The migration has begun.
In the outer realm, the over-wintering birds are arriving: the Northern Shoveler, the American Wigeon and Coot, the Wilson’s Snipe, The Long-Billed Dowitcher, the Greater Yellow-Legs, the Black Phoebe, the Red-Winged Blackbird, and the great flocks of Mallard and Canadian Goose are returning to Southwestern Oregon just as the Vaux Swift and Turkey Vulture are congregating for their leave-taking Southward.
Such is the rhythm of Change. Even in the same place, the new arrives as the old departs: though they both belong to the same place, they do not belong together in the same time.
In the inner realm, too, the Great Movement is underway. The new Spirit of the Age is arriving, picking up the sacred bundle that the old Spirit of the Age has set down as it takes its leave. The inner landscape is clearing, brightening, emptying out of dark and drunken souls, making room for the first Great Return of light-bearing souls in several thousands of years.
To the sound of wings coming and going, I charge the coins with my question: What Change does Humanity Undergo upon Reaching the Approaching Turning Point?
Looking Forward
This Autumnal Equinox is the last corner of the year before we reach the Winter Solstice of 2012. My next divination, on that approaching date, will be the first to mark the seasons of the Beginning Times. How future generations will look back on us and marvel that we were alive at the Turning Point!
Summary of the Oracle’s Answer
The Oracle responds to my question by drawing a comparison between the way things have been up to now and the way things will be from now on. The present reflection of humanity is Hexagram 64, Safeguarding Life, whereas the future reflection of humanity is Hexagram 55, Internalizing Purity.
That our present state is reflected in the last hexagram of the sequence comes as no surprise—The Oracle answered with the same hexagram to a similar inquiry I made August 1, 2009. What is different is the future hexagram, which here speaks directly to the type of souls ascending to take the reins of humanity’s destiny. It does not surprise us to see that Hexagram 64 represents the present as an excess of yang dominating qi that must be balanced by a return of yin caring and nurturing qi—nor that the future is presented in Hexagram 55 as the direct embodiment of a balanced and harmonious relationship between the masculine and feminine aspects of human nature.
The key phrases from Hexagram 64 Safeguarding Life are these—
This hexagram depicts the inevitable result of carelessness and irreverence.
The masculine half of the spirit warrior draws back from the brink before it is too late.
It is the feminine half’s sense of caring and reverence that holds the key to fulfilling the real goal of happiness, companionship, and a clear conscience: those who do not hold the emotions of caring and reverence dear to their hearts run the risk of causing pain for themselves and others.
The foolish ruin even that upon which they depend. When we recognize the sanctity of life, however, and work to protect it from unnecessary and pointless harm, then we safeguard our own spiritual foundation and that of all who touch our spirit.
The Oracle is clear: the departing Spirit of the Age was driven to establish humanity’s dominance within its surroundings—a drive expressing the masculine of human nature and one that may have been adaptive when initiated but has now become maladaptive. Now, after more than three thousand years, a new Spirit of the Age approaches—one expressing the feminine half of human nature, driven to embody the affection of the human soul for all people, nature, and spirit.
The Line Changes leading from Safeguarding Life to Internalizing Purity illustrate the need to be thoroughgoing in our collective reform—
The second line change encourages us to make a clean break from the conventional worldview of separate individuals alienated within their skin from nature and other living beings. It points our attention instead toward the lovingkindness ever surrounding us and buoying us throughout our lifetimes with air and water and food, enough for all.
The fourth line change encourages us to persevere in the difficult task of overthrowing elements of the old order who are determined to hold on to what they have for as long as they can.
The fifth line charges us to find a leader we can trust, one who has the wisdom, compassion, diplomacy, objectivity, and strength of character to enact all the reforms needed to bring peace and prospering to all. Essential to this reform is the cornerstone value of keeping all that is truly valuable from the past Age and integrating it into the next.
The Key phrases from Hexagram 55 Internalizing Purity are these—
The masculine half of the spirit warrior upholds the feminine half of the spirit warrior within. In times when power is abused and the human spirit oppressed, it is essential to stand against the tide of corruption without getting corrupted.
