In many cases, human life ends with death and burial in the ground. Plants are just the opposite. They emerge from the earth and draw nourishment from it. For this reason, many mythological traditions associate plants with birth or rebirth and with the eternal cycle of life springing forth from death.
The magical plant or herb of immortality sought by Gilgamesh, the hero of ancient Mesopotamian mythology, provides one example of how myths use plants as symbols of life and of the healing power of nature. However, because some plants yield poisons and some die in winter, plants can also represent death and decay.
Various trees, shrubs, herbs, grains, flowers, and fruit appear in myths and legends as general symbols of rebirth, decay, and immortality. Some plants have acquired much more specific meaning in folklore. […]
Orange Chicken; A good orange chicken should have just that little bit of sweetness and tangyness to it without being completely overpowering. It should also have that beautiful, slightly sticky gloss and marinade that perfectly coats the chicken. Most orange chicken recipes will have you fry the chicken first to get it nice and crispy, but if you want to make this dish healthier, skip the breading and the frying. Cook the chicken pieces in a skillet, then pour the sauce over and let the chicken and sauce boil until you get that perfect gloss. If you want to be even healthier, skip using chicken altogether and opt for Seitan vegetarian protein, which can be cut up like chicken and prepared per the recipe with the addition of vegetarian chicken boulion, or by adding Vegan “Chickin” pieces that you will find in your local grocery store’s frozen foods section under “healthy foods.”
Ingredients
MARINADE
1 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon orange zest
1 teaspoon Sriracha (or to taste)
1/4 teaspoon ground or grated ginger
1/4 teaspoon white pepper
THE REST
1 1/2 lbs boneless chicken breasts cut into 1″ chunks
1 cup and 2 tablespoons cornstarch, divided
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon sesame seeds
Directions
Make the marinade: whisk together chicken broth, orange juice, honey, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic, orange zest, sriracha, ginger, and white pepper in a bowl.
In a large zipper-lock bag or lage bowl, combine the chicken and 2/3 cup of the marinade. Marinate the chicken for at least 30 minutes, turning the bag occasionally. Drain the chicken from the marinade and discard the marinade.
Heat the remaining mardinade in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Bring the marinade to a boil. Stir together 2 tablespoons of cornstarch with 2 tablespoons cold water, then stir that into the marinade. Cook, stirring frequently, until thickened (about 1-2 minutes. Keep warm.
One at a time, dip the chicken into the beaten eggs, then dredge in the remaining 1 cup cornstarch, pressing in to coat.
Heat the vegetable oil in a large saucepan. In batches, add the chicken and fry until golden brown and cooked through (about 1-2 minutes). Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, then discard the excess oil. Serve the chicken immediately, tossed with the marinade and garnished with sesame seeds.
Above: Dui Responsive, free, penetration
Below: Qian/Gan Enduring Spirit power
The Wisdom:
Breakthrough;
No compromise.
As you part from the past
You are in a time of creative transformation.
Your struggle against negativity is ending, and you and your projects are now favored. Resist the temptation to take the path of retribution to what or who has been getting in the way of completion or joy, all the while remembering that teachers come in strange disguises, shapes, and forms. Though it may feel satisfying in the short term to strike out with words or actions against who or what has been holding back your progress, know that what you do now and how you behave is setting the pattern for your personal and our collective future. If you were to respond with spite or negativity, this would reinforce an energetic pattern that would once again make you vulnerable to the very same kind of darkness you are defeating.The decision to part from the past must be resolute, with no doubts and no compromise. If there are a few bad cells left behind after a cancer has been excised, the cancer will come back and grow with the vengeance of a defeated enemy that has found strength in retreat.This is the time to speak from your heart to your tribe and loved ones, letting them know in no uncertain terms that you have decided that you will no longer allow any obstacles to block the way toward the greater good—for you, for the ones you care for and love, and for all of us. It is truly a don’t f— with me time. Take the role of service to this ideal as a Samurai warrior defending his or her enlightened master; in this case the master is you, your beloveds, and your tribe. State your intention and then calmly and dispassionately act on it. By speaking out, you will be garnering strength from the universe and from Spirit. By speaking your truth, the laws of attraction say you will become the attractor. Spirit will be pleased at your resoluteness in this situation, and this signaling will bring immense, clarifying energy to you.
