You've all heard of I CHING Astrology & I CHING Numerology
Well now - I CHING Zoology
Much has been written about sages, armies, rulers, superior men; fortunes
and misfortunes, perseverance and the like, but what about the horses, oxen,
cows, tortoises and the many others. I found 32 hexagrams using 25 of our furry,
scaly and feathered friends as metaphors of wisdom, and King Wen only knows
what I may have missed. The Mare, Tiger, Cow, Horse, Pig, Fish, Bird and Fox
are all mentioned in the 'Judgements' - all the rest appear in 'The Lines'.
The Lion may be the King of Beasts in the Western world, but gets nary
a mention in the "I". I suppose the Dragon deserves the King title here.
Wilhelm says (by the way, everything here was gathered from Wilhelm),
that the Dragon symbolizes the electrically charged arousing force of
a thunderstorm which withdraws from the earth in the winter to reappear in he
summer as thunder and lightning, again stirring the creative forces. Hexagram
l successively has the Dragon hiding, then appearing in the field,
next flying in the heavens, and then becoming arrogant and having cause to repent.
Well, it had best repent, for the next reference is to a flight of Dragons
without heads (not very propitious, indeed). The only other Dragon reference
is in the top line of Hexagram 2, "Dragons fight in the meadow".
Apparently an 'Old Earth Principle' with an inflated ego is dragin around
disguised (in drag?) as a false dragon and is challenged in the meadow by an honest
to goodness Heaven Type Dragon. Well, both are powerful in their own
way and in the ensuing fight, as in most fights, both of them suffer.
We next encounter in Hexagram 2 a persevering Mare used here
to help clarify the receptive principle. Combining the strength and swiftness
of a Horse with the gentleness and devotion of the Cow, this I
CHING Mare is a testimonial to perseverance, yet after making
that point, disappears completely from the "I" scene, never
to be heard from again. Now, you'd think she might have persevered -
returning to teach us something else. . . oh well, . .
Now the Horse - the Horse really perseveres more than any other of our
animals. The Horse is encountered in 8 hexagrams, having many many adventures
along the way. First appearing in Hexagram 3, (Difficulty at the Beginning)
it is forever losing its wagon. At first we suspect foul play, a robber unhitched
them, then the horse and wagon strive for union only to remain apart. This disturbing
experience apparently causes a complete emotional breakdown into a mass of bloody
tears. It takes 19 more hexagrams before our emotional wreck dares to reappear.
Finally in Hexagram 22 (Grace) our Horse 'Arrives on Wings'.
It's cleaned up its act (I assume) for it appears as 'White Simplicity'. Now
ready to be tamed, in Hexagram 26 (Taming Power of the Great), it is
docile enough to follow other Horses and (reading a bit between the lines)
may be offered a wee bit of chariot driving as a diversionary reward.
Things are beginning to look up, for in Hexagram 35 , (Progress) our
Horse has been presented, as an honor no less, to a powerful prince; the
princely estate must have been good for its constitution for in Hexagram
36 (Darkening of the Light) we see the injured Lord of Light giving
aid to others with "The Strength of our Horse". In Hexagram
38 (Opposition) our Horse displays a bit of perversity - or perhaps
it is playfulness. Feigning being lost, he waits for someone to pursue him and
then tantalizingly runs further and further away. Then, when all the chasers
are pooped, he jauntingly returns home of his own accord. Well, in Hexagram
59 and 61, (Dispersion and Inner Truth) our adventure becomes a
bit anticlimactic as he brings help (naturally) "with the strength of a Horse",
only to end up his career as a team Horse who has gone astray - sort
of completes the cycle - remember back in Hexagram 3, where it was
loosing its wagon.
Hunting is a pretty common "I CHING Zooligical " pursuit. There
are three references to just plain "Game". Now whether
Game is merely 'prey in the collective' or whether it is some unique
ancient animal species is not too clear but I get the distinct impression
that it is not too propitious to be "Game". In Hexagram 7 (The Army),
Game is devastating the fields and needs to be caught. In Hexagram 8
(Holding Together) Game gets a chance to run away unless it wants
to become a regal supper. It finally smarts up in Hexagram 32 (Duration)
and deserts the field completely. Actually, I suspect Game is off
in the distance looking thru binoculars at the frustrated hunters persistently
stalking where nothing now exists. Reminds me a bit of the hunters in Hexagram
3 (Difficulty at the Beginning) who are knocking around the woods hunting
Deer without the foresters guidance - not only getting lost but undoubtedly
not too successful in the hunt .
