The Best Kept Secret of Life

[wong chee kwan]

I am a super fan of I-Ching. So, there will be lots of it from now on; enough to bore you to death.

But, if you can survive the boredom, the untold story will definitely spice up the way you look at life. Because that’s the “hidden agenda” of I-Ching – to spice up people’s lives.

I-Ching? They call it the “Book of Changes”, a Chinese classic aged over five thousand years old. It is said to be the best kept secret of life; because the whole book is filled with riddles; thereby subjecting itself to all kinds of interpretation.

My take on I-Ching is its 3-D energy model that tracks all the possible changes in one’s lifetime as a growing human universe.

According to I-Ching -- a perfect human universe comprises a stable base, a justified past, and an expanding future; or, a 3-D (three dimensional) existence that guarantees a happy and fulfilled life.

Unfortunately, life is never perfect in reality. For most of us, if there is indeed a human universe, it is either distorted or dysfunctional.

That’s where I-Ching comes in as a solutions provider.

In this context, I started coining names for I-Ching, one each for different interest groups.

For the spirited – Sixty-four ways to Heaven.
For the down and out – Quick fixes for Screw-ups in Life.
For the ambitious – A Guide on Growing a Large-than-life Life.
For the scientific-minded – A Construction Manual for a Human Universe.

I guess I have a lot of explanations to do for calling names.

Where do I begin?

[Adrienne]

Originally Posted by wong chee kwan

Where do I begin?

At the beginning ? or just jump into the middle and surprise us ! lol !

just a FYI so you are aware in advance ......there is a Copy - Paste rule on the forum,

Copy-Paste: One or two lines at most of relevant text of material from other sites or sources and a link to the relevant text for further reading is allowed on the condition that the author is credited and the source linked is not a commercial site (promoting or selling goods or services). Quotes of religious texts such as the Bible or Quran must also be no more than one or two lines. Posts that quote or copy-paste more than one or two short lines of text will be removed or edited. Repeatedly breaching this rule will lead to warnings and possible Disciplinary Action.

[Divine Consciousness]

Please can you tell us history of I-Ching and place of origin. Tell us in length and post your article in this thread. :)
I love to know about I-Ching and wish to grow upon I-Ching.

[wong chee kwan]

The Big Bang Theory 1 (An Ego-Soul Separation)

“Bang!” That is the sound of a newborn human universe; yours and mine are alike.

No, it is not an exaggeration. It is an audible signal for an unfolding natural process; no different from thunder, the sound of lightning that warns of an impending storm.

Yes, there is also light, which flashes before the “bang”; in accordance with the natural order -- lightning first, thunder later.

What follows is a huge mind explosion that ejects one out of the body, and disintegrates the body into thin air, figuratively speaking.

The sudden explosion of mind-space is actually a sensory breakout from the inner emotional domain; best visualized as an out-of-body experience that propels one’s awareness into a sun-lit world from the inner emotion-pit.

I-Ching calls this brilliant escape -- an ego detachment process.

Then comes tranquility, the result of the body relaxing and the mind justifying.

The body relaxes when the ego lets go of the past; thereby ending its dominance over the running of the body. In simple English, the involuntarily function is switched on, the moment the consciousness is off; resulting in spontaneous bodily jerks.

The mind justification is a spontaneous process, which matches extremes of opposing natures to form justified knowledge, the core ingredient of a justified environment.

Justified knowledge are facts about how things work naturally. Hence, a justified environment is a natural setting, where things vibrate freely; rising and falling cyclically like the four seasons.

I-Ching calls this unwinding phenomenon a soul-awakening process.

Now, there are two “beings” on the loose -- a detached ego and a liberated soul. Such a “free” formation is called an earthly self (a passive ego plus a grounded soul); blessed with a profound sense of contentment because of the grounding.

Done. Step one of the birth procedure – the separation of the ego and soul.

[wong chee kwan]

The Big Bang Theory 2 (The Earth-Heaven Link)

Next is a crippling sensation; overpowered by a sudden burst of energy that inflates the entire body, and oozes out from every single pore.

“Crippling” because the energized “being” literally took over the running of the body and mind; totally disregarding how one felt.

I am talking about my first “energizing” experience, which ended with an injured back for attempting a somersault, instigated by the “high”. Gosh, the last somersault I did was in high school, during the sixties.