Speak and demonstrate in your relationships that you have decided to overcome all obstacles that do not allow love and harmony to flourish. With the intention to love with an open heart, you will find great strength; this will allow you to, at last, love and be loved without the restrictions of ego, judgment or jealousy. This will also eviscerate any notions that you are not good enough or deserving of the love you envision and deserve. With calmness and clear direction, make your plans and execute them. That is what is called for now by the arrival of this hexagram.
These surely are powerful times. Within the present galactic shift to higher frequencies that we are collectively experiencing, all ideas, movements, and philosophies are intensified. With these highly tuned frequencies of the planetary alignment that are accessible to all, you can accomplish incredibly powerful and beautiful things by moving without fear or doubt toward positivity. We have been waiting for this moment and it has arrived, just in the nick of time, to be used by us to achieve momentous goals as we join with one another in community for the greater planetary good.
If, in this time shift, if you were to act from ego and attempt to use this energy blast to assume control or to change or bring injustice to another, you would do great harm—harm to yourself for sure, but you would also do harm to the delicate flowering of a new age that is opening before us. We are moving toward a golden age of the highest and brightest potential humans have ever known. Our individual thoughts and actions are now magnified and reverberate throughout the global cosmic matrix* that has been activated by the recent galactic shift.
You can dance in the dark no longer, nor can you form secret pacts with yourself or others to promote or be of service to greed or personal gain. If you do make a decision or choice in this direction, it will backfire on you, and all that you have manifested thus far will be tainted and toxic; you will be made powerless and go into a deep, dark depression. At this time, negative actions will reverberate through a lifetime—this lifetime and future ones; that is how powerful these times and these energies are. So be cautious and stay awake!
With this breakthrough, you now have renewed strength and a window of opportunity to set things straight, whether in business, love, or on your personal path of spiritual evolution. The way you handle this arriving success and the abundance it brings will set the tone for the future. This is a time to express your resolve and manifest your greatest strength, which is your compassion, kindness, and generosity.
Stand firm now and act decisively; you have the strength to make battles short and focused. Keep your emotions out of it. Know that any retribution will weaken you and rob you of your ability to enjoy and sustain your success. Stay out of others’ business and don’t fall to the level of gossip or disrespect in your triumphs. Do not disparage your opponents in their defeat. Forgive them; they know not what they do. And fully and most importantly, forgive yourself for any part you may have played in the negative actions of the past. In this way you truly leave the past behind.
Be dignified and compassionate as you do the work to leave old, negative habits and patterns behind. It is with these actions that you will rise to new heights of self-love and self-respect. From that pinnacle you will find and attract love and abundance in ways you have desired and have previously held only in your imagination. This is a time of creative transformation, and with intention from your loving heart you will manifest in calmness and with grace. In this way your transformation will, in itself, be without effort. Cool, eh?
Regarding your business and personal relationships, in this coming golden age there are wondrous opportunities that will be coming your way. In your inner journey, what has been holding you back emotionally has been weakened through your diligent work, as, through some fear and trepidation, you have brought your own shadow self into the light. These openings, this breakthrough, is bringing with it great strength to defeat the inner monsters of self-judgment and loathing that have previously held you back.
Take note that Guai comes with a caveat: even in times of enlightenment, darkness, in the form of the ego’s desires, hides just around the corner to tempt you; don’t go for it! As you move forward, do not compromise your beliefs. This would disempower you on your journey toward the resurrection and building of your dreams and plans that previously may have hit a wall of obstruction.
Your intuitive forces are now in their most available light and can be accessed and trusted, as it is you and only you that can bring about the global change we are all envisioning. Speak openly of a new paradigm. Take these coming days to celebrate life and the shift of the ages that is happening now. See it as your personal magic carpet, which will take you to the heights of love, accomplishment, service to others, and shared abundance. Do consider service now—find joy in serving others with whatever you have at hand. In this way you can lift your tribe up into the light you are seeing and feeling now. By empowering others, you are, with pure intention, empowering yourself.
Be of love these days. Smile to others at work, in your community, in class, on the street, as you drive past them on life’s highway. Corny as it may sound, it is the highway of love, this life. We just need to check our ego at the door, clear the way for others, and let it be.
