47 困 Oppression
Judgement
You are cornered, without resources or a way out: the pressure of having no room to move. Even so, progress is possible. For someone who stays firm and upright, that is a good sign and you are unlikely to go wrong. Keep in mind that your words do not carry weight now. What counts is how you behave. Ask yourself what you can show with deeds and not with explanations, and what is best left unsaid until the moment changes.
Image
A lake without water: the bottom has dried up. This is the image of exhaustion. The wise person gives everything to carry out their purpose. Read it as devotion to what truly matters, not as needless risk. When you run out of resources, the essential remains. Ask yourself what purpose keeps you standing when everything else is spent.
Lines
Line 1
You sit on a stump, bare, and enter a dark valley from which you see no way out for three years. This is a deep fall, slow and lonely. Do not demand a quick solution of yourself. Ask yourself what you need to bear this stretch, and who could keep you company, even if they cannot get you out.
Line 2
You are choking in the middle of food and drink: there is abundance and still no air. The sovereign's red knee-covers come to you. It helps to keep your sincerity, as in a sacrifice. Moving impatiently tends to turn out badly, but there is no reproach. Ask yourself what you have in excess that weighs on you.
Line 3
You find yourself trapped before a rock and you grab at brambles. You go into your house and do not see your partner. That tends to end badly. This is someone who leans on what wounds them and returns to an empty place. Ask yourself what you hold on to that hurts you.
Line 4
You advance very slowly to help someone, and a carriage adorned with metal blocks you. There is cause for lament, but the ending is good. You want to help and something stands in the way. Go on with what you can. Ask yourself what keeps you from helping, and whether you can do something small while the way clears.
Line 5
Your nose and feet have been cut off, and ministers in red oppress you. Even so you move calmly and bear it in peace. It helps to be sincere as in a sacrifice. This is someone who, after losing almost everything, does not turn bitter. Ask yourself what calm remains in you when you can do no more.
Line 6
You are bound as if by vines, in a high and dangerous place, and you tell yourself: "If I move, I will regret it." But if you acknowledge your past mistakes, moving forward may well be favorable. Fear of a mistake paralyzes you; admitting what you did wrong frees you. Ask yourself what past mistake keeps you from moving.
Reflection
- What can you show with deeds and not with explanations?
- What purpose keeps you standing when everything else is spent?
- What past mistake keeps you from moving?