I Ching Hexagram 5 Hsü / Waiting (Nourishment)

Posted 4 years ago by Monique

I Ching Hexagram 5 Hsü / Waiting (Nourishment)

Water Above Heaven

“When clouds rise in the sky, it is a sign it will rain. There is nothing to do but to wait until the rain falls. It is the same in life when destiny is at work. We should not worry and seek to shape the future by interfering in things before the time is ripe.” 1

It is no simple task to wait.

When in the midst of overwhelm, discomfort, and strong emotions it is second nature to want to ‘do’ something. Sometimes immediate action is the necessary and appropriate course of measure. Yet there are times where immediate action would be premature, thus interfering with a larger wisdom trying to emerge. At such times we can use our will to be still and wait, as we open to the greater mystery.

The will is associated with the water element and the zhi spirit and resides in the kidneys. When harmonized, the zhi nourishes the life within us that is associated with our soul’s purpose and is guided by the heart. The heart houses the shen spirit and is related to joy, awareness, compassion, love. Shock and trauma can cause the shen to flee from the heart like birds from their nest. When the shen have left and the zhi is depleted, it is difficult to meet life with vitality, clarity and wisdom. There are ways that one can work with this.

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Threading the Needle in Times of Transition

Posted 4 years ago by Monique

Threading the Needle in Times of Transition

“Healing may not be so much about getting better as about letting go of everything that isn’t you – all of the expectations, all of the beliefs – and becoming who you are. Not a better you, but a ‘realer’ you… People can heal and live, and people can heal and die. Healing is different from curing. Healing is a process we’re all involved in all the time. Healing is the leading forth of wholeness in people. I think that healing happens only in the context of our imminent awareness of something larger than ourselves, however we conceive that.”

Rachel Naomi Remen

This simple quote struck a chord deep in my heart, causing me to wonder about how COVID-19 may be asking us to let go of all that isn’t us to realize our full potential both as individuals and as a global family (the two are inseparable).

In the stillness at the center of the chaotic whirlwind of coronavirus, I see so much beauty emerging from the hearts of humanity- making whole/healing what has been fragmented and broken. Through the millions of small and large acts of love and kindness, sweat and tears, could we be healing ourselves and the planet? Fear, despair, and suffering are daily experiences for far too many. Now, added to the challenges that are already present, with this new development we are being asked to open further to what is possible. Continue reading “Threading the Needle in Times of Transition” →

Following Threads

Posted 4 years ago by Monique

Following Threads

“We can speak without voice to the trees and the clouds and the waves of the sea. Without words they respond through the rustling of leaves and the moving of clouds and the murmuring of the sea.”

Paul Tillich

Life is in continuous conversation with us through our senses. There is much to learn from plant, human, animal, bird, reptile, sea beings, insect, mineral, the elements, stars, and planets. Indigenous peoples from every corner of the world have lived in ways that attune to nature’s messages and rhythms through ceremony, medicinal practices, spiritual practices, rites of passage, and daily living.

When opening to life in this way, one finds an endless source of wisdom and support. Answers to difficult questions may show up through the flight pattern of osprey, an interaction with seal, an understanding that comes though bare feet in the sand, the sound of the wind rustling the grass, the silence of a night sky. Wisdom can also come through dreams or images which are ways in which our soul speaks to us, revealing archetypal themes which guide and mirror where we are working.

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