“Motivated” is the correct term to describe the energy oozing sensation, which usually comes with a purpose and direction.

Lesson learned – never put the cart before the horse!

I had acted impulsively before the birth process was completed; like a baby crying out while still in the mother’s womb. Also, impulsiveness tells of a half-baked ego-soul separation job. A double whammy.

I should have waited for the emergence of a fully charged and grounded “being”, the incoming master of my universe; taking over from the retired ego.

The new master is a highly motivated soul yet remains firmly grounded at the natural home base; with the ego as an out-of-body observer.

The motivation comes from a mysterious force of nature called by many names – the force, fate-driver, north-south magnetic force, external life-force, spiritual potential, heaven, or Dào (道: The Way, a term coined by I-Ching).

The grounding force is derived from the soul’s natural frequency, which vibrates closed to the earthly rhythm to form a rock-solid earthly base. The free vibration represents the original level of one’s existence at the moment of birth; hence “the natural home base.”

And the soul-charging is done through a direct earth-heaven link, which is free of human interference since the ego is now passive.

Finally, such a “spirited” formation is called a spiritual self (a grounded soul guided by a heavenly ego); blessed with an intense joy fueled by the earth-heaven energizing process.

Done! A baby human universe comprises a stable earthly-base anchored at the present, an ego detached from the past, and a future driven relentlessly towards a destiny by a heavenly force.

I-Ching calls the human universe a 3-D existence (earth-human-heaven); marked by a yīn-yáng sensation (a concoction of contentment and excitement) otherwise known as happiness, and wholesomeness derived from realizing one’s fullest potential in partnership with heaven.

[wong chee kwan]

The Bāguà Theory 1 (The Inventor of Bāguà)

Fúxī (伏羲), a Chinese legend, invented the bāguà (八卦) during the mid-29th century BCE.

“In the beginning there was as yet no moral or social order.

Men knew their mothers only, not their fathers. When hungry, they searched for food; when satisfied, they threw away the remnants. They devoured their food hide and hair, drank the blood, and clad themselves in skins and rushes.

Then came Fúxī and looked upward and contemplated the images in the heavens, and looked downward and contemplated the occurrences on earth. He united man and wife, regulated the five stages of change, and laid down the laws of humanity.

He devised the eight trigrams, in order to gain mastery over the world.”

(Story sourced from en.wikipedia.org)

Bāguà (八卦) is a set of eight trigrams, each with three lines that are either broken or unbroken. Each of the eight trigrams carries a natural element that tells on them.

☰ Qián (乾) is symbolized by heaven (天, tiān).
☷ Kūn (坤) is symbolized by earth (地, dì).
☵ Kǎn (坎) is symbolized by water (水, shuǐ).
☲ Lí (离) is symbolized by fire (火, huǒ).
☳ Zhèn (震) is symbolized by thunder (雷, léi).
☶ Gèn (艮) is symbolized by mountain (山, shān).
☴ Xùn (巽) is symbolized by wind (風, fēng).
☱ Duì (兌) is symbolized by swamp (泽, zé).

A broken line is called a yīn (陰) line; while an unbroken line is called a yáng (陽) line.

陰 (yīn) is a place (阝) where the present (今) is clouded (云).

Clouding is part of an emotion cycle (as in a water cycle) that refreshes excited emotion; while present is now, not the past nor future.

Translated: Yīn is an incubation phase that pins one down for emotion refreshment. Putting it another way, yīn is a restraining force that stops one from messing with natural processes, which need time to complete their natural courses.

So, yīn is often perceived as a negative force that obstructs one’s progress.

陽 (yáng) is a place (阝) where the earth (一) is connected to the sun (日) to break through resistances (勿).

Translated: Yáng is a growing phase that breaks through resistances with an earth-heaven link. Alternatively, yáng is a heavenly force that motivates one to go forward against all odds.

So, yáng is often perceived as a positive force that facilitates one’s progress.

The yīn and yáng forces are believed to be the only two forms of energy that exist in a human universe, a virtual space made out of a stable earthly base, an emotional human domain, and an expanding heavenly realm.

The products of their 3-D interactions, bāguà (2 x 2 x 2 = 8), become the building blocks of the I-Ching hexagrams; constructed basing on the 3-D energy model (earth-human-heaven).

