[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":28},["ShallowReactive",2],{"metaeast_zhouyigaodaoyd_en-gaodaoyiduan-52":3},{"slug":4,"archived":5,"date_created":6,"date_updated":7,"title":8,"seotitle":9,"seodescription":10,"htmlcode":11,"number":12,"content":13,"title1":14,"content1":15,"title2":16,"content2":17,"title3":18,"content3":19,"title4":20,"content4":21,"title5":22,"content5":23,"title6":24,"content6":25,"title7":26,"content7":26,"seo_keywords":27,"og_title":8,"og_description":10},"gaodaoyiduan-52",false,"2026-08-11T01:18:28.408Z","2026-07-04T14:35:17.000Z","Mountain, Mountain: Keeping the back still, one does not gain the body; walking in one’s courtyard, one does not see the person. No blame.","Takashima Ekidan, hexagram 52, Gen as Mountain_Original hexagram text and interpretation_Oriental Metaphysics Library","Takashima Ekidan, interpretation of hexagram 52, Gen as Mountain: Hexagram text “Gen: Stop at the back; you do not obtain the body. Move through the courtyard; you do not see the person. No blame,” with an attached detailed explanation of the judgment and actual divination cases.","䷳",52,"Mountain: Keeping the back still, one does not gain the body; walking in one’s courtyard, one does not see the person. No blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 52  Mountain as Mountain \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n Mountain consists of two yin lines and one yang line, taking the form of Earth. With the top line of Earth changing, it becomes Heaven, thus obtaining Heaven’s uppermost yang line. Heaven is the sky and is inherently in motion; its topmost line, having reached the extreme of movement, becomes still, hence “stopping.” One yang line sits high above Earth, hence the image of a mountain. This hexagram is the reverse of Thunder: Thunder’s one yang line rises from within, while Mountain’s one yang line blocks from without. Rising from within means movement; being blocked from without means stopping. The Sequence Commentary says: “Thunder means movement. Things cannot move forever; they must be stopped, so Mountain follows it. Mountain means stopping.” This is why Mountain follows Thunder. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n Mountain［60］: The people keep to their backs; they do not gain their bodies; walking in their courtyard, they do not see their people. No blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The Mountain hexagram has one imposing solid line above and two divided lines arranged below. The single solid line above represents the human way; the two divided lines represent the human body. From the head downward, the eyebrows, eyes, hands, and feet on the front are all represented by the two divided lines; only the spine running straight down the back forms a solid line. Thus the eyebrows, eyes, hands, and feet move, while the back does not. Not moving is Mountain; Mountain means stopping. Hence, “keeping the back still.” People must face one another to see each other. If the back is kept still, they turn their backs and do not see one another: the back is behind, the body in front, hence “not gaining the body.” Mountain is the gate and courtyard; when hearts turn away, actions also turn away. Turning away means not meeting, and not meeting necessarily means not seeing. Hence, “walking in the courtyard, not seeing the person.” All these meanings are derived from the back. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The Tuan Commentary says: “Mountain means stopping. When it is time to stop, stop; when it is time to go, go. In movement and stillness, one does not miss the proper time, and one’s way is bright. Keeping still means stopping in the proper place. Above and below are hostile correspondences and do not unite. Therefore one does not gain the body; walking in the courtyard, one does not see the person. There is no blame.” \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n This hexagram has mountains above and below, an image of two mountains standing side by side. Two mountains stand opposite without coming and going between them; this is the image of stopping. People see only stillness as stopping and movement as going, not knowing that stillness has its stopping and movement also has its stopping: stopping is stopping, and going is also stopping. “Place” is stopping with a fixed point; “time” is stopping without a fixed point. When stopping accords with the time, the time itself becomes the place of stopping: apparently unfixed, yet actually fixed. The yang lines at the third and top positions of Mountain are the same as those of Heaven. The third line of Heaven says, “Move along with the time,” and the top line says, “Reach the limit together with the time.” Contraction in stillness and expansion in movement have never, from ancient times, failed to accord with their time. When Heaven’s timing is not lost, Heaven’s stopping has found its place. Therefore one may stop, go, move, or remain still, without the slightest obstruction; this is the source of illumination. If a person can stop in the proper place, joining humanity with Heaven, the mind and body will naturally become bright, free of obstruction. This is the meaning of the “illustrious virtue” in the Great Learning. From knowing where to stop, through settledness and tranquility, to being able to deliberate and attain, one can naturally advance and retreat with the times. The substance of “making illustrious virtue illustrious” manifests as its function; it certainly cannot be a borrowed