into high gear, so it’s good to be clear on what one’s intention truly is.
 

Change, at Varying Temperatures

Our times leading into the year 2020 have been challenging and full of change. A culminating fruition of patterns, becoming clearer, in human consciousness. The way we think, the essence of our being, the things we do, the effects we engender, all as if coming to a boil on the gas stove of deeper understanding and love. The first order for 2020: Forgiveness. Get over it, move forward. The second issue is building trust, and the third is “Know thyself”.

I’m offering a reduced fee for the folks who, like me, in this seacoast town, are off-season. Even if you’re not off-season, you are welcome.

Winter discount:
Flat fee of 60 dollars per hour.
15 dollars for one question: 15-20 minutes.
20 dollars a person in group readings-up to 1/2 hour.

 
Simply contact me, we’ll set up an appointment and I will send payment details and instructions.

Thank you for visiting. Happy New Year!

A special gift reading for a friend:

Hexagram #18, changes to #28

#18 – Work on What Has Been Spoiled

There are times when we need to strive for greater balance, or acceptance, and other times when we feel able to steadily go with the flow. In this case both streams of energy are working together, both the push/hustle towards a goal, while balance in steady focus is required to “work on what has been spoiled.”
I think of it as similar to the work required to repair and prepare a garden for Spring, after a long tough winter. If you love to feel your hands in the soil, it’s a joy. If you feel it is a chore, it is still something you need to accomplish. Either way, you know what to do, you are handling it. It is also dramatically evident in things like roads, bridges, buildings, being repaired.
Six in the fifth place: An individual is confronted with corruption originating from neglect in former times. He lacks the power to ward it off alone, but with able helpers he can at least bring about a thorough reform, if he cannot create a new beginning, and this also is praiseworthy.
Six in the fourth place: This shows the situation of someone too weak to take measures against decay that has its roots in the past and is just beginning to manifest itself. It is allowed to run its course. If this continues, humiliation will result.
Nine at the top: “Not every man has an obligation to mingle in the affairs of the world. There are some who are developed to such a degree that they are justified in letting the world go its own way and in refusing to enter public life with a view to reforming it.”1 But this does not imply a right to remain idle or to sit back and merely criticise. Such withdrawal is justified only when we strive to realise in ourselves the higher aims of mankind. For although the sage remains distant from the turmoil of daily life, he creates incomparable human values for the future.

1. Goethe’s quote after the Napoleonic wars is an example of this in European history.

#28 – Preponderance of the Great
There is something heavy in the middle, such as a freight truck over-filled with a great and valuable load. The balance is at a tipping point. Timely action to relieve the weight taxing the supports, is needed.
There is a natural expectation/sense when something is in need of direct and adept attention. Something has to be done, it may involve hard and hearty work, yet gentle attitude:
“It is necessary to find a way of transition as quickly as possible, and to take action. This promises success. For although the strong element is in excess, it is in the middle, that is, at the centre of gravity, so that a revolution is not to be feared. Nothing is to be achieved by forcible measures. The problem must be solved by gentle penetration to the meaning of the situation (as is suggested by the attribute of the inner trigram, Sun); then the change-over to other conditions will be successful. It demands real superiority; therefore the time when the great preponderates is a momentous time.”

“The idea of increase is expressed in the fact that the strong lowest line of the upper trigram has sunk down and taken its place under the lower trigram. This conception also expresses the fundamental idea on which the I Ching is based. To rule truly is to serve.
A sacrifice of the higher element that produces an increase of the lower is called an out-and-out increase: it indicates the spirit that alone has power to help the world.”

Hexagram 42, Increase

 
There are several hexagrams that come to mind, sharing the idea of accelerated growth, such as:

The Marrying Maiden (54), Abundance (55), Revolution (49), Ting (50), Gathering Together (45), Pushing Upward (46), Increase (42), Deliverance (43), The The Power of the Great (34), Progress (35), Fellowship With Men (13), Possession in Great Measure (14), even The Creative, #1 and the Receptive, #2.

The twist with Increase is that this surge of growth comes from a decrease of the higher in favor of the lower. The imagery calls forth society, business, politics, economics, etc.  We can hope that Increase in this way would be a blessing, while perhaps not sustainable. Some would see it as evening out of the odds, some would see it as lady luck, some would see it as the answer to a prayer.

In a way, it is like the idea of “turning the other cheek.” How often do we bear with insult and refrain from retaliation? If it is more than half of the time, we are contributing evenly but not fully addressing our intent. If it is all the time, then we have learned the meanings of both “turn the other cheek” and “to rule is to serve”.

Going further, to serve is to serve without wanting rulership, it is merely to do right in every situation. Is that kind of behavior only for saints? Can we manage it?

Backing down, it seems that there are many reasons why we do what we have to do. I am not saying that reacting is wrong, I’m saying stop a minute and measure how often you refrain.

