October 6, 2011 Posted by Eli in Eli, The Empty Room

Tags: chien, i ching, reveli, ta ch'u, trigram

My Glyph and Ta Ch'u

My new header contains my new glyph that I created to represent my nickname "Eli". I have always used an artistic symbol for my nickname but I wanted to develop a new one that reflected a more succinct version of who I am now. The nickname Eli has become more and more a part of who I have developed into for a variety of reasons and, along with "Rev" or "Reverend", has become permanently associated with what I am about online and off. My signature though, even from the very beginning, long before I had any real knowledge of myself, has always contained the trigram Ch'ien.

Trigrams are part of the I Ching - an ancient divination system used to gain insight into different kinds of situations and aspects of life. The trigrams represent the eight main forces of the Universe and can be combined into 64 hexagrams which in turn represent the consequences of the interaction of these various forces with one another. Using these trigrams and hexagrams one can divine a great deal of information.

My full hexagram is Ta'Chu. Ken (Keeping Still, Mountain) in the above position and Ch'ien (The Creative, Heaven) in the lower. Ken is my birth symbol based on my year of birth and my gender. Ch'ien is a symbol I chose many years ago to represent my nickname, "E". I started drawing just three lines everywhere and it wasn't until many years later that I realized it was actually a trigram. When I looked up it's meaning I realized it wasn't a coincidence that I had been using this symbol all along to represent myself. Combined together these two symbols create Ta'Chu which means "The Taming Power of the Great".

Let's examine these two trigrams individually ...

CH'IEN is the principle of superiority. It is the Creator. The organ corresponds to the head and symbolizes the Head. He who governs. Father. Ch'ien is the father of the other trigrams.

KEN is the symbol of immobility, linked to sitting down and meditation. It means interruption or protection against the danger of invasion against obstacles which prevent our progress. It's organ is the hand.

Now let's examine some addition information ...

Hexagram Ch'ien - "The Creative"

The first hexagram is made up of six unbroken lines. These unbroken lines stand for the primal power, which is light-giving, active, strong, and of the spirit. The hexagram is consistently strong in character, and since it is without weakness, its essence is power or energy. Its image is heaven. Its energy is represented as unrestricted by any fixed conditions in space and is therefore conceived of as motion. Time is regarded as the basis of this motion. Thus the hexagram includes also the power of time and the power of persisting in time, that is, duration.

The power represented by the hexagram is to be interpreted in a dual sense in terms of its action on the universe and of its action on the world of men. In relation to the universe, the hexagram expresses the strong, creative action of the Deity. In relation to the human world, it denotes the creative action of the holy man or sage, of the ruler or leader of men, who through his power awakens and develops their higher nature.

According to the original meaning, the attributes [sublimity, potentiality of success, power to further, perseverance] are paired. When an individual draws this oracle, it means that success will come to him from the primal depths of the universe and that everything depends upon his seeking his happiness and that of others in one way only, that is, by perseverance in what is right.

The specific meanings of the four attributes became the subject of speculation at an early date. The Chinese word here rendered by "sublime" means literally "head," "origin," "great." This is why Confucius says in explaining it: "Great indeed is the generating power of the Creative; all beings owe their beginning to it. This power permeates all heaven."

The act of creation having found expression in the two attributes sublimity and success, the work of conservation is shown to be a continuous actualization and differentiation of form. This is expressed in the two terms "furthering" (literally, "creating that which accords with the nature of a given being") and "persevering" (literally, "correct and firm"). "The course of the Creative alters and shapes beings until each attains its true, specific nature, then it keeps them in conformity with the Great Harmony. Thus does it show itself to further through perseverance."

In relation to the human sphere, this shows how the great man brings peace and security to the world through his activity in creating order: "He towers high above the multitude of beings, and all lands are united in peace."

Read the entire interpretation of Ch'ien at http://deoxy.org/iching/1

Which brings us to Ta Ch'u ...

Hexagram Ta Ch'u - "The Taming Power of the Great"

The Creative is tamed by Kên, Keeping Still. This produces great power, a situation in contrast to that of the ninth hexagram, Hsiao Ch'u, THE TAMING POWER OF THE SMALL, in which the Creative is tamed by the Gentle alone. There one weak line must tame five strong lines, but here four strong lines are restrained by two weak lines; in addition to a minister, there is a prince, and the restraining power therefore is afar stronger.

The hexagram has a threefold meaning, expressing different aspects of the concept "Holding firm." Heaven within the mountain gives the idea of holding firm in the sense of holding together; the trigram Kên which holds the trigram ch'ien still, gives the idea of holding firm in the sense of holding back; the third idea is that of holding firm in the sense of caring for and nourishing. This last is suggested by the fact that a strong line at the top, which is the ruler of the hexagram, is honored and tended as a sage. The third of these meanings also attaches specifically to this strong line at the top, which represents the sage.

To hold firmly to great creative powers and store them up, as set forth in this hexagram, there is need of a strong, clear-headed man who is honored by the ruler. The trigram Ch'ein points to strong creative power; Kên indicates firmness and truth. Both point to light and clarity and to the daily renewal of character. Only through such daily self-renewal can a man continue at the height of his powers. Force of habit helps to keep order in quiet times; but in periods when there is a great storing up of energy, everything depends on the power of the personality.

Read the entire interpretation of Ta Ch'u at http://deoxy.org/iching/26