pretext for the Buddhist teaching of emptiness, nothingness, and extinction. “Above and below are hostile correspondences and do not unite”: every correspondence must be one firm and one yielding; if both are firm or both yielding, they are “hostile correspondences,” which means no correspondence. In the eight pure hexagrams, none of the lines correspond, yet this is mentioned specifically for Mountain because Mountain combines mountains: each stops at its own stopping place, standing ruggedly opposite, neither interacting with the other, thereby attaining the meaning of stopping. According to the Phonetic Glossary, “the back is called the north side of the body.” The back is beyond the reach of the eyes and ears; thus inwardly one does not see the body, and outwardly one does not see the person. Hence, “not gaining the body; walking in the courtyard, not seeing the person.” Because they stop by not uniting, stopping entails no blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n Applying this hexagram to human affairs, the Tuan Commentary says “back,” “body,” and “see,” all taking their images from the human body; and “going,” “stopping,” “moving,” and “being still” are likewise nothing other than human affairs. In human affairs, some pass from movement into stillness, while others pass from stillness into movement. Movement arising from stillness is Zhen: in Zhen, two yin lines are above and one yang line issues forth below—yang in motion. Stillness arising from movement is Gen: in Gen, two yin lines are below and one yang line rests above—yang at rest. When yang rests, it is stillness without being merely still, and movement without being merely movement. It is not devoid of stillness, nor devoid of movement: at times moving and at times still, stopping when it is appropriate to stop and going when it is appropriate to go. Thus, in movement and stillness, what matters is “not losing the proper time.” If, like Laozi speaking of the mysterious, or Buddhism speaking of nothingness, one uses stillness to suppress movement and retreats into withered extinction, that way must become obscure and unenlightened. This is yin stopping yang and stopping what should be stopped; it is not the stopping accomplished by Gen. Gen’s stopping examines the time and finds the proper place; therefore it is yang stopping yin. The upper stroke of Gen forms Qian, and Qian signifies brightness. From the third line to the top is the image of Li, and Li signifies light; hence it says, “Its way is bright.” The upper and lower lines of the hexagram do not correspond, hence “do not associate.” When there is no association, nothing pulls or moves them: seeing as though not seeing, hearing as though not hearing. If one can neither hear nor see, all affairs under heaven are met without thought or anxiety. Thus one attains the back and no longer obtains the body; one’s actions remain with oneself and one no longer sees other people. If one conducts human affairs in this way, what blame could human affairs bring? \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n Applied to the state, “Gen means stopping”; thus it stops violence and settles disorder. Two yin lines lie concealed below, suggesting covert schemes and rebellion; one yang line above restrains them, preventing the two yin from secretly moving. Hence it signifies stopping. The “back” is something unseen. “Stopping at the back” means stopping matters before they become visible—preventing disorder before it begins to grow. Thus the function of stopping lies in finding the proper time, while its image is taken from the body. The human body is where yang qi gathers; the back belongs to yin, and yin is darkness, while yang is brightness. Using yang to stop yin means stopping in the proper place, hence “its way is bright.” The sage Son of Heaven governs by emerging in the yang position, while the multitude of yin withdraws and lies concealed, stopping and not moving; all are subtly transformed beneath the radiant sky. This is the image. In the six lines, the first corresponds to the fourth, the second to the fifth, and the third to the sixth. Often movement above elicits a response below, and movement below elicits a response above, so they pull one another. Only the eight pure hexagrams are a single body above and below and therefore do not correspond. Gen says “two mountains,” for a mountain has a front and a rear, just as a person has a body and a back. A mountain in front cannot see behind it, and a person cannot see his own back; thus the two do not associate. Hence it says, “Not obtaining his body, he walks in his courtyard but does not see his people”; therefore there is no blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n Viewed as a whole, according to Shuowen, the original form of Gen means “hard” or “unyielding”; it is composed of signs meaning “knife” and “eye,” suggesting eyes turned upward rather than downward. This expresses a fierce, obstinate refusal to advance. The Essential Meaning of the Six Scripts says that the character is formed from “knife,” taking the image of two eyes placed side by side. Gen’s Tuan Commentary says, “Gen means stopping,” which is precisely the meaning of being fierce and unwilling to advance. “Not seeing the person” is the image of eyes turned upward rather than downward; Gen, with mountains standing side by side, likewise takes its image from two eyes placed alongside each other. In sum, one movement and one stillness are the bellows of nature; one going and one stopping are