Cafeausoul logo
Go to home page

Poetry of the I Ching

Yin and Yang symbol

Watch Video

I. Creative

Lifted up

by what is

pressed down,

the great untangles

the night.

2. Receptive

And in the darkness,

the moon

like a bow –

plays the song

of the sun.

3. Difficult Beginnings

Each day

begins.

A silvery spray –

a washing away;

a strengthening.

4. Youthful Folly

Words,

like the shavings

of a sculpture –

substance is revealed

in silence.

5. Waiting

Time is

perfectly spaced

to hear

the echo

of your sincerity.

6. Conflict

Where the river flows

the wounded

let go.

Holding loosens

this circular turning.

7. Army

The wind excites

a thousand

different instruments –

Each song is played

in its own way.

8. Uniting Inner and outer

in seamless unity –

reflections

upon

the mysterious mirror.

9. Small Restraint

When obstacles

appear

insurmountable –

open to

the teaching.

10. Treading

Discover

the pleasure

of treading

in life’s

mystery.

11. Peace

The moon goes,

the sun comes.

The body

circulates –

small world.

12. Standstill

In a time of standstill

there is no

real blockage

that can withstand

submission.

13. Fellowship

Nature nurtures

unity,

while honoring diversity;

it is a crossing

holding hands.

14. Possession in Great Measure

When the hand opens

to reveal

its unbroken line –

the host

rumbles in the belly.

15. Moderation

This long

upward climb –

with periods of falling.

Balance ensures

a stable footing.

16. Enthusiasm

The earth's power

to thrive

and succeed

resides

in your core.

17. Following

Follow

behind,

tranquil

in your

visionary cave.

18. Decay

Wind over the Mountain.

One chisels away,

the other

inspires

leaders.

19. Approach

Earth's reflection

on a lake;

its hidden depths

coaxed upwards –

where clouds rise.

20. Contemplation

Remove

the red dust.

Arouse the child

to the

endless field.

21. Biting Through

The truth

cannot be silenced.

It is the child

ever asking:

why?

22. Grace

Open

what is closed –

Light the darkness.

Grace is the life

of the lifeless.

23. Splitting Apart

When the seed

falls,

adversity

breaks away

all protective coverings.

24. Return

Turned back,

we are

returned

to

original sincerity.

25. Innocence

Hover

at the

doorway

of

perception.

26. Taming Power of the Great

Become

master

of

your

response.

27. Nourishing Vision

Defensiveness

ensures

that the outcome

is

relentless.

28. Overwhelming of the Great

Erosion

creates the perpetual

gusts and storms

that soften

a hardened landscape.

29. The Abysmal

And the freedom

of dispersion:

life’s

energetic elixir.

Scatter your fog.

30. Clinging

Witness

the unchanging:

cling to

the

unfathomable.

31. Wooing

Experience courts

the

abundance

of the

chaste mind.

32. Duration

Nature teaches constancy

in relentless

adaptations.

Never complete

and without extremes.

33. Retreat

The joy of stillness:

Nothing held.

Nothing lost.

The ease

of transparency.

34. Power of the Great

The thunder

startles wakefulness.

A vigorous stroke

self-realized

in the sleeping seed.

35. Progress

Illumination

grows by day.

Innate knowledge

received

as truthfulness.

36. Brightness Hiding

This light

that shines

in darkness:

it cannot be concealed;

it illuminates the eyes.

37. Family

In the contrast

of our differences,

life

reveals

its solitary line.

38. Opposition

Honor

the evolutionary tension

that keeps

all of life

evolving.

39. Obstruction

Danger, opportunity

and the cracking of ice.

This path

of closed eyes –

fulfillment falls like rain.

40. Deliverance

To arrive

return

without going.

Find the medicine

of forgiveness.

41. Decrease

Harvest

comes

from pruning and drainage –

by what

is taken away.

42. Increase

The wise detect

and prepare for

the sun’s march

across

an empty sky.

43. Determination

Fear stalks

its own reflection –

Remove

the window dressing

of your prison.

44. Coming to Meet

The unexpected

draws the breath in –

It is a wind that tugs

with a million teeth

on the uninhabited.

45. Gathering Together

Wearing

a cloak

of woven grass,

become a rainmaker

for the living.

46. Pushing Upward

The rain comes

and what bends

will rise.

It is a purposeful

journey.

47. Oppression

Life's gentle prodding

whittles away

the unnecessary –

until only the necessary

remains.

48. The Well

Untie the rope,

discard the bucket.

The inexhaustible source

is the water

of an endless stream.

49. Revolution

All that

rises

also falls –

it is the way

of change.

50. The Cauldron

Initiation.

Tranquility

in disturbance –

Balance your basket

on the winding path.

51. Shocking

Thunderstorms

and rainbows

are born of the same

rattling sounds –

and promises.

52. Keeping Still

Travel below

your

obvious foliage.

Turn backwards –

harvest the unseen.

53. Development

Plant yourself

in the same silence

where a thousand seeds

are becoming

the landscape of spring.

54. Subordinate

Give your carved block

to the Woodcarver.

Let the cutting

shape

your gift.

55. Abundance

All of nature

is the participation

and sharing

of each

unique offering.

56. The Wanderer

The greatest traveler

has no itinerary.

When traveling,

be a gardener

of people.

57. Penetrating Wind

Move like

the wind –

its soft lullaby,

sculpting

mountains.

58. Joy

Unhappiness

is the hunger pain

for change.

Joy –

its constant companion.

59. Dispersion

LIfe scatters to reunite

in seeds

upon the wind.

Be lifted up

by the unknown.

60. Limitation

Limitations

are the

breeding ground

for

nature’s strength.

61. Inner Truth

Throw the rock,

the water ripples.

Life’s energy flows

through you in waves.

Reverberate to your center.

62. Development of the Small

When the heart

soars like a bird,

and the mind tumbles

in endless curiosity –

the small exceeds itself.

63. After Completion

Order, chaos,

then order again.

Such is the way

of the great

untangling.

64. Before Completion

Therefore, when the end

is near,

open

to the new

beginning.