Above: Ch’ien Heaven
Below: Chen Thunder The Wisdom:
Disturbance coming from outside your influence
Be diligent and disentangle yourself and actions
Demonic forces feed on ignorance
Become informed and act swiftly
Look into all your associations and see where you have given up your power to others or have compromised when the benefit would have been to stand firm. This is a partial cause of the disturbance in focus, form and intention. Metaphorically and, in some cases, in reality, you have had difficulty finding a comfortable place or way to sit, stand or sleep. Fidgeting in place for so long has become tiresome and shameful. Your thought processes and actions have been clouded by your desire for a successful outcome. This is futurizing which has led to over-thinking your situation and not living in the present.
By focusing solely on correctness, fame, position, recognition—outcomes of any sort—you are missing the point. It is not that you cannot have all these things—you can, and with attention to movement with and for the greater good, you will. What is problematic is your ego’s projection into the future that will prevent you from tapping into your intuitive clarity and your well-deserved success.
Your call now is to be spontaneous and move with absolute confidence in who you are and what you desire. The beneficial action now is disentangling, releasing, any ties that have bound you to your past influences and to outmoded ways of action and thinking.
The trickster aspect of the ego, would have you look into the future and see the titillating grand and shiny things that represent success. When you think you have figured out the smartest, the most clever and cool ways to move toward your goal this arrogance will lead to a disastrous out come, guaranteed. The ego will tempt you to move swiftly toward your desires, come hell or high water. It doesn’t work that way.
If you were to continue to move in this manner, you would be disregarding the influence of your spirit helpers who are the bringers of the strength of innocence, and your creative source of the your destined and created journey. Be cautious not to lose the part of you that is the child of innocence. At this time it will be your saving grace.
Consider the ignored part of your being, Your inner and sweet child of innocence. Slow down; Do not act out of fear You will scare yourself
Fear will have you looking to the future and trying to plan for every contingency. This would only sap your energy and ultimately prevent you from receiving the love, abundance, and happiness that awaits you.
It is wise to plan and to be thoughtful, but limit your thoughts and plans to the present and in doing so you are making the journey truthful, peaceful, efficient, and more joyful. Your balance along the path is to include being of service to others and to Gaia, our Mother Earth of oceans, deserts, mountains, plains and all her sentient beings. This will allow you to handle whatever surprising events may come your way with a focused clarity that will enable you to act spontaneously and creatively so you will be able to embrace the moment; the magic is in the moment.
In literal translations of the I Ching, this hexagram is defined as “being free of forethought and reflection.” This is good to remember, as it will keep you in the present. Look neither to the past, nor to the future: Be Here Now.
When you are moving toward a goal that will serve the greater good, whether in business, family, community, tribe, relationships, your health, your journey toward enlightenment, it is important to be clear, dignified and simple while being fully present and in the moment. Live in the moment, this is the only way to become unbound. Walk with like-minded people, fellow pilgrims. Move away from those who suck your energy by raising doubts, fears, or envy.
The ego, the critic, the inner judge, will try to sneak in while you are traveling on your path and tell you that you need to be reasonable, clever, suspicious, and, above all, to look good in others’ eyes. It would have you create imaginary problems that would cause you to incorrectly evaluate the situation before you. The crux of the idea behind this hexagram is to remain aware and fully present.
Consciously let go of trying to get approval from others. This is only the ego trying to interfere and keep you from fully appreciating the beauty and the myriad gifts of life. As you slow down, and allow the inner innocent child to appreciate the beauty all around you, there will emerge a strength that you have not known before. It will be a strength wrought not from pain or angst, but from peace, laughter, and joy.
Take note, by combining your journey with rest and fun in proper measure, you will keep a clear mind that will be ready to handle the good, the bad, and the ugly with equanimity and poise.
The journey is not as treacherous as it might sometimes seem. Listen to your intuition, which will be revealed magically when you respect the importance of rest, meditation and play, in this way you show the ultimate respect and honor to yourself. Be love….be your authentic self.
