39