How do I best choose my battles? (assuming this is a good question to ask the I Ching)

Kathi

Beauty is the word I choose with which to characterize the symbols, writings, symmetry and process of exploring the I Ching and the oracle. There are multi-layers of connectivity, in a matrix whose conductive paths range through points from poetry to science and beyond. One finds an art in the process, the way the movement of chess pieces is beautiful, the way Einstein’s theory is beautiful, the way a poem by Basho is beautiful. But there is an even deeper place of universal precision. I used to think of it as specified “cause and effect”, while at vibratory level, it is more akin to “interchange”. Though I’m an historically avid reader of I Ching, it continues to unfold an ever-widening perspective, new facets are revealed, the volume increases, the curve reaches higher — I continue my learning, and though I don’t have a doctoral degree, what would be called an ICMD (in case there ever is such a thing), discovery is beautiful too. When I say beautiful, I mean to say it evokes something sacred or heartfelt, inspires and perhaps even awes. The shape, movement, and other qualities bring something fundamental forward that resonates on a profound level.

Preponderance of the Small, Contemplation — Painting by Katherine Bloom

For the better, ultimately. Why?

The I Ching Oracle is mystical, while following the laws of the Universe in a very practical manner; connecting thoughts, ideas, and questions from a universal vantage point based in mathematical theory infused through esoteric channels: “Synchronicity” as Carl Jung called the phenomenon.  Yet even with it’s numerical basis and structure, the text and passages of the I Ching are lovely and often poetic.

I often recommend trying it with some online resources, because it is a very facile way to become initiated. It’s similar, in a way, to how I first became introduced to the I Ching many years ago. As a teenager, I’d spotted a small box called “I Ching Cards” on a table in my favorite bookstore. I did not know anything about the I Ching, nor about Chinese philosophies, but through an instant attraction, or perhaps fate, I elected to buy the cards, with money from my part-time after-school job, my small collected earnings which I would spend now and again, on books. As I recall, the box of cards cost 6 dollars, which in retrospect, seems to have an interesting significance (because hexagrams are made of six lines). That aside, when I first opened the box, there were a few “Introduction” cards, and upon reading the first one which explained that I Ching is an oracle, I became interested and enthused, simply because it seemed like fun. The other introductory cards, placed in sequence at the top of the deck, went on to explain the three ways of drawing an oracle, and the upper/lower trigram grid used for finding the correct number of the oracle drawn. The first method of casting the oracle (since this was a deck of cards) was to shuffle the cards and draw one. Then the two traditional methods, that of using three coins and that of using 49 yarrow stalks (actually 50, but one is always set aside) were outlined. Being a teenager and somewhat impatient, I decided to shuffle the cards and draw one from the deck. Immediately, the message I received had a resonance with a soul/knowledge/seeking coming from within, and instantly opened the door into a new way of seeing, and affirmed my original conviction that the world is a wondrous place, that the universe is magical, and that deeper understanding is possible.

I remember drawing cards, for the next several months, and coming to know the language of the I Ching. The cards however, were limited, there were only 64 cards for the basic hexagrams, but the 384 lines were not represented which I discovered when I decided after several months to try the coin method of drawing an oracle instead of randomly drawing a card from a shuffled deck. At that point, my little deck of I Ching cards were superseded by the Wilhelm/Baynes complete edition, which I purchased in the same little bookstore. Then the journey really began.

I Ching accompanied me wherever I went thereafter, to college, university, dormitory, first apartment, moves to new places, new appointments, career, vacations, holidays: I carried the I Ching with me everywhere I went. And though there have been lengths of time that I did not feel the calling to cast an oracle for answering my personal questions, the wisdom it imparted was always in my mind, the lessons I learned always continued. I would often open the book just to read, I found I could open it to any page whatsoever and find something there that would speak to me. And then, there is the “Great Treatise” and “Commentaries” sections of the book, which give deeper explanation of the structure, the forces at work, the notations of past scholars and sages, which I spent many an hour studying. The ancient Chinese system of thought, the delicacy of the language, and my growing knowledge of Asian arts and ideas, inspired me to express what I was seeing and learning through my artwork, creative writing, and thought processes.

I was known from an early age as a gifted I Ching reader. Any time a friend had a difficult situation or question, they would come and ask for an I Ching oracle. No one was ever disappointed, because the I Ching can and will speak to anyone about any aspect of life. And often an I Ching reading will open your eyes to something you weren’t seeing. During that type of reading I Ching answers might seem mysterious, or cryptic, but over time I have found without a doubt that it will often point, not to the particular answer of a petty question, but to the greater wisdom that lies beyond. In such case, I Ching seems to rise above the question in order to more profoundly answer, and as such, requires the seeker to expand their levels of awareness.

So there is unlimited value in that.