Click on image for Karta Purkh Singh Khalsa’s website
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), alongside Ayurveda, is one of the two oldest established paradigms of herbal medicine that people still practice. “It is the second-largest medical system in the world after Western medicine,” according to Alan Tillotson, Ph.D., R.H., a Chinese herbalist in private practice in Wilmington, Delaware, and a prominent member of The American Herbalists Guild.
The history of Chinese herbalism is one of persistent and ongoing processes of observation and refinement of ideas in the real world. Centuries of formulation of theories, and testing of these theories in practice, have resulted in the system we recognize as Traditional Chinese Medicine today.
Fundamentally, the ancient sages concluded that “like increases like”. In other words, an external factor, when introduced to the body, will create a similar reaction in the body of the person experiencing the change. For example, going out into the cold weather will make your body cold. Battling the wind will make your metabolism instable. Eating heavy food will make your body heavy. This seems obvious on the surface, and it is ultimately pretty easy to grasp intuitively, but putting together all the intricacies of every possible effect of every possible natural medicine on every possible person is a daunting task. This metaphor of energetics creates a system that is complex enough to represent the tremendous complexity of the human being, yet simple enough in concept to be useful.
Energetic evaluation of the body is based on experiencing the body with the human senses. Since everyone experiences the world in subtly different ways, it takes centuries, potentially, for a consensus to develop among practitioners about any given remedy. It creates a structure in which herbs can consistently be identified and understood. According to energetic systems, including TCM, the sum total of an herb is the important consideration.
For example, we may know from modern science that an herb has antibacterial activity. We want to give that herb to treat an acute bacterial infection. But we also know that the herb tends to increase body temperature — it is “hypermetabolic, or “hot”. If the patient has a fever, or is a person who is particularly prone to develop inflammation that is difficult to control, we would think twice about using that specific herb. It might kill the bacterium very nicely, and treat the infection, but the whole person would be worse off as a net total than before we started. Instead, we would seek out an herb that would kill the infection, but which had a “cooling” energy. This difference in approach can make a world of difference in clinical practice, and gives us an invaluable tool in managing a case for the best in the long term, and in treating the person as a whole human being. We don’t want to make people better in the short run, while we make them worse in the long run.
The properties of herbs are collated systematically according to their energetics — taste, temperature, effect before and after digestion and similar factors.
The TCM system of health care begins with a differentiation of the individual’s energetic situation, starting with the most basic divisions, and extending the process of differentiation to a great degree of individuality.
TCM is based on the principle of unconditional, unifying energy of all phenomena. Called “qi” (pronounced “chee”), it is ephemeral, active, constantly changing and warm. Qi is vital energy, the basis for all organic life, and for all inorganic substances, as well. It is the animating force that gives us our capacity to move, think, feel, and work. When one is young and energetic, one has abundant qi, but as one’s qi declines with age, one becomes subject to degenerative diseases and lowered vitality. This concept of qi is the basis for the success of TCM in the area of health maintenance and longevity.
Qi is all about movement, evolution and change. It’s ephemeral, so we perceive its effects, not its substance. It is associated with movement, odor, sound and form. It is connected with the intuitive, unlimited and spiritual qualities of life. The great symbol of qi is the sun, the most unlimited source of energy we experience in daily life.
In the Chinese view, the primary principle of health is recognizing and promoting the flow of qi and eliminating its blockage. All TCM techniques, whether herbs, diet, acupuncture, or others, are ultimately aimed at balancing qi.
Each person is a garden in which doctor and patient together cultivate health. Every being has a unique ecology to be planted, tilled and tended. Like a gardener uses compost, water and weeding to grow robust plants, TCM uses acupuncture, herbs and food, seeking to tenderly nurture and nudge the entire garden back into harmony, to recover and prolong good health.
TCM views people as worlds in miniature, so it seeks to improve our capacity to balance and replenish our own capabilities. TCM minimizes the erosion of our soil by enriching it, makes the most of the flow of nutrients by increasing circulation, and helps avert blocks that obstruct the movement of bodily fluids and energies. Therefore, TCM anticipates problems by upholding our interior landscape.
Contrast that worldview with that of contemporary medicine, which looks for “busted” parts to replace. Typically, modern conventional medicine intervenes only after a crisis arises, whereas TCM aims to correct depletion and stagnation at earlier stages, avoiding greater problems later on.
