16 豫 Enthusiasm
Judgement
There is enthusiasm, a mood that spreads and sets others in motion. It is a good moment to organize, to gather people and to get going. Enthusiasm moves things, and that is a real force. But look at what lies underneath: if there is a reason, it is a valuable impulse; if there is only the wish to have a good time, it turns into noise. Ask yourself what sustains your mood when the excitement passes.
Image
Thunder comes out of the earth with a great roar. Stored-up energy is released and everything vibrates with it. The ancient kings composed music, honored virtue and offered it to God in worship, together with their ancestor. It is the image of joy that is channeled: it does not stay as noise, it becomes music. Ask yourself how you could give shape to what you feel.
Lines
Line 1
You announce your pleasure and satisfaction at the top of your voice. That is a bad sign: whoever boasts of what they have or expect leaves themselves exposed. When something goes well, there is no need to broadcast it. If there is something to celebrate, do it with your own people, without making a show.
Line 2
You are firm as a rock. You see what is coming and do not get carried away by the party. It tends to go well. In the middle of general enthusiasm, you keep a cool head, and that lets you decide clearly. Ask yourself what you see that others, swept up in the mood, have not yet seen.
Line 3
You look upward, hoping for favors, while you give yourself to pleasure and satisfaction. If you are slow to notice, there is reason for regret. This is the passive waiting of someone who lets another sort out their life. Ask yourself whether you expect to be rescued. Waking up late costs dearly.
Line 4
The harmony and joy of others come from you, and your success is great. Do not let suspicion in: that way friends gather around you. Someone who gives others encouragement looks after their trust. Ask yourself whether you distrust, for no reason, the people who are with you.
Line 5
You have a chronic ailment, and still you go on living. Something limits you and weighs on you, it does not go away, and yet you endure. Ask yourself what keeps you standing in the midst of what wears you down, and whether that burden protects you from something worse or only exhausts you.
Line 6
Your mind grows dark with the pleasure and satisfaction of the moment. But if you change course, even when everything seems done, you are unlikely to go wrong. You can always retrace your steps. Ask yourself what you are enjoying without looking at it closely, and whether you still have time to change.
Reflection
- What sustains your mood when the excitement of the moment is over?
- What do you see that others, swept up in the enthusiasm, have not seen?
- What are you enjoying without looking at it clearly?