Bring the vision of a balanced and harmonious way of life into your heart, inscribe the vision of a pure face and a pure heart into the stone of your spirit, make the vision of light and liberty and loving-kindness into the pyramid of your lifework: this living purity you so adore in others and in nature is also within you—allow yourself to adore this spark of the divine within yourself and you are like a nurse in the midst of a plague, tending to the stricken without falling ill yourself.
Even as others create a sphere of darkness, we create a sphere of light.
Take refuge in the ancient way of life: establish balance and harmony with nature and spirit, form alliances with people of like mind, let your heart overflow with the benefit of trust in all creation. Bring the light of purity into your heart and you are brought into the sphere of the purity of light.
From the above, we can see that the Oracle points us in the direction of the Heart. The approaching Spirit of the Age moves us away from technological and materialistic answers to our most enduring self-made dilemmas. Our future leads toward a balance of all the advances made in science and all the wisdom of the indigenous cultures who found harmony with the natural environment for so many millennia.
Violence, intolerance, hatred, fear, territoriality, greed, and self-interest are holdovers from the past Age and are being replaced by the perennial wisdom teachings of unconditional acceptance and mutual benefit. The community of humanity sloughs the skin of fear and takes flight on the wings of universal benefit.
That this is a collective work requiring time is made clear by the Oracle’s pointing out that it is only when we are inspired to revere all of nature and spirit that we can live in the sphere of destruction and desecration without being infected by the materialism and narcissism it propagates. Letting the new Spirit of the Age carry us along into the Golden Age of Humanity is but half the effort—we also need to rid ourselves of any of the old habits of mind left over from the previous Age so that our descendants might reach our long-awaited destiny with all the gods’ speed.
Full Text of the Oracle’s Answer
Hexagram 64
Safeguarding Life
Image: A male warrior holds the funeral bundle of his child, preparing to place it in its burial site. His face reflects the shock, anguish, and horror that fills his heart.
Interpretation: This hexagram depicts the inevitable result of carelessness and irreverence. The male warrior symbolizes the versatility and fortitude that are at the core of outer nurturing. That he prepares to place the funeral bundle of his child in its burial site means that strength cannot accomplish afterwards what nurturing can accomplish beforehand. That his face and heart are filled with shock, anguish, and horror means that he is in the grips of the most terrible truth: that which we most cherish cannot be replaced. Taken together, these symbols mean that you avoid causing suffering by honoring and nurturing all that your spirit touches.
Action: The masculine half of the spirit warrior draws back from the brink before it is too late. It is not a time for pursuing desires and ambitions: those who cannot temper their strength run the risk of losing a source of that strength. When our masculine half goes too far in pursuit of goals and becomes short-sighted and impatient, it is necessary to balance it with the strongest medicine possible: real problems can be avoided only by balancing the masculine half with the power of the feminine half’s protective love. It is the feminine half’s sense of caring and reverence that holds the key to fulfilling the real goal of happiness, companionship, and a clear conscience: those who do not hold the emotions of caring and reverence dear to their hearts run the risk of causing pain for themselves and others. Just because we can acquire something doesn’t mean we should, just because we can accomplish something doesn’t mean we have to: stopping to really consider what we are risking, allowing ourselves to feel the full brunt of such an emotional loss—this is the protective and loving nature of the feminine half’s medicine. Likewise, stubborn pursuit of goals even in the face of warning signs, longing for something that threatens to cause suffering for others, refusal to change course when it endangers the greater good—this is the short-sighted and zealous nature of the masculine half when it loses its balance and sense of proportion. Because you treat nature, other people, and your own creations with the care and reverence you would your own infant child, you counteract every self-defeating action before it ever arises in thought or feeling.
Intent: The foolish ruin even that upon which they depend. When we recognize the sanctity of life, however, and work to protect it from unnecessary and pointless harm, then we safeguard our own spiritual foundation and that of all who touch our spirit. Consider what cannot be replaced and then cherish it, planting seeds of intent in the spirit realm to nurture it and keep it from being lost forever. Shun materialism and self-interest as you would a poisoned well: keep to the path of the balanced and harmonious way of life, revering all that the life-giving and life-sustaining forces themselves love. By maintaining an unbroken alliance with the helping spirits, the community of spirit warriors ensures that the hidden storehouse of life-giving power is never depleted: only in this way can human nature continue to draw upon the power to create its own, unforeseeable, future.