The Tortoise, highly prized by the ancients for its 'shell of many powers',
confirms in Hexagram 1 and 42 that there is surely strength in numbers.
In fact, not much of anything had the capability to oppose Ten Pair of Tortoises
- if they look anything like those big ones at Marineland, I'm sure not going
against one of them, no less twenty. Hexagram. 27 (Corners of the Mouth)
provides us with inner nourishment by warning that misfortune results from
letting our Magic Tortoise go - losing our independence and self reliance.
I guess some animals could be definitely categorized as Yin Animals and
others as definitely Yang Animals, So it is with the Sheep and the
Goat. Now in much of the literature, Sheep seem always to be 'Yinning
around' just waiting to be sacrificed. In Hexagram 54 (The Marrying Maiden)
the Sheep is stabbed but no blood flows. Apparently the art of
ritual had progressed and the "sacrificer ?" was using one
of those 'prekilled sacrificial lamb packages from the frozen food counter',
so he could perform the stabbing ritual without all the mess. The Goat,
on the other hand, is definitely one of the worlds true "Yangers".
In Hexagram 34
(The Power of the Great) he first butts against a hedge only to get his
horns entangled and ends up so entangled he cannot go backwards nor forwards
- so much for head-on confrontations. In this hexagram the Goat also
gets "lost with ease - no remorse", with the lesson that one
can give up belligerent and stubborn ways of acting, without regret.
With a few exceptions, many of the I CHING Birds and Fowl are not treated with
too much compassion. Represented in our aviary or barnyard, depending upon where
you think they belong, are just plain Bird, a Hawk, Pheasant, Crane, Cock
Crow and Goose. The Hawk is not really with us too long. In Hexagram
40 (Deliverance) as a symbol of a powerful inferior in a high position,
it is quickly done in - "The prince shoots at a Hawk on a high
wall. He kills it". Just Plain 'Bird' fares hardly any better. In
Hexagram 56 (The Wanderer), "the Bird's nest burns up"
and then in Hexagram 62 (Preponderance of the Small), alas, "The
Bird meets with misfortune through flying", Now this just does
not bode well - after all, there isn't an awful lot more that Birds do
except chirp, eat bugs and fly. Take away flying and . . .?
I guess 'destiny' for a Pheasant is to be hunted, eaten and enjoyed.
Well, in Hexagram 56 (The Wanderer), things get off to a pretty good
start as the Pheasant is shot and drops with the first arrow, however
in Hexagram 50 (The Caldron) it all comes to naught as the handle of
the caldron (ting) is altered, cannot be lifted up and used and our Fat Pheasant
which is inside doesn't get eaten. Talk about a waste - better luck in the next
incarnation.
Hexagram 61 (Inner Truth) shares the Crane and the Cock Crow.
The Crane probably has the most trouble free existance of all our feathered
folk. Here it appears calling in the shade to its young. That's it, just calling
in the shade. The Cock Crow, on the other hand is trying to penetrate
to heaven but his perseverance brings misfortune since he cannot really fly
to heaven - he just 'Crows' about it. But then, if your name is Cock Crow,
you never really had much of a chance to just gently 'call in the shade' like
our Crane friend. The big question ??? - "did Cock Crow start
Crowing after he was named Cock Crow or was he named Cock Crow because he was
always Crowing", Ah !, One of the great mysteries of life .
All 6 lines of Hexagram 53 (Development) are dedicated to the Wild
Goose. (Say, does anyone remember the 1950's Vaughn Monroe 'I Want To Go
Where The Wild Goose Goes . . ?) That really has little to do with the I CHING
but it just came to mind as I was writing this. Back to Hexagram 53.
