This is the twentieth and final post in a series about the use of Yijing in clinical practice of Chinese Medicine.
Read : Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3 / Part 4 / Part 5 / Part 6 / Part 7 / Part 8/ Part 9 / Part 10 / Part 11 / Part 12/ Part 13/ Part 14 / Part 15 / Part 16 / Part 17 / Part 19 /
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Part 20 – Homeopathic Hexagram Treatments
Last post tackled the nuts and bolts of the Toroidal Yijing Microsystem, the acupuncture style I’m developing based on a toroidal (donut-shaped) mapping of the Yijing. We covered technical aspects like how to map the hexagrams onto the scalp or abdomen and how to needle them, along with the subtler question of how to select hexagrams for use in treatment.We discussed a couple of overlapping treatment strategies that can be summed up as ‘directive.’
In directive treatment, you input the symbol or symbols that the patient could use.
This is like needling Stomach 36 on an ungrounded, uncentered person: you’re offering the virtues of earth to someone lacking them. For such a patient, one could needle Hexagram 2 Kun (earth) as an addition to ST 36 or as an alternative to it. Here, since we’re treating Earth, I’d probably needle the hexagram on the abdomen rather than the scalp.
Last time I promised to explore another strategy in this final post of the series, a strategy I believe to be the subtlest and in it’s way the most potent application of this Yijing mapping work. So what is this strategy?
It’s based on the homeopathic principle that, instead of trying to fix an imbalance, we instead amplify it.
Amplifying an existing pattern gives the system a chance to recognize the pattern that’s been holding it back and allows the individual’s own creative intelligence to respond. Instead of attempting a quick fix, this approach invites personal transformation.
The catch is that this kind of transformation is not necessarily a fun or comfortable process. Most of the time, before we can come to a new place of balance we have to wobble off-axis for a bit.
I’ve had just enough experience with homeopathic approaches to healing to know to tread lightly and with respect when amplifying patterns of imbalance.
For that reason I recommend this kind of intervention only in the context of (1) a strong and deep therapeutic container and (2) significant experience with the Yi. As a practitioner one first has to gain a clear view of what someone’s deep limiting beliefs or patterns are, and then be able to translate them clearly into the concise language of hexagrams.
Unless you’re confident in meeting both criteria, this homeopathic style of working with the hexagrams is best filed under “don’t try this at home.”
For those interested in learning more, or in taking part in the R&D process with toroidal Yijing work, please don’t hesitate to get in touch!
Well, we’ve done it—made it to the end of this mammoth article series.
It seems only fitting to end this journey the way we started, with an Yijing cast to give the oracle itself the final word.
Here it is in real time, sans fudging: 786898 – Hexagram 3 Zhen—> Hexagram 36 Mingyi. Lines 3 and 5 changing.
Photo by D Sharon Pruitt
Hexagram 3 Zhen is the image of an embryo, a newly fertilized seed: life in its earliest stages. Having asked for an image to end with, the Yi offers an image of new beginnings. This seems only fitting, given our discussion of the Yi’s circular nature.
Zhen could also refer to the Toroidal Yijing microsystem work, as a system still in its infancy. As such it needs careful nurturing and not too much exposure. I’m entrusting you with my baby, dear reader, so please be gentle!
Hexagram 36 Mingyi is often read in terms of keeping one’s light under a bushel. It’s also about illuminating the darkness (putting that Fire down into the Earth).
As Jung said, “one does not become enlightened by imagining figures of light, but by making the darkness conscious.”
He also said, “The latter procedure, however, is disagreeable and therefore not popular.”
Perhaps those beginning their exploration of the Yi through these posts are advised to use the oracle for inner exploration before sharing its light with the outside world. Do your inner work first, the Yi seems to be saying, in classic curmudgeonly-sage fashion.
We should take the changing lines into account as well:
Line 3: “hunting deer without a guide, getting lost in the forest.”
Line 5: “difficulties in prosperity [alternate translation: hoarding wealth]. Good fortune for small things, not big ones.”
It is certainly easy to get lost in the forest of the Yijing (Line 3), and it’s a good idea not to venture too deep without a guide at hand. This may be doubly true when it comes to using the Yijing actively in treatment—wandering about blindly is apt to lead to trouble.
Line 5 suggests an embarrassment of riches, and there’s so much information within the Yi that it can indeed be a problem. Faced with such richness, it’s good to start by taking small steps. Such are the notes of caution the oracle injects.
