October 27, 2008

  • Annals of Religion, continued:

    Halloween
    Meditation
    for...

    Halloween Card from SuSu

    5:07:33 AM ET

    Denali

    Hexagram 33

    33 Retreat

    THE IMAGE

    Mountain under heaven:
    the image of RETREAT.
    Thus the superior man
    keeps the inferior man
    at a distance,
    not angrily
    but with reserve.

    "The mountain rises up under heaven, but owing to its nature it finally comes to a stop. Heaven on the other hand retreats upward before it into the distance and remains out of reach. This symbolizes the behavior of the superior man toward a climbing inferior; he retreats into his own thoughts as the inferior man comes forward. He does not hate him, for hatred is a form of subjective involvement by which we are bound to the hated object. The superior man shows strength (heaven) in that he brings the inferior man to a standstill (mountain) by his dignified reserve." --Richard Wilhelm