While Chinese medicine excels at enhancing recuperative power, immunity, and the capacity for pleasure, work, and creativity, it can remedy ailments as well.
Creating Balance
According to Chinese cosmology, the whole of creation is born from the marriage of two opposite principles, Yin and Yang. Earth and Heaven, winter and summer, night and day, cold and hot, wet and dry, inner and outer, body and mind are reflections of this pairing of opposites. Creating and maintaining a harmony between these opposites means health, good weather, and good fortune, while disharmony brings disease, disaster, and bad luck. The entire aim of TCM is to restore harmony, in the world and in the body.
TCM is based upon a universal notion, expressed in nature in bi-polar terms Yin and Yang. Energies that characterize the complementary yet opposing materialization of all phenomena, yin and yang are the most basic divisions of energy in the universe. That which is above corresponds to a below; heat is complimented by cold, night is pursued by day. In all of manifest creation, qi is divided and apparent in duality.
The concept of yin and yang pervades all of traditional Chinese thought, not just in medicine, but in other forms of science and art as well. The concept of yin and yang is the idea that everything has its opposite.
We might think of this as two basic forces operating in nature. One force is an outward, expansive, linear, positive force that changes things. The other is an inward, contractive, downward, negative force that is hidden and unmanifest. The outward force is the yang force and is associated with heaven, light, up, daytime, male traits, function and so forth. The inward force is the yin force and is associated with such things as darkness, winter, nighttime, female traits and structure. All matter and energy in the universe can be represented on the spectrum of yin merging into yang. Health is yin and yang in balance.
Tasty Medicine
Taste is one way of deciding which herbs have the needed actions. It represents a sensory method of ascertaining the biochemical action of a given herb or food, in other words, the remedy’s “energy”.
The five tastes include pungent (spicy), salty, sour, bitter and sweet.
We do not actually have taste buds for pungent. It is called a taste, but is more correctly an irritation of the tissues- a mouth sensation. Spicy taste stimulates, warms and dries dampness. It is used in conditions of excess dampness (mucus) in the lungs, which are associated with the metal element. Spicy taste increases digestion, circulation and secretions.
Salty foods, such as seaweeds, bring out the yang flavor of food and provoke a yang effect in the body. Salty taste retains fluids, moistens tissue and supports the kidneys. It softens masses, such as cysts and benign tumors, and relaxes muscles.
Sour taste is found in foods containing organic acids. Sour taste enhances digestion, especially of proteins. It also enhances liver function. Sour also dries mucus, tightens tissues, stimulates digestion and promotes bile flow. The concept of sour taste also incorporates the tissue sensation of astringent, which is the tightening and drying of tissue.
Bitter taste is, all in all, detoxifying and anti-inflammatory. Bitter remedies can be used in small doses before meals as a digestive preparation, stimulating secretion of digestive juices and provoking both appetite and efficient digestion. Bitter taste is cold, so is used to “clear heat”- reduce inflammation, in Western terms.
Sweet taste is nourishing, so is used to tonify. It builds, feeds and harmonizes tissue. The waste byproducts of this building process are acid, though, so we need to be conscious of keeping the body pH balanced when we are in a rebuilding, healing, phase.
Turn up the Heat
An important factor of Chinese energetics is the temperature of the disease. TCM classifies herbal actions based on temperature, and the concept includes influence on metabolic rate and effect on actual body temperature.
A good way to understand the broad concept of temperature is a spectrum from hypometabolic (cold) to hypermetabolic (hot). As the metabolic rate increases, more calories per minute are burned. Temperature and all other biological processes increase. The opposite is true for the cold direction.
Less extreme conditions are classified as warm or cool and most illnesses fall in this range.
TCM always has something to offer for nagging chronic complaints that bother us. Western medicine may heroically rescue us, but Chinese medicine can protect and preserve our health every day. These two great systems offer a great set of complements to each other.
Above: Sun root, foundation, nourishing
Below : Quin/Ganh heaven, energy, spirit, power
The Wisdom:
You are entering a time of great potential Heaven awaits the lightening Lighting beckons thunder; You are the thunder
Progress has been good, yet completion is elusive. Frustration will take your power and the goal will slip further away. Be confident, and you will find completion is not your aim. The benefit is to focus on the present moment.