Summary: If you lose sight of your dreams, you will lose what you have already won. If you become self-absorbed and self-indulgent, you will lose your way. Recognize the crossroads when you come to them: will you take the way of self-gratification and self-glorification or the way of balance and harmony? Profound success is yours if you can reverse the momentum before it is too late.
Line Changes
2nd The primal relationship between humans and nature has been disrupted by your predecessors’ short-sightedness. Look upon nature as you would your beloved and work to repair this rift. Begin by puncturing the bubble alienating you from the affection surrounding you.
4th It would be ideal if simply admitting the wrong-doing of your predecessors were enough to rectify their mistakes. But such is not the case—you still have much work ahead of you. Only by persevering in benefiting those around you can the old order be overthrown from within.
5th You have made a good start but do not really have the stomach for some of the difficult decisions ahead. Find someone trustworthy to enact reforms. Focus on encouraging people to advance by reminding them of the positive accomplishments of their predecessors that will remain in place.
Hexagram 55
Internalizing Purity
Image: At the base of a pyramid, a male warrior records the oral tradition passed on to him by a female warrior. As he paints the teachings in a screenfold manuscript, the spirit of the tradition becomes a living presence within him.
Interpretation: Where a pyramid symbolizes human creations that stand against time like nature’s own mountains, the pyramid’s base is a symbol of that part which is absolutely the last to be eroded away. The male warrior symbolizes the training and self-discipline required to subdue self-defeating attitudes and behavior. The oral tradition, represented by a blue speech glyph, symbolizes the living memory of a way of life that is in balance and in harmony with nature and spirit. The female warrior symbolizes the nourishing and compassion required to inspire dignity and benevolence. Just as a footprint in the sand is not the living person who passed along the shore, the teachings painted in the manuscript symbolize a static and limited view of a living way of life. The spirit of the tradition becoming a living presence within him symbolizes the permanent transformation of human nature required to live in balance and in harmony with nature and spirit. Taken together, these symbols mean that you fill your spirit so full of the living vision of light and liberty and loving-kindness that no opposing thought may enter.
Action: The masculine half of the spirit warrior upholds the feminine half of the spirit warrior within. In times when power is abused and the human spirit oppressed, it is essential to stand against the tide of corruption without getting corrupted. This requires an integration of wisdom and courage that provides resistance to an artificial way of life without being corrupted by contact with it. Only when we are inspired by a vision of the inherent purity and perfection of human nature can we live in the sphere of aggression and exploitation without being contaminated by the greed, ambition, anger, and fear it propagates. Likewise, it is only when we are inspired to revere all of nature and spirit that we can live in the sphere of destruction and desecration without being infected by the materialism and narcissism it propagates. Because you have the self-discipline to purify yourself of self-defeating attitudes and behavior, you are like a great boulder of gold that a stream of filth can neither taint nor move. Because you have the heartfelt openness to love and nourish all things equally, you are like a bottomless well of spring water that can neither be fouled nor exhausted. Bring the vision of a balanced and harmonious way of life into your heart, inscribe the vision of a pure face and a pure heart into the stone of your spirit, make the vision of light and liberty and loving-kindness into the pyramid of your lifework: this living purity you so adore in others and in nature is also within you—allow yourself to adore this spark of the divine within yourself and you are like a nurse in the midst of a plague, tending to the stricken without falling ill yourself.
Intent: Even as others create a sphere of darkness, we create a sphere of light. Consider the need of both those who manufacture an artificial way of life and those who accept it as their own way of life: whether it is the former’s desire to control others or the latter’s desire to live in a controlled world, both suffer from a profound distrust of nature, humanity, and spirit. Observe the crippling effects of this need when it goes unchecked and unremedied. Attend to what the powerful are willing to take and what the powerless are willing to give up. Look at the world of darkness and despair they create out of this tragic need. Take refuge in the ancient way of life: establish balance and harmony with nature and spirit, form alliances with people of like mind, let your heart overflow with the benefit of trust in all creation. Bring the light of purity into your heart and you are brought into the sphere of the purity of light.
Summary: You are in too much of a hurry. You want to take action and get matters resolved quickly, becoming frustrated and overly-critical when things do not move at your pace. Where a stranger sees only an infant, a father sees a noble warrior. Where a layperson sees only rough glass, a diamond cutter sees a priceless jewel. Become blind to the impurities for now, see only the purity before you.