- Well here the Wild Goose is said to symbolize 'Conjugal Fidelity',
and at first the Wild Goose draws near the shore - a young man, uncertainly
starting to make his way in life. Next he is drawing near the cliff, which is
a safe place on shore and brings good fortune. In Line 3, the Wild Goose
draws near the plateau, which turns out to be dry and unsuitable as is the tree
he draws near in Line 4. Things don't get much better in the next line when
he draws near the summit of the mountain and becomes isolated and unable to
maintain his perspective. Finally the Wild Goose draws near the cloud
heights, life ends but all is not over, for his feathers are used for the sacred
dance.
>From the feathery heights, let's now consider the occupants of the Abyss.
To start with, to lay the groundwork, - 'Fish are not too bright'. In
Hexagram 61 (Inner Truth) Fish are associated with Pigs and
are considered the least intelligent of animals and therefore the most difficult
to influence. In a certain sense I have to agree for in both Hexagram 44
(Coming to Meet) and Hexagram 48 (The Well), the I CHING Fish have
a propensity for being ensconced in a tank or well, and in the later case being
target practice - "At the well-hole one shoots fishes".
In
Hexagram 23 (Splitting Apart) there is reference to a shoal of fishes
being suggestive of a princess leading her maids-in-waiting 'like a shoal of
fishes' to her husband to thus gain his favor. I guess in the Western context
this is another indication of 'not too swift'.
Since we mentioned Pigs as the other half of the intellectually deprived,
let's see what else is said about them. In Hexagram 44(Coming to Meet) we
read that even a lean Pig has it in him to rage around a bit and in
Hexagram 38 (Opposition) a man is seen misjudging his friends as equivalent
to a Pig covered with dirt. Closely related is the Boar who in
Hexagram .26 (The Taming Power of the Great) has been gelded and whose
altered spirit no longer makes his tusk a menace. This is a sign of good fortune
for people around the Boar - not too certain the Boar is looking
at it quite the same way.
Another related category are the barn yard types; the Cow, the Bull, and
the Oxen. We learn in Hexagram 30 (The Clinging, Fire) that the
Cow is a symbol of extreme docility and that care of the Cow brings
good fortune. In Hexagram 25 the Cow tethered in the field is
content to go along with any passer-by who untethers her and leads her away.
The rightful owner must be the guy in Hexagram 56 (The Wanderer) who
through carelessness loses his Cow. Hexagram 49 (Revolution)
makes allusion to being wrapped in the hide of a yellow Cow, and I'm
really not certain I understand the meaning of that particular line. Ah! Perhaps
it is somewhat related to Hexagram 33 (Retreat) which says "He
holds him fast with yellow ox hide" and indicates that yellow
is the color of that which is correct and in line with duty and that ox hide
is strong. In Hexagram 38 (Opposition) the Oxen are halted
along with a number of other calamities which serve to check and hinder progress
and in Hexagram 63 (After Completion) a neighbor in the East who slaughters
an Ox does not achieve much real happiness (I should hope not !). The
Bull? Well the Bull has a headboard mounted on his head so his horns
will not do damage - good fortune for the folks around him.
I was really surprised to see the Hamster in the I CHING, but sure enough,
there it is in Hexagram 35 (Progress). Another one which I found
a bit obtuse - "Progress like a hamster, Perseverance brings
danger".
It looks like Foxes are either getting killed in the field as in
Hexagram 40 (Deliverance) or are getting their tails wet while dashing
across rivers as in Hexagram 63 and 64. In both cases, caution is indicated.
And finally, we come to the end with Tigers and Panthers. Appropriately
the Tiger appears in Hexagram 27 (Corners of the Mouth) spying
about with sharp eyes and an insatiable craving. Lucky indeed is the person
in Hexagram 10 (Treading) who treading upon the tail of the Tiger
does not get bitten. Hexagram 49 (Revolution) alludes to great men
changing distinctly and visibly like Tigers while the superior man changes
like a Panther - equally distinct but in the less garish manner of the Panther's
coat.
So, there it is - our I CHING Zoology. Though somewhat irreverent to
the solemnity with which many consider this wonderful book of Oracle, Wisdom
and Knowledge, I offer it as a bit of lightness for the beginning of the Summer
season and hope that in your following along among the judgements and lines,
your attention may be drawn to some of the deeper lessons which are present
and may emerge from our Zoological excursion .