the fixed pivot of the human body. The hexagram consists of one yang line stopping above two yin lines: solid outside and hollow inside, yin emptiness within and yang solidity covering the exterior. It is like a person facing north with his back turned, looking inward and listening within; hence “its way is bright.” In position, Gen and Zhen depend on each other: Zhen arises from Gen’s stopping, and Gen arises from Zhen’s movement. Under heaven there is no movement without stopping and no stopping without movement. Because stopping leads to movement, Zhen precedes Gen; because movement leads to stopping, Gen follows Zhen. The images of all six lines are taken from the body. The first is the “toe”; the second is the “calf,” the flesh of the lower leg, located behind. The third is the “spine”; the fourth is the “body”—the heart is not mentioned because it is in front, and the back is not mentioned because the spine already represents it. The fifth is the “jaw support”: the face is not seen, only its lateral support. The sixth lies outside the hexagram; instead of saying what is being stopped, it says “generously stopping,” the image of a mountain growing higher. In the line images, the inner three lines are less auspicious than the outer three. The second says “not pleased,” the third “smoking the heart”; only the first still gains benefit. The fourth says “no blame,” the fifth “remorse disappears,” and the sixth “a substantial ending.” Thus Gen is more often auspicious on the outside. There is nothing in the world that ends and can then stop without being good; what matters is stopping at the proper time. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The Commentary on the Image says: Mountains doubled—Gen. The noble person uses this to keep thoughts from going beyond his position. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n Beyond one mountain in the hexagram there is another mountain; the two face each other, their forces connected, hence “mountains doubled.” All eight pure hexagrams are single bodies above and below, mutually linked. Gen alone has two mountains above and below, each stopping in its own place and not coming and going; this is why it signifies Gen, stopping. The noble person follows the image of Gen. Gen takes the mountain as the place of stopping, while a person takes his position as the place of stopping. He thinks and thinks, yet does not dare to go beyond it. This is what the Doctrine of the Mean means by “Act according to your present position and do not desire what lies outside it.” \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 　　[Divination] \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about current fortune: Fortune is ordinary; it is advisable to withdraw and hold one’s ground, not to act rashly. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about warfare: Each side should guard its own boundaries and must not entertain thoughts of advancing beyond its territory. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about business: One should firmly maintain one’s established trade and must not greedily seek unexpected wealth. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about official success: It is advisable to maintain the old position; do not seek advancement through luck or improper means. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about the home: Although this residence is somewhat confined, it should not be rashly remodeled. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about marriage: The match is determined beforehand; do not covet wealth or despise poverty. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about litigation: One must not make crookedness appear straight. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about a lost object: Search for it where it originally was; it can be found. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about illness: “Stopping” means the end; one can only prolong life while carrying the illness. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Question about pregnancy: A girl will be born.","Six at the beginning: Stopping the toes. No blame. It is beneficial to maintain lasting correctness.","Six at the beginning: Stopping the toes. No blame. It is beneficial to maintain lasting correctness. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The Commentary on the Image says: Stopping the toes means one has not lost correctness. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n Occupying the beginning of Gen, this line is in the position of the toes. Whenever a person moves or stops, it must begin with the toes. Therefore, if one wishes to stop the mind, one must first stop the body; if one wishes to stop the body, one must first stop the toes. When the toes stop, one does not move rashly; without rash movement, one stops in the proper place and incurs no loss. Hence it says, “No blame.” Good and bad fortune, remorse and humiliation often arise from movement. Stopping the toes is stopping movement at its beginning: restraining human desire before it sprouts and preserving heavenly principle before it becomes manifest. What is planned at the beginning must especially be upheld for a long time; hence “beneficial to maintain lasting correctness.” The Commentary on the Image says “not yet lost correctness”: although yin occupies a yang position and the position is technically improper, by stopping where it should stop, the foundation is correct; therefore it has not lost its correctness. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 　　[Divination] \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about current fortune: The course of fortune is just beginning; proceed steadily and cautiously, do not advance rashly, and you will avoid blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about warfare: Station the troops at the foot of the mountain; hold still and defend, rather than act rashly. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about business: Be content with what you have. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about official success: Although the first step is modest, it does not depart from correctness. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about the home: This house, near the mountain foot, can be lived in for a long time without blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about marriage: A harmonious union for a hundred years; no blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about illness: The illness is in the feet; walking is difficult and recovery will not come quickly. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about litigation: One has not lost the just position; no blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about a traveler: Because of an inability to walk, the person will not return for a while. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about a lost object: It certainly has not been lost; search in a secluded place on the ground. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about pregnancy: A girl will be born; guard against a foot ailment. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n [Example] In the twenty-fourth year of Meiji, I divined the fortunes of a certain cabinet minister and obtained Gen changing to Bi. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The judgment says: Gen is the hexagram of two mountains standing side by side. When two mountains stand side by side, one cannot advance; it has the image of stopping without moving. Now, sir, in divining your fortune, you have obtained this first line. The “toe” is the toe of the foot. In every human movement, the feet are in front. When the toes stop, the entire body consequently remains still. This is what the Commentary on the Image means by “The noble person uses this to keep thoughts from going beyond his position.” You should understand that you ought to maintain your correctness for a long time and preserve this rank; there is no need to seek further appointment or promotion. Otherwise, rash movement will inevitably bring blame.","Six in the second place: Stopping the calves. He cannot rescue what follows him; his heart is not pleased.","Six in the second place: Stopping the calves. He cannot rescue what follows him; his heart is not pleased. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The Commentary on the Image says: He cannot rescue what follows him; he has not withdrawn to listen. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n “Calf” is explained in the Basic Meaning as the flesh of the lower leg; the Correct Dictionary says it is the flesh behind the shin. The calf is above the toes, hence it is the image for the second line. The second line of Xian says “Feeling in the calves”; Xian centers on responsiveness. The second line of Gen says “Stopping the calves”; Gen centers on stopping, so there is peaceful stillness and no movement. Yet the toes and calves are both parts of movement and do not inherently wish to stop. What should be stopped is the heart. When the heart wishes to stop, the toes cannot help but stop; once the toes stop, the calves follow. Thus the calves are what follow the toes in movement and stopping. “Rescue” means to aid. “He cannot rescue what follows him” means that the third line, the “waist,” is above and refuses to bend down and listen; the toes and calves move together, so the heart of the second line is “not pleased.” The Commentary on the Image says “he has not withdrawn to listen”: he can neither save their movement nor withdraw and obey the command to follow stopping; hence his heart is not pleased. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 　　[Divination] \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about current fortune: The course of fortune is obstructed; keep your feet planted and do not advance, nor act according to your impulses. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Inquiry about warfare: Stopping means not advancing. Holding one's position firmly without moving, while having no outside support, naturally brings anxiety. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about business: Goods remain unsold and unmoving; this is very worrying. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about official success: You cannot advance even an inch, and suffer additionally from lacking powerful support. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about illness: “Calf” also means to wither; the Book of Songs says, “All the plants wither,” ravaged by the autumn wind. This illness too must be an autumn ailment, and medicine may not be able to save it. It is extremely worrying. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about marriage: The calf also signifies avoidance; it is advisable to avoid and sever the relationship. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Question about pregnancy: A girl will be born. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n [Example] At the request of my friend Mr. Ishisaka, I divined about a mining-mountain matter and obtained Gen changing to Gu. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The judgment says: Gen is a mountain, and the calf lies above the foot of the mountain. The Tuan Commentary says “stopping at the back”; the back is behind the body, and the images taken by the lines are all behind. Asking about a mining mountain and receiving this line, we know the mine shaft should be on the back of the mountain. The first line is the toe and the second the calf; since the calf is above the toe, we know the shaft is below the thigh and above the foot. “Gen means stopping”; in regard to the matter, this means suspension. The toes and calves normally favor movement, not stopping; when stopping is indicated, the heart must be displeased. Here, the initiator will certainly propose that the matter be suspended, while the followers will also lack the strength to rescue it; it is therefore proper to retreat. One must wait until the fifth line, “remorse disappears,” and obtain its assistance before resuming the matter. Counting by the lines, this should be three years later. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n [Example] At the winter solstice of the twenty-seventh year of Meiji, I divined the postwar situation and obtained Gen changing to Gu, which I presented to the prime minister. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The judgment says: The hexagram’s body takes its image from mountains, while its image takes its image from the body. The body is naturally active, whereas a mountain stops and does not move. The hexagram is also the reverse of Zhen: Zhen moves and Gen stops—the stopping that comes when movement reaches its extreme. Now, in divining the postwar situation, we obtain Gen’s second line. The first line is the toe, and the second the calf. The calf advances beyond the toe; it can bend and extend, and its movement is especially strong, its force greater. Applied to the postwar situation, this is certainly stronger than before. After the war, the great indemnity was paid. The soldiers who had marched out all boasted of their martial power and repeatedly looked down on civilian officials. As for the ministers in government, considering the overall situation, they should use this indemnity to expand military preparedness as the foremost priority, and cannot follow the soldiers’ wishes; their hearts will inevitably be displeased. Moreover, the Sequence says, “Gen means stopping”: after a great war, one should rest and recover, not act rashly. The ancients called stopping weapons “martial virtue”; this is its evidence. The hearts of warriors naturally favor movement rather than stillness. Being made to stop and not move, many will feel depressed and unhappy; this is only natural. Observe the movement of the calf: whenever the calf moves by itself, it is the heart that causes it. Likewise, when soldiers move, it is not the soldiers who can decide for themselves; it is the court. Thus the court must maintain calm control.","Nine in the third place: Stopping at the waist, splitting the spine. Danger; it smokes the heart.","Nine in the third place: Stopping at the waist, splitting the spine［61］; danger; it smokes the heart. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The Commentary on the Image says: Stopping at the waist—danger smokes the heart. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n “Threshold” means a doorway sill, the boundary between inside and outside. Between the inner and outer parts at the third place, one horizontal line lies across them; hence it symbolizes a threshold. “Separate” means to divide; Yu’s version reads “split.” “Yin” is used in the same sense as another character; Ma Yun says, “the flesh beside the spine.” According to the fifth line of Xian, the text says “the flesh along the spine,” and the Commentary on the Changes explains, “along the spine is flesh.” Zheng says, “the flesh along the spine.” Thus yin and the term for flesh along the spine differ in form but have the same meaning. “Smolder” is used in the sense of burning and scorching. The Gen at the third place is a threshold that cuts off the upper and lower parts of the body, preventing communication between them. The mind and back would then be divided into two, just as a threshold separates inside from outside. This is what Buddhist teaching calls “subduing the mind.” If one forcibly suppresses the mind, the mind is fire; when the fire of the heart burns upward, blazing intensely and scorching the narrow confines within, yet cannot be extinguished, the mind becomes endangered. The Book of Songs says, “My troubled heart smolders”; this is what it means. How could one know that the mind is inherently empty and lucid, responding to things and thereby reaching everywhere? “Its flesh along the spine is affected” in Xian and “its threshold is stopped” in Gen are one response and one stopping, fundamentally no different. The Tuan Commentary says, “When it is time to stop, then stop; when it is time to proceed, then proceed; in movement and stillness, do not lose the proper time.” One should simply let the mind follow its natural course; stopping cannot be achieved by cutting it off. To cut it off in order to stop it is to seek to settle the mind, but this instead endangers it. How could the mind be forcibly controlled? In a person’s body, the channels, blood, and vital energy must circulate and connect throughout, above and below, front and back, without obstruction. Then the mind naturally feels at ease. Otherwise, if what is above does not descend and what is below does not rise, the channels will not flow freely, the flesh and blood will split apart, and how could the mind be at peace? Therefore it says, “dangerous.” In “the mind smolders,” the Commentary on the Image changes “dangerous” to “endangered,” for endangered is more fearsome than merely dangerous. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 　　[Divination] \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about current fortunes: Whether the course of fortune is smooth or adverse, one must follow the time; what is forcibly controlled is dangerous. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about warfare: With two armies facing each other, each contests the frontier. How can one draw a boundary and merely defend oneself? Those who only defend themselves are in danger. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about business: Goods must circulate in order to yield profit. In this age of worldwide trade, imports and exports are exchanged mutually; closing the borders and imposing limits on oneself is certainly the path to poverty, and extremely dangerous. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about achievement and fame: One who specializes in guarding only a single skill can never become a great vessel. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about the home: In managing a household, entrances and exits inside and outside should indeed be carefully regulated, but they must not be cut off. If cut off, finances cannot circulate and the family’s fortunes become endangered. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about marriage: Marriage is fundamentally brought about by Heaven’s matching. If one merely clings to one’s own household, the joy of joining two families cannot be achieved. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about illness: This must be an illness caused by blockage: the upper and lower parts do not communicate, the blood vessels do not circulate, and the condition may become dangerous. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about litigation: The feelings and intentions between superiors and inferiors are not reaching each other, making right and wrong difficult to distinguish. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about pregnancy: A girl will be born; guard against difficult labor. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 【Case】 A certain person came to ask for a divination concerning the fortune of a prominent nobleman and obtained Gen changing to Bo. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The judgment said: The line image signifies blocked circulation, with the heart and back split apart; the situation is quite dangerous. Since Your Excellency asks about your fortune and has obtained this line, I know that, both within and outside the government, your relations are often disharmonious. The cause is that your position has become too elevated for you to associate with others, and matters have consequently become divided and isolated, with feelings unable to communicate. You are nearly isolated; although you possess talent and intelligence, you have no place to deploy them. Your person is in danger. The line text says, “Stop at the threshold, split the flesh beside the spine; danger, the heart smolders.” That is the image before us. Your Excellency should seek guidance from Xian. Its fifth line says, “Let the spinal flesh respond”; then there will be no regret.","Six in the fourth place: Stop at the body; no blame.","Six in the fourth place: Stop at the body; no blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The Commentary on the Image says: “Stop at the body” means stopping within one’s own person. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n “Body” refers to the whole person; when analyzed, even one body has distinctions between upper and lower. The fourth place is at the top of the lower trigram and the bottom of the upper trigram, in the position of the heart, at the center of the body. The line is yielding and correct, and is adjacent above to Six in the fifth place, so it can “stop where it should stop,” keep itself pure, and conduct itself well. Although it cannot benefit the whole world, it can cultivate its own person. Compared with the three lines of the inner trigram, it is somewhat superior. Yet because yin occupies a yin place, it lacks the capacity for achievement and can only make its own body a model for the world. Hence, “Stop at the body; no blame.” The third line speaks of the heart, the fourth of the body: the heart is empty and the body substantial. The aim is for people to contain emptiness while putting substance into practice, so they do not fall into the Buddhist error of nihilistic emptiness. The Commentary on the Image explains it as “stopping within one’s own person”; the person is the body. Thus stopping the heart through the body is what the Great Image calls “thinking without going beyond one’s position.” \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 　　[Divination] \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about current fortunes: The course of fortune is yielding and smooth; one can preserve oneself and naturally avoid blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about warfare: Advancement and conquest are difficult to hope for, but if one suffers no injury or defeat, what blame could there be? \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about business: One can only preserve the principal. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about achievement and fame: Neither gain nor loss. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about the home: Living there peacefully, with no blame. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○　Asked about marriage: Average. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asking about illness: This is an ailment in which one prolongs life while carrying the disease. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about a lost object: Search for it on your person. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Question about pregnancy: A girl will be born. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 【Case】 In the twentieth year of Meiji, a divination was made concerning the fortune of a prominent nobleman, and Gen changing to Lu was obtained. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The judgment said: The fourth line stands between the junction of above and below, in the position of the heart. The heart is inside and the body outside, so “stop at the body” speaks of both body and heart. Yet Gen governs stopping; when one stops, there is no undertaking, so this is insufficient for achievement, seeking only freedom from blame. Now Your Excellency asks about your fortune and obtains Gen’s fourth line. Its statement, “Stop at the body,” shows an image of preserving the body and securing one’s destiny. The fourth line is close to the honored position; hence I know that Your Excellency’s rank is already prominent. You should carefully maintain your official duties, laboring diligently day and night, thereby preserving your reputation, office, and emoluments and peacefully enjoying the blessings of this age of peace. What blame could there be? The Great Image says, “The noble person thinks without going beyond his position”; surely this applies to Your Excellency.","Six in the fifth place: Stop at the jaw; speech is orderly, and regret disappears.","Six in the fifth place: Stop at the jaw; speech is orderly, and regret disappears. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The Commentary on the Image says: “Stop at the jaw” is because it is centered and correct. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The fifth place is in the center of the upper trigram; the two yielding lines are arranged on either side, giving the image of jaws. According to Xian’s top line, “The jaw is the moving mouth that delights,” meaning the jaw is what produces speech. “Stop at the jaw” means one does not speak carelessly. The way of the noble person is that few words bring few regrets. “Stop at the jaw” certainly does not mean stopping the jaw so that one never speaks; it means speaking only when the time is right. Speaking at the right time makes speech orderly: one can be silent, then silent; one can speak, then speak. If speech and silence do not miss their proper time, regret disappears. The Commentary on the Image explains it by “centered and correct”: “Stop at the jaw” means the upper line has attained central correctness, and therefore speech is orderly and without regret. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 　　[Divination] \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about current fortunes: Fortune is centered and correct, so there is no regret or worry. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about warfare: During a campaign, nothing is more taboo than rumors and reckless statements that confuse the army’s mind. “Stop at the jaw” prevents rash speech; then commands are strict and clear, and one is invincible wherever one goes. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about business: The state of commerce is like the state of war; information must not be leaked. “Stop at the jaw” means speech grasps the essential point. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about achievement and fame: Clever talk will certainly be rejected; frank, upright speech will be honored. With speech that is centered and correct, one may be appointed a minister after only a brief conversation. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about the home: This residence occupies a centered and correct position; living there brings no regret. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about marriage: A matchmaker’s words are often full of exaggeration and falsehood; the listener should be cautious. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about illness: The jaws must be tightly closed and no sound can emerge; if the voice can be produced, the illness can be treated. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Question about pregnancy: A girl will be born. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n [Example] In November of the twenty-fourth year of the Meiji era, Peer of the House of Peers Hino-Nishi Kō and Inaba Masakuni, president of the Zenshindō, paid a visit and said: “This spring, a severe epidemic spread. From the Minister of the Left, Sanjō, down to two or three elder statesmen, people suddenly passed away. This was truly a misfortune for the nation. Soon afterward came the violent incident at Ōtsu, the earthquake disaster in Nōbi, and the garden torches at Ise Grand Shrine going out without any wind. These were all unexpected calamities rarely heard of since ancient times, yet they have occurred one after another this year. It is said that when a state is about to prosper, auspicious signs must appear, and when it is about to perish, ominous portents must appear. These are such