Fúxī presented his Bāguà Theory in a beautiful poem.

The poem tells the story of how a human universe evolves from nothingness to its ideal form; and reasons out how the sixty-four I-Ching hexagrams are formed, to capture all the possible distortions of a human universe one can experience in a lifetime.

[Divine Consciousness]

Originally Posted by wong chee kwan

The Big Bang Theory 1 (An Ego-Soul Separation)

“Bang!” That is the sound of a newborn human universe; yours and mine are alike.

No, it is not an exaggeration. It is an audible signal for an unfolding natural process; no different from thunder, the sound of lightning that warns of an impending storm.

Yes, there is also light, which flashes before the “bang”; in accordance with the natural order -- lightning first, thunder later.

What follows is a huge mind explosion that ejects one out of the body, and disintegrates the body into thin air, figuratively speaking.

The sudden explosion of mind-space is actually a sensory breakout from the inner emotional domain; best visualized as an out-of-body experience that propels one’s awareness into a sun-lit world from the inner emotion-pit.

I-Ching calls this brilliant escape -- an ego detachment process.

Then comes tranquility, the result of the body relaxing and the mind justifying.

The body relaxes when the ego lets go of the past; thereby ending its dominance over the running of the body. In simple English, the involuntarily function is switched on, the moment the consciousness is off; resulting in spontaneous bodily jerks.

The mind justification is a spontaneous process, which matches extremes of opposing natures to form justified knowledge, the core ingredient of a justified environment.

Justified knowledge are facts about how things work naturally. Hence, a justified environment is a natural setting, where things vibrate freely; rising and falling cyclically like the four seasons.

I-Ching calls this unwinding phenomenon a soul-awakening process.

Now, there are two “beings” on the loose -- a detached ego and a liberated soul. Such a “free” formation is called an earthly self (a passive ego plus a grounded soul); blessed with a profound sense of contentment because of the grounding.

Done. Step one of the birth procedure – the separation of the ego and soul.

Originally Posted by wong chee kwan

The Big Bang Theory 2 (The Earth-Heaven Link)

Next is a crippling sensation; overpowered by a sudden burst of energy that inflates the entire body, and oozes out from every single pore.

“Crippling” because the energized “being” literally took over the running of the body and mind; totally disregarding how one felt.

I am talking about my first “energizing” experience, which ended with an injured back for attempting a somersault, instigated by the “high”. Gosh, the last somersault I did was in high school, during the sixties.

“Motivated” is the correct term to describe the energy oozing sensation, which usually comes with a purpose and direction.

Lesson learned – never put the cart before the horse!

I had acted impulsively before the birth process was completed; like a baby crying out while still in the mother’s womb. Also, impulsiveness tells of a half-baked ego-soul separation job. A double whammy.

I should have waited for the emergence of a fully charged and grounded “being”, the incoming master of my universe; taking over from the retired ego.

The new master is a highly motivated soul yet remains firmly grounded at the natural home base; with the ego as an out-of-body observer.

The motivation comes from a mysterious force of nature called by many names – the force, fate-driver, north-south magnetic force, external life-force, spiritual potential, heaven, or Dào (道: The Way, a term coined by I-Ching).

The grounding force is derived from the soul’s natural frequency, which vibrates closed to the earthly rhythm to form a rock-solid earthly base. The free vibration represents the original level of one’s existence at the moment of birth; hence “the natural home base.”

And the soul-charging is done through a direct earth-heaven link, which is free of human interference since the ego is now passive.

Finally, such a “spirited” formation is called a spiritual self (a grounded soul guided by a heavenly ego); blessed with an intense joy fueled by the earth-heaven energizing process.

Done! A baby human universe comprises a stable earthly-base anchored at the present, an ego detached from the past, and a future driven relentlessly towards a destiny by a heavenly force.

I-Ching calls the human universe a 3-D existence (earth-human-heaven); marked by a yīn-yáng sensation (a concoction of contentment and excitement) otherwise known as happiness, and wholesomeness derived from realizing one’s fullest potential in partnership with heaven.

Originally Posted by wong chee kwan

The Bāguà Theory 1 (The Inventor of Bāguà)

Fúxī (伏羲), a Chinese legend, invented the bāguà (八卦) during the mid-29th century BCE.