As you proceed on this road less traveled, you inevitably come up against the obstacles of guilt, shame, and judgment. At this moment in time, these obstacles are showing at precisely the right time. Your inner strength, wrought by hard work and suffering is at its zenith and is like a finely honed and sharpened sword. Raise the sword and cut away at the ties that bind you to old patterns and empty relationships, both personally and in commerce. In this moment be the skilled warrior who knows that a sword this sharp is the sword with two edges; on one side it can cut through a lifetime of ill-fated patterns, while on the other side, if you do not come to battle with pure intent, this sword has the potential to slice away at your resolve and leave you powerless, able to go no further.
Your true power now lies in the beauty of graceful, small and well thought-out movements. Proceed slowly and with a well-planned strategy. Meet the obstacle head on; reach inward to reveal your shadow, the self of darkness. Make the darkness useful as you reach in stillness to your authenticity, that of light and dark, yin and yang.
In this life journey, we suppress our dark side, what Jung called the shadow. In this shadow you will find some pretty ugly old stuff: disappointment, guilt, abandonment and shame. It is from this dark, shadowy, potentially troubling unknown that negative patterns and self-doubt arise. Mostly, this shadow side is denied and projected onto others, our partners, friends, and associates, but if we dare, we can know our shadow, and therein lies our liberation from all the fear and the key to activating our intentions. But be fully aware that you are dancing with the dark side and if your intent is not aimed to work for the greater good of all, you will find yourself exposed as you move into the light and you will be derailed as you come into the light. Meet your dark side head on in the full light of your love, acceptance, and compassion, and it crumbles. And in its place is a stronger, lighter you, a more sustainable you, who will be loved and able to receive the love and abundance you have desired.
Operating without being aware of the truth of your dark side is folly. All things contain both light and dark, yin and yang. If you are too sunny, you will not have influence or be trusted. If you allow yourself to operate from negativity, you will allow fear free reign, and what you really want in your heart of hearts will not come to fruition, as you will have been your own worst enemy.
This is not the time to expect perfection. Be the light, but not too light; be dark, but not too dark. Aim for balance without grasping onto outcomes. If reading this makes you smile and shudder at the same time, it is your truth.
Act with small movements, including minimal verbal flourishes; in this way you will hold in place the peace you have wanted and deserved, and you will have success in small measure. This is good enough for now—the power of the small.
Completion is near; Gather your inner resources; You will need to reach into the darkness; What you find there will be very useful; No blame, no fear.
When nearing a goal of completion there is the tendency to want to rest, to take a break. This is not yet the time; there are a number of small tasks to be addressed at this juncture.
Set ambition aside for now and attend to the small details, so that your path, your vision, will be clear. You will then be able to dip into the subconscious and bring to light the negative beliefs about yourself and the world that have been blocking you. What you find as you delve into the shadow may feel shocking, like a big dark monster; but know that the monster, in reality, is really quite tiny, like a little toy monster; it cannot really harm you or stop you on your path to love, health, and abundance.
Do not reach for a conclusion. Now is not the time. Tie up loose ends, End what must be ended, Tend to what must be mended.
Moving forward does not always make for real progress. At times like these, progress will be made by going inward rather than forward, paying attention to the smallest things, things that might not seem to be relevant to your goal for your own and the greater good.
Your mind must be clear of any chaos, doubts, or fears. At this time, hone your skills and make strong your commitment, not to completion, but to living in a better way, in the way of your truth.
Look to your relationships and address the small things that have held you back from loving fully or letting yourself to be loved. Ask for what you know you deserve. This will bring clarity, and you will know what to do.
When it comes to your projects, family, or health, deal with the small matters; vow to remain authentic and have honest, open communication with all those in your life. By dealing with small details, you can remove the obstacles that have blocked your path to wellness, true love, abundance, or spiritual evolution.
Completion is near. These last few steps will only be bridged by cleaning up the things you have left unattended. Clean up your desk, straighten the closets, clean out your car if you have one, balance your accounts, lighten your load. Give some of your “stuff” away, literally and metaphorically. These seemingly small gestures will pave the way toward what you want and deserve.
