At the Threshold
Hexagram 52 correlates to the Fire Dog pillar. It’s also the Tidal Gua for the Lunar month of Pig which starts November 19th this year. The Pig month is where winter begins, and so it is a stopping point in a very real sense, one that we can experience in our bodies as well as through observation. In a sense we might interpret this Hexagram as covering the time from now until mid-December. We’re at a threshold.
In the sequence of Hexagrams in the I Ching, Gen or Stillness (52) follows Thunder (51). A general interpretation of Thunder might be that it presents an opportunity to see how you work through anxiety and fear, or you might interpret it as a time for action. We can interpret Hexagram 51 as where we are coming from/where we are now. Hexagram 52 is where we will be in the lunar month of Fire Dog.
That would make Still or Mountain the aftermath of Thunder, meaning now it’s time to take a breath, at least a moment of stillness will help you assess the situation because things have changed. We’ve made it past some sort of tension release and I hope you’re feeling it. Any time you’re unsure about when to take action or when to be still, the Universe is usually providing some helpful clues and the I Ching is just one way to access them.
A general interpretation of Hexagram 52 would be don’t leave your own place. Don’t leave your home area. It’s not the best time to travel, but some will need to travel and can plan accordingly. You may want to allow for or build some stillness into your journey. Plan for delay or moving slowly. Since this Hexagram is describing multiple types of stillness, it suggests knowing when to speak and when not to speak is important too. Safety comes from these moments of recognition. It’s like magic.
On the top and bottom of Hexagram 52 we see the Gen trigram, the Youngest Son. This Trigram is associated with a mountain, hands, prayer, meditation, withdrawal, or a religious or spiritual existence just to name a few things. These are things that ask us to be still.
Visually, this mountain on top of a mountain looks like double doors to me – a door on top of a door. Do you want to go low or go high? When speaking about the compass, the Dog is sometimes called Heaven’s Gate(!) and where would that be unless it was very high up? I’m just throwing these ideas out to see if they evoke anything for you – don’t take it too seriously. I work in metaphors most.
The element of Hexagram 52 is yang Earth as is befitting for a Mountain. The symbol is so clear about indicating a stop. If you’re traveling, when you come to the mountain, you go over, around or through. You could turn back, but in life is that really an option? We can’t go back to the actual past, even though some of us are still stuck there. What often works best is seeing what opportunities are available in the moment and following them.
In the case of Hexagram 52 maybe your situation seems insurmountable, there’s a mountain on top of the mountain. There are two doors to choose from but you have no idea which is the right one.
Maybe we all could use a moment to let the message come, before we know what action to do next. We might be less attached to or anxious about an outcome if we understand that the signs will point the way at the right time. Just stay open to them and trust yourself.
The text for Hexagram 52 is available here.
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