“In the beginning there was as yet no moral or social order.

Men knew their mothers only, not their fathers. When hungry, they searched for food; when satisfied, they threw away the remnants. They devoured their food hide and hair, drank the blood, and clad themselves in skins and rushes.

Then came Fúxī and looked upward and contemplated the images in the heavens, and looked downward and contemplated the occurrences on earth. He united man and wife, regulated the five stages of change, and laid down the laws of humanity.

He devised the eight trigrams, in order to gain mastery over the world.”

(Story sourced from en.wikipedia.org)

Bāguà (八卦) is a set of eight trigrams, each with three lines that are either broken or unbroken. Each of the eight trigrams carries a natural element that tells on them.

☰ Qián (乾) is symbolized by heaven (天, tiān).
☷ Kūn (坤) is symbolized by earth (地, dì).
☵ Kǎn (坎) is symbolized by water (水, shuǐ).
☲ Lí (离) is symbolized by fire (火, huǒ).
☳ Zhèn (震) is symbolized by thunder (雷, léi).
☶ Gèn (艮) is symbolized by mountain (山, shān).
☴ Xùn (巽) is symbolized by wind (風, fēng).
☱ Duì (兌) is symbolized by swamp (泽, zé).

A broken line is called a yīn (陰) line; while an unbroken line is called a yáng (陽) line.

陰 (yīn) is a place (阝) where the present (今) is clouded (云).

Clouding is part of an emotion cycle (as in a water cycle) that refreshes excited emotion; while present is now, not the past nor future.

Translated: Yīn is an incubation phase that pins one down for emotion refreshment. Putting it another way, yīn is a restraining force that stops one from messing with natural processes, which need time to complete their natural courses.

So, yīn is often perceived as a negative force that obstructs one’s progress.

陽 (yáng) is a place (阝) where the earth (一) is connected to the sun (日) to break through resistances (勿).

Translated: Yáng is a growing phase that breaks through resistances with an earth-heaven link. Alternatively, yáng is a heavenly force that motivates one to go forward against all odds.

So, yáng is often perceived as a positive force that facilitates one’s progress.

The yīn and yáng forces are believed to be the only two forms of energy that exist in a human universe, a virtual space made out of a stable earthly base, an emotional human domain, and an expanding heavenly realm.

The products of their 3-D interactions, bāguà (2 x 2 x 2 = 8), become the building blocks of the I-Ching hexagrams; constructed basing on the 3-D energy model (earth-human-heaven).

Fúxī presented his Bāguà Theory in a beautiful poem.

The poem tells the story of how a human universe evolves from nothingness to its ideal form; and reasons out how the sixty-four I-Ching hexagrams are formed, to capture all the possible distortions of a human universe one can experience in a lifetime.

Awesome... I felt bang in my mind space and calming the things while reading this nice literature.
Thanks for providing this literature. :)

[wong chee kwan]

The Bāguà Theory 2 (Defining Limits)

“無極生有極、有極是太極、
Evolve from a growth without limits to a growth with limits, and the limits must be supreme limits.”

The bāguà poem starts off by describing the evolution of a human universe -- from nothing (無) to something (有), and then to its supreme form (太).

The first line casts its spotlight exclusively on 極 (jí: limit). Why?

Notes (sourced from ctext.org and chinese-dictionary.org):

無 (wú): -less / not to have / no / none / not / to lack / un-
有 (yǒu): to have / there is / there are / to exist / to be
太 (tài): highest / greatest / too (much) / very / extremely

極 (jí: limit): A natural growth (木) reaches its end (了) when the earth (一) is connected (又) to an opening (口). Simply put, a true limit must have an earth-opening link; or a start-to-finish link in today’s language.

無極 (wú jí): Without limits.

A growth that has no limits is an unnatural growth, either because it is not grounded, or there is no opening for growth.

A groundless growth tends to drift, like the homeless people wondering on the streets; while a restrained growth is inevitably distorted, like the malnourished people living in extreme poverty.

有極 (yǒu jí): With limits.

A growth with limits is a natural growth; as it is driven by an earth-opening link. However, how far it can grow will depend on the type of opening. So, the definition of “opening” becomes the determinant of one’s fate.

