Taoism and the 8 Trigrams

April 25, 2009

The link shows a table with the eight Trigrams and their main associations of the Taoist philosophy:
table-bagua

The eight trigrams symbolize things and affairs of everyday life and their energetic substructure, depending on the context where they appear and how they are used.

According to Dr. Song who studied the I-Ching they represent:
1. Qian: sky, day, gold, head, steel, elefant, lion, male animals, soldiers, bullet, circle, father, head of state, sunrays, radiation.

2. Kun: earth, night, minerals, stomach, grain, cow, birds, female animals, pan, mother, balance, rectangle, clothing.

3. Li: sun, summer, noontime, heart, fire, electricity, pheasant, sheep, turtle, empty room, centre, prophecy.

4. Kan: water, winter, night-time, uncertainty, danger, fox, fish, rivulet, stream, ocean, concealment, profundity.

5. Zhen: thunder & lightning, beginning of spring, foot, liver, horse, dragon, wood, city, movement, order.

6. Xun: wind, monastery, eyes, chickens, wild birds, movement, nourishment of qi, long hair.

7. Dui: lake, swamp, pond, pool, joy, goat, monkey, sword, autumn, witch, tricks, fun, bliss.

8. Gen: mountain, main-land, city wall, temple, dog, wolf, tiger, steadfastness, volunteer, men, small table.

4 trigrams are a yang phenomenon: Qian, Li, Zhen, Dui.
4 trigrams are a yin manifestation: Kun, Kan, Xun, Gen.

There are 2 trigrams that particulary work well, allure and harmonize with each other:

Qian with Kun
Li and Kan
Zhen and Xun
Dui and Gen.

The 8 Trigrams in terms of mental-energetic abilities

1. Qian manifests as steadfast, continous, relentless, hard, unweary energy.

2. Kun is soft, inconsistent, absorbing, yielding and giving way, jaded.

3. Li is manifesting as an energy that is: awesome, temperamental, pushing, excitable, sexy.

4. Kan is an energy that is: cryptic, adaptive, sustaining, resentful, strenuous.

5.

The 8 Trigrams; understanding of the energetic aspects.

1. Qian: the 3 yang lines of this trigram denotes a positive state of mind; the aspirations of a noble mind. However, if taken to extremes; without the counter-balance of Kun, or even better a harmonious melange of all 8-trigrams, Qian may transform itself into the Kun-trigram by the law of change. So, if taken to extremes, the result of a hyper activity might be feeling jaded….

2. Kun: the 3 yin lines offer no rational basis for a rational assessment of a situation. The main hope is trusting the law of change, meaning that the 3 yin lines may transform suddenly into 3 yang lines, thus opening the field of realization. This principle is used in Tai-chi and in essential meditation.
However, Kun can also lean on the power of the Qian, as seen in patriarchial societies, where this pattern is more or less working. However, that is not the main-line in an open society where women should/could take responsible and leading roles.

3.-4. Li and Kan
The relationship between water and fire is well known. However, the deeper subtleties are worth to be investigated.

By combining two trigrams one gets a hexagram.
64 Hexagrams

The hexagrams with fire and water are:
Nr.63 and Nr.64

Nr. 63, where fire is below water is a sign of completion and success. But careful, then follows Nr. 64 which signifies that the “i.e. the mission has not yet been completed and is still in process.” Then all starts with Nr.1 again, signifying that one has to work again like a beginner with diligence, deference and zeal.

The spatial aspect of generosity

December 6, 2009

Generosity has also a spatial aspect.
In the sense of allowing sometimes things to be as they are, or allowing beings to do happy things as they wish.

A feature which is by no means easy for a human being.

Blitz Chess

December 3, 2009

I was a bit surprised when I read that Grischuk was/is considered the best blitz player of the world in chess.

I’ve read that he has a very good understanding of the game; but then I saw recently him playing blitz on video against Carlsen and Kostenjuk. Against Carlsen he lost an endgame with 3 pawns up, and against A. Kostenjuk he got a mate in 24 moves.

I think: important is not only the thing itself but also the perspective of how a matter is seen… and sometimes one gets a wrong impression simply because one doesn’t have a comprehensive view.

Ideas for a new points system in chess

November 11, 2009

There are many proposals for a new points system in chess, so as to reward a win with a bonus. However, in chess, a draw is sometimes a logical outcome of a game.

Therefore, my proposal for a new system, is to give just a small bonus, so to reflect that a win is sometimes very difficult to reach: for example, the are positions where a 3-4-5 sequence of only moves must be found, while all other natural moves lead to a draw. To find the win in those positions within a short period of time is a high achievement, when compared to a safe draw.

Proposal:
win: 1.25
draw: 0.5
loss: 0

The system would make sense, especially in close tournaments where everyone plays against each other.

a) Mathematically it is easy to calculate, so that no chess players should have problem with it. Calculations with 1.25 is not very different from calculations with 0.5 in difficulty and outlook and may lead to very similar results outlook to what we know for now in tournaments.

b) Players who play sportive for a win would be rewarded, however not so much as to render a draw insignificant.

c) there is no difference for a win with white or black: system remains consistent.

Solid or Passive?

October 26, 2009

In chess, and sometimes in other fields of knowledge, there is a fine line between a solid position and a passive one. To be able to recognize which is which, is a sign of mastery.
Who knows, maybe sometimes it is virtually impossible to discern the difference in practical terms.

Exceptions

October 13, 2009

Exceptions make the rules spicy.

Japanese Words – Basics

October 8, 2009

A link to a forum about basic words in Japanese:
Japanese Words – translated into German

okay I try to translate now:
Naisho Hana ~ the mysterious flower … :)

Francese

September 18, 2009

Hey, Francese!

In a free translation from Italian the sentence does mean:
Hey, Frenchman, how are you doing?

In a free translation from Romanian language the sentence means:
Hey, bring me the french girls:-)

Rhythmic Assignment (art)

September 8, 2009

1 + 1 = 1
2 + 2 = 5
3 + 3 = 5
4 + 4 = 9
5 + 5 = 9
6 + 6 = 13
7 + 7 = 13
8 + 8 = 17
9 + 9 = 17


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