It seems that taking care of the little details should be the simplest of tasks, yet we often get blocked from doing so. This is where the inner work begins. Take the time to look deeply into your thoughts about yourself; be real about where you doubt yourself in your work, your relationship, and your spiritual practice. Acknowledge what you truly want and deserve.
Now, to attain what you want, you must go inside and clean up the inner recesses of your mind. Look unabashedly at your dark side, and don’t allow shame or guilt to cause you to avert your gaze. We all have a dark side, a shadow self. There are hidden resources and strengths in these recesses of the subconscious. Look at what you are ashamed of and forgive yourself. In this way you will retrieve your authenticity, which has been obscured by the dark. Don’t be afraid—it is nowhere near as bad or dangerous as your ego wants you to think it is.
This is where you are found: wanting to survive, wanting to be fully loved and to be able to love freely, but are blocked. It is only by looking deep into the shadow side, examining what you fear and are ashamed of, that you will find liberation. Then, after a light is cast on these small, shadowy things still lurking in the hidden recesses, you will to able to joyfully reach your destination of wellness, peace, love, and abundance in proper measure.
Being diligent about your meditation practice or developing one is of great importance now. Don’t be afraid to hold the energy back and give yourself some moments of quietude and inner spaciousness. In this vast place within yourself is a universe of possibilities, where you will again fall in love… with life and your own authenticity. Here you can feel the tribal unity of all struggling beings and you will feel the heart of compassion. Don’t worry, your guardian angels and guides have your back. You are safe. Just do the work. It will make you smile and shine like the sun at midday.
Go to the mountain; Honor and hold stillness; In stillness, without effort You will be made strong for your return. It is time to bring the strategy of the great into play.
You have garnered attention by your recent personal and public advancement, this is clear. Normally it would seem that it is time to use this notice as fuel to make an advance. It looks that way… but it is not such a time. Do not fall prey to the temptation of ego to take the good vibes, notice, and acclaim given you by your tribe and community to move further toward your goal of love and abundance. It seems energetically more than possible; it seems to be a no-brainer. But it is not. It is much more complex than that.
It is fine to let it appear that you are holding place and will use the acclaim and notice to advance. Let it look that way, but in reality hold still, at full stop. You need a break, a moment to consider where you have been and how far you have come. It will be a delicate balance to have the appearance that you are moving gracefully forward, all the while you are moving toward retreat.
Leave the stage without a farewell. Don’t be rude, be clever; smile, nod, and be gracious. You have created quite a stir with your actions, growth, and your diligence in keeping an open heart and an open mind. You have in your actions been working on yourself for sure; the key has been that whether you know it or not, this diligence has added to the progress for all, for the greater good.
Here is where strategy is important. There are conflicts just beginning to show themselves. Do not engage; you cannot win those battles right now. You are to go into retreat. Move without your audience, tribe, and associates noticing that you have gone into a quiet stillness and are, in your stillness, gathering your powers and strength. You will come back with such a force and with such great light that all who in the past might have tried to control, obstruct, or manipulate you will be in awe and wonderment as to where this energy blast came from. This will please the spirits and set you in the place necessary to overcome the difficulties and obstacles that appeared just before this necessary retreat. The benefit now is to move into recovery from your great exertions in solitude, into a time of meditative contemplation of what lies ahead. Move to a place known only to you, to your inner self—a peaceful place where the resounding echoes of the divine inner voice of wisdom, fate, and clarity reside.
Covert retreat, on its face, may look feel like it is deception, and you have worked hard not to be deceptive, not to hide your worth and to be seen as the truthful partner and leader. You have done well, but now you must be strategic. Strategy is not deceptive or dishonest; it is a necessary aspect of progress and process. To move forward you will benefit by first moving inward.
Ambition, vanity, ego, and desire would say You should push forward now, That you need to make “it” work. An action such as this will only lead to humiliation and loss. Quiet the yapping ego and make a dignified, gracious, and unseen retreat.
Just as skill and strength are involved in moving forward toward your goal, there is great strength and subtle skill to be mastered in this called-for retreat. The ego will tell you that with your influence you can “make things right” by engaging and setting the record straight, by meeting conflict head-on. Don’t go there now, it won’t work. You are in a situation in which if you were to do so, your words would not be heard, valued, or respected. See clearly the others involved in your career, business, family, and tribe who are operating from a place of control, doubt, or greed. To attempt to defend against this would-be folly, look to your short-term memory; the attempts to think or maneuver your way around the situation have not, so far, and will not in the future, be effective. Therefore, it is time to retreat.
The mountain shows that it is time to stand still. Do not engage in battle; let go of desire. Do not let pride keep you from this vital and proper action. Calmly retreat and build strength for your reentry.
You will not benefit through confrontation, compromise, or trying to power through the obstacles that were so overtly placed in the road. Instead, take the attitude of the sacred mountain and hold still. This does not mean to do nothing and wait. What the hexagram Dun is teaching is that by making a well-timed and covert retreat you will be able to gather your strength and create a vision that will allow you to formulate a brilliant and well-thought-out plan that you will activate upon your return. Above all, refrain from making the announcement that you are going into retreat.
Keep in mind that in your retreat you will formulate a plan. To all but your trusted confidants of the heart, it will seem like you never went anywhere.
Note well and do not be naïve: there is brewing before you a battle between the dark and the light. Let it play out and do not engage. If you do engage, the dark forces will swallow you and leave you confused, disempowered, weakened, depressed, and angry. Instead, let the drama play out; allow the dragon to eat its own tail.
Don’t wait. You are on time. This is the correct time to retreat. Have a beach day, if not in reality, in spirit.
In retreat you will find purification. You will be able to think more clearly, love more freely, and regain the mantle of confidence and the longed-for feelings of inner peace. Any feelings of impotence will disappear.
Make this retreat joyous. Find new experiences and explore new ideas. Let your eyes and ears find new feasts of delight. Have compassion for yourself and others as you retreat and still your heart. It is here that clarity resides. And when you reemerge, you will be dazzling in your clarity and confidence—a brilliant, shining star.
While you are in your awake state in retreat and stillness, spirit will find you here and bring valued teachings from the masters who have sent their spirit envoys to the Earth plane to assist in the return of the light to our planet. They will come with compassion and great kindness, nurturing the emerging and oh-so-delicate formation of the coming golden age. Harmonize with this alchemical formula of love, kindness, and compassion for your fellow pilgrims. Continue to have this vision for yourself and for all as you contemplate, in retreat, the New Earth that will emerge with the love of Gaia at its forefront.
By joining intentions, all beings become the New Earth tribe. Together we will stand, without fear, in the light to welcome the coming age of simplicity, kindness, compassion, and a firm hand and an open heart.
Hold close and dear the ones you love and who love you. The energetic shift that is in progress is laced with love and compassion.
Consider the numbers of this week, the 14th day of the 7th month of the year 2014… It is a magical time with the numbers of alchemical magic… this magic is at your disposal, if used with grace and dignity.
Sending you big hugs from here on the 20th parallel.
Deep-fried wonton are stuffed with mashed bean curd. Vegetarians who don’t eat egg can substitute 1 tablespoon oil for the beaten egg.Makes about 45 – 50 wontons
Ingredients:
1/2 cup mashed firm tofu
1 green onion, diced
4 water chestnuts, chopped
2 tablespoons shredded carrot
1 bok choy leaf, shredded
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 teaspoon salt
Pinch of pepper
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 teaspoons minced ginger
1 teaspoon sesame oil
45 wonton wrappers, or as needed
3 to 4 cups oil for deep-frying, as needed
Hoisin sauce or soy sauce for dipping, as needed
Preparation:
Drain and mash the tofu. Wash and prepare all the vegetables. Lightly beat the egg with the salt and pepper. Combine the mashed tofu and vegetables with the egg and seasonings.Heat the oil for deep-frying while you are wrapping the wontons. The oil should be heated to between 360 and 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
To fill the wontons, lay a wrapper in front of you so that it forms a diamond shape. Wet all the edges of the wrapper with water. Place a teaspoon of filling in the middle. Bring the top half of the wrapper over the filling and seal the edges.
Deep-fry the wontons until they are golden and crispy (about 2 minutes). Serve with hoisin sauce or soy sauce.
#9 Xiao Chu ~ The Small Accumulating
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