If it is set too low, one is shortchanging oneself; too high, it is going to be a stressful life; and in the wrong direction, it will get one nowhere, or worse, into troubles.

太極 (tài jí): With supreme limits.

An ideal human universe has two supreme limits – earth being the lowest, below which life will not be supported; and heaven, the highest, beyond which there will be no openings.

The earthly base is one’s natural home base, or the original level of existence registered at birth; while the heavenly limit is one’s maximum growth potential unleashed at the moment of birth.

This is a controversial statement that needs to be substantiated. A scientific argument will be offered in due course. Still, there will be no solid evidence. At best, it is just food for thought.

So, an earth-heaven link defines a human growth limits; the lowest being a “nobody” at the time of birth, and the highest being “somebody” at the pinnacle of one’s life.

Essentially, the lowest limit is a base that has to be defended at all cost, like one’s own goalpost in a football game; or a ground for psyching up the mind, body, and spirit for a major event, like the starting line of a 100-meter dash.

On the other hand, the highest limit is a target for scoring amidst strong resistances, like the opponent’s goalpost in a football game; or a destiny that draws out one’s best potential, like the finishing line in a 100-meter dash.

無極生有極 (wú jí shēng yǒu jí) spells out the condition for a natural growth, which will occur only if there is an earth-opening link.

有極是太極 (yǒu jí shì tài jí) emphasizes that only an earth-heaven link has the power to draw out one’s absolute best to grow a larger-than-life life.

[wong chee kwan]

The Bāguà Theory 3 (The Yīn-Yáng Phenomenon)

“太極生兩儀、即陰陽;
The supreme limits give rise to two forms, namely: yīn and yáng.”

Exactly, it says: “A supreme existence is exemplified by a yīn-yáng phenomenon.”

Behind the proclamation, there lies a secret message; hidden in the character 儀 (yí: appearance), which says that the look of the supreme existence is controlled by two invisible forces, the dots (丶) and strokes (丿).

A dot (丶, zhǔ) is a point highlighted for action. So, an invisible dot is a spiritual signal that urges one to act; signifying a “go” order, driven by a positive force.

A strokes (丿, piě) is a point struck off. So, an invisible stroke is an inappropriate act censored by heaven; signifying a “stop” order, enforced by a negative force.

Scientifically, the positive and negative forces at work can be explained by the north-south magnetic field, resulted from the lowest-highest configuration. A magnetic field is a vector field, which forcibly realigns everything within the field into north-south orientations, with an invisible but powerful force originated from the north.

A more exciting vision is to compare them with the binary numbers -- the dot as “1” and the stroke as “0”. Binary numbers are the on/off switch of the Universe; credited for advancing the human civilization exponentially to its present form.

What about the dots/strokes? What if they are used just like the binary numbers? A highly sophisticated human in the making? Absolutely so, logically speaking, and that’s exciting!

As a matter of fact, an ego-soul pair as an on/off switch is one such application. An earth-heaven link as a motivation generator is another. A yīn-yáng vision (e.g. crisis/opportunity, or regress/progress) as a reality checker is yet another.

Meanwhile, mysticism always outweighs logic; leading to many creative names for the invisible yīn-yáng force; i.e. despite I-Ching’s choice of a non-spiritual name:

Dào (道): direction / way / method / road / path / principle / truth / reason / skill

Personally, I choose to embrace both beliefs simultaneously as a mystical-scientific pair. The mysticism is good for powering the leaps of faith needed to breakthrough resistances; while the scientific facts offer a solid supporting platform when doubts persist during the downtime.

Ultimately, a persistent go/stop effort will simulate in a powerful pulse-generator, which propels one forward no matter how strong the resistances are.

Whereas an obsessive myth seeker is often blind to facts; thereby upsetting the equilibrium needed for the divine messages to come through. Oppositely, an absolute fact-based person tends to exclude; thereby missing the many divine messages routinely popping up in their surroundings.

Notes (sourced from ctext.org):

陰 (yīn): female principle / dark / secret
陽 (yáng): male principle / light / sun

儀 (yí): The look of a person (亻) whose ego (我) is governed (王) by the dots (丶) and strokes (丿).

兩儀 (liáng yí) is a yīn-yáng look; yīn is stroke-produced, and yáng is dot-generated. A dot-look shows a person on the go; while a stroke-look depicts a person slowing down.