signs—how could one not be afraid? The opening of the Diet is now near, and this is receiving the greatest attention from officials and people alike. Please perform a divination to see whether the Diet will prosper or decline.” I replied: “I already performed a divination about this last December. I presented the line text to Prime Minister Matsukata and the two palace officials, Hijikata and the other gentleman. The hexagram and lines resulted in Gen changing into Gradual Progress.” \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The judgment said: The Great Image says “mountains joined,” meaning two mountains stand together, blocking movement and communication between above and below. Now, asking about the lower house, the fifth line of Gen says, “Stop at the jaw,” meaning to restrain the mouth of public debate so that groundless words cannot recklessly reach the ruler’s ears. “Speech is orderly” means that what the debaters say must be arranged in a disciplined order before it can be heard and accepted. The line image seems to foresee that in this round of public debate many will speak disrespectfully and deliberately make things difficult for the government, ultimately leading to the assembly’s dissolution by imperial decree; such an outcome is inevitable from the situation. Even if all the debate were orderly, it would amount only to “no regret,” not enough to demonstrate achievement. Such is the omen for the lower house. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n Both gentlemen were deeply impressed. In December, the lower house was indeed dissolved by imperial decree.","Nine at the top: Abundant stopping; good fortune.","Nine at the top: Abundant stopping; good fortune. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The Commentary on the Image says: “The good fortune of abundant stopping” comes from ending with solidity and depth. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The top line is at the end of Gen, that is, the end of stopping. “Abundant” means adding thickness. As the saying goes, Mount Tai does not reject soil, and therefore can achieve its height; this is what abundant solidity means. The top line can stop itself through profound thickness, and thus obtains good fortune. Of Gen’s six lines, only the top line speaks of good fortune, because the way of Gen is fully expressed by the top line. If one can firmly guard this mind and know where to stop, one becomes weighty like a mountain, immovable and unshakable; no good fortune could be greater. The Commentary on the Image explains it as “ending with solidity”: stopping through depth brings security, and depth grows ever thicker as it endures. What “fulfills the end” of Gen lies in this thickness, and what “fulfills the beginning” also lies in this thickness. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 　　[Divination] \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about current fortunes: The course of fortune has reached this point and cannot advance further. Only by becoming ever more substantial can one obtain good fortune. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about warfare: One’s position has reached the utmost height; the essential thing is to increase the strength of the forces, and good fortune will surely be obtained. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about business: This is an established, high-level business; prices are high and goods are excellent, so profits will certainly be substantial. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about achievement and fame: One will certainly be selected for the highest appointment. Good fortune. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about the home: It is certainly the home of a family known for loyalty and honesty through generations. Good fortune. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about marriage: Auspicious. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Asked about illness: The constitution is naturally robust; recovery may come without medicine. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n ○ Question about pregnancy: A girl will be born. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n 【Case】 In the third month of the twenty-seventh year of Meiji, a prominent nobleman came and requested a divination concerning his fortune, obtaining Gen changing to Qian. \u003Cbr> \n  \u003Cbr> \n The judgment said: The top line occupies the extreme end of the doubled Gen, that is, the top of the joined mountains. A mountain’s substance is solidity and weight; the higher the mountain, the greater its thickness. Therefore the meaning of the entire hexagram culminates in the top line, which alone receives the auspicious verdict. This shows that one’s later fortune will be prosperous. Now Your Excellency asks about your fortune and obtains the top line. I know that you stand above the people, your rank is lofty, and the people look up to you, as if you were a mountain among mountains. You have always held a loyal and generous character and have never used your power and position to oppress others. “Abundant” means substantial; Gen means stopping. Your Excellency should stop where you should stop, and add ever more substance to your substance; toward yourself and toward others, you will obtain nothing but good fortune. The prosperity of your great fortune is visible here.",null,"Zhouyi, I Ching, Takashima Ekidan, hexagram 52, Gen as Mountain, sixty-four hexagrams, hexagram text, line texts, divination judgments",1787044935929]