We speak of Yi (Change) generating all things, meaning we must cultivate a certain awareness. What awareness? That life is an unbroken continuum, like “when the firewood is consumed, the fire passes on.” All existing fuel may burn out, but the flame itself—the spark of life—is never extinguished or destroyed. Each individual life must end; where there is birth, death is inevitable. Yet life as humanity persists unceasingly; it will not vanish.
Thus, within this concept of Yi generating all things, “the ceaseless generation of life is called Yi.” As stated in the Xici Zhuan (The Great Treatise, Part One) of the Yizhuan (Commentaries on the I Ching): “Therefore in the Yi there is the Supreme Polarity (Taiji), which generates the Two Modes (Liang Yi); the Two Modes generate the Four Images (Sixiang); the Four Images generate the Eight Trigrams (Bagua); the Eight Trigrams determine fortune and misfortune; and from fortune and misfortune arise the great enterprises.” Tradition holds that Confucius authored the “Ten Wings” (Shiyi), these ten commentaries which interpret and explicate the I Ching. Especially in the upper and lower chapters of the Xici, we find the systematized philosophy of the entire Zhouyi (Book of Changes). Much of this philosophy is contained therein.
Furthermore, we have “The Creative (Qian) brings about the great beginning, and the Receptive (Kun) brings things to completion.” We speak of Heaven initiating and Earth completing. Look at the Yuan in “Yuan, Heng, Li, Zhen” (Originating, Developing, Advantageous, Steadfast) – it signifies the beginning. “Great indeed is the Creative, Qian!” signifies the beginning of all things, the beginning of Heaven and Earth, the beginning of the myriad creatures. And Earth completes things; the Receptive (Kun) brings things to completion. All things emerge from the soil of Kun. Thus, Heaven represents the cosmic energy, the life force of the universe, the spiritual energy of the cosmos. It must find soil – and that soil is the Earth, is Kun.
Then, “Heaven reveals images, whereby we see good fortune and misfortune.” Look at the sun, moon, and stars. We observe celestial phenomena (guan tianxiang), observe weather phenomena (guan qixiang), observe cloud formations (guan yunxiang), observe stellar configurations (guan xingxiang) – do you see? It’s all about observation (guan). The purpose of observing images has always existed in ancient times. Take, for example, Yuan Tiangang of the Tang Dynasty, a master astrologer who made predictions through observing celestial signs. Essentially, it was prognostication. Hence, “Heaven holds unpredictable winds and clouds; men have sudden fortune and misfortune.”
Consider Su Shi’s “Prelude to Water Melody” (Shui Diao Ge Tou), right? Sung by Faye Wong and Teresa Teng, it became a famous, popular piece. Yet, eventually, a single character was miscommunicated, passing from error to error, from mistake to mistake. Do you see? “When did the bright moon first appear? / Holding wine, I ask the azure sky. / I wonder in the celestial mansions up on high, / What year is it tonight?” Then, “Rounds the vermilion pavilion…” What’s the next line? Haven’t you all read or sung it as dǐ yǐ hù (低倚户)? Because you learned it from the song? Correct, it’s dǐ qǐ hù (低绮户), not dǐ yǐ hù. That song also speaks of nature’s changes – clear skies and rain, the moon’s waxing and waning – and humanity’s unpredictable fortune and misfortune. To achieve true beauty: “High places are too cold, unbearable. / Dancing with my moonlit shadow clear, / How could it compare to the world of men?” Ultimately, to share the moon’s beauty even across a thousand miles, one must return to the human world. Isn’t that so?
Shu Ting, the contemporary poetess, wrote “Goddess Peak” (Shennü Feng), about Goddess Peak in the Three Gorges. While others gaze upwards in awe, she, embodying a feminist awakening, offers a new perspective: “Better than exhibiting yourself for millennia on this peak” – indeed, it becomes a display hall, do you see? The Wushan Mountains became its exhibition space. “Better than exhibiting yourself for millennia on this peak, / Letting all who pass by in their boats gaze up at you, / Worship you reverently, / Yet remain cold and aloof, / High places are too cold, unbearable – / Than to return to the shoulder of your beloved, / Burst into tears all night!” Do you see? This pain holds warmth, passion, the ache of feeling, the tang of happiness, the intertwining of love and sorrow. This is life finding its own true home.
Therefore, we cannot approach it simplistically. That is to say, when we seek to understand these ancient essences, we must enter them with genuine life experience. We should not enter seeking merely a “correct answer.” Often, if we approach with the mindset of finding the “correct answer,” our thinking becomes frozen – it’s as if we lock our minds, consciousness, and bodies in a freezer. Once frozen, we become rigidly confined. Thus, we must learn self-release, self-liberation, unbinding ourselves. We must call forth our hearts! Let the human heart, our bodies, our consciousness, our emotions, our thoughts, reside once more in the warmth of the present moment. Only then can the classics of the ancient sages reach us in the language of life, and we reach them. Only then can we truly meet each other. At that moment, all things beautiful begin anew; they do not end.
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