太極生兩儀、即陰陽 (tài jí shēng liáng yí, jí yīn yáng) says that an earth-heave link (太極) will yield two appearances (兩儀): that is yīn (陰) and yáng (陽).

Such a yīn-yáng setting is called a justified environment, an inner sanctuary created by justifying the past; otherwise also known also as an enlightened inner self, a blissful nirvana, or a growing human universe.

[wong chee kwan]

The Bāguà Theory 4 (The Normal Cycle)

“兩儀生四象: 即少陰、太陰、少陽、太陽、
The two forms produce four phenomena -- the lesser yīn, greater yīn, lesser yáng, and greater yáng.”

Basically, it says: “a young and old yīn + a young and old yáng = four manifestations.”

Notes (sourced from ctext.org):

少 (shǎo): few / less / inadequate
少 (shǎo) reduces by downsizing (小) with a restraining force (丿).

小 (xiǎo): small / tiny / insignificant
小 (xiǎo) shrinks when the dots (丶) and strokes (丿) are divided (丨), a grounding phenomenon whence everything is simplified by justification.

That makes 少 (shǎo) a grounding force that simplifies; or a naturalization process.

陰 (yīn) is a place (阝) where the present (今) is clouded (云); or an emotion cycle that refreshes and enriches the emotion.

Which means 少陰 (shǎo yīn: lesser yīn) is an emotion cycle that naturalizes.

As a process, the lesser-yīn mirrors the nucleation in a crystallization process, whence solute (dissolved matters) cluster to form nuclei; or a cloud formation process, when air rises and cools, and the moisture in it condenses into a visible form.

Visually, the naturalization process is best illustrated by the fall season of autumn, whence everything cools down and returns to their simplest forms.

陽 (yáng) is a place (阝) where the earth (一) is connected to the sun (日) to break through resistances (勿); or an earth-heaven energizing process that powers breakthroughs.

Which means 少陽 (shǎo yáng: lesser yáng) is a sprouting force that breaks out of incubation; powered by the earth-heaven energizing process.

As a process, a lesser-yáng works like the heating of a solid to its melting point to weaken the solid structure; or a rocket blasting off from the launching pad to offset the weight of the rocket.

Visually, the powered breakthrough is shown live by an invigorating spring, whence new growths are sprouting everywhere.

太 (tài): very / too much / big / extreme
太 (tài) reaches its extreme by driving growth (大) with a positive force (丶).

大 (dà): big / great / vast / large / high
大 (dà) is the growth attained when human (人) breakthroughs resistances (一).

That makes 太 (tài) a peaking (bottoming) force driven by the external life-force.

Which means 太陰 (tài yīn: greater yīn) is the bottoming out of the emotion cycle; driven by the external life-force.

As a process, the greater-yīn reflects the crystal growth in crystallization, when a highly ordered crystal structure is formed; or the precipitation of fresh emotion (rain) or/and crystallized ideas (snow) in an emotion cycle.

Visually, the bottoming out process is played out by a freezing winter that blankets everything in sight into a snow-white and homogeneous landscape.

Conversely, 太陽 (tài yáng: greater yáng) is the peaking of a growth driven by the external life-force.

As a process, the greater yáng is equivalent to the melting point, when the solid breaks down to a less ordered state, and melts to become a liquid; or a rocket accelerating to its escape velocity to burst through the atmosphere, and put the vessel into space.

Visually, the climaxing process is brought to life by a blistering summer that brings everything to fruition; marked by bustling activities (excitement) and fulfillment (contentment), the two main ingredients of happiness.

兩儀生四象: 即少陰、太陰、少陽、太陽、 (liáng yí shēng sì xiàng: jí shǎo yīn, tài yīn, shǎo yáng, tài yáng) says that the two appearances (兩儀) yields four manifestations (四象); that is lesser yīn, greater yīn, lesser yáng, and greater yáng.

In plain English, it says: “The yīn-yáng phenomenon is manifested as a normal cycle that falls and rises like the four seasons.”

Furthermore, the normal cycle is a visual illustration of the yīn-yáng crossover principle – yīn crossovers to yáng when it turns extreme, and vice versa.

No wonder people always say: “It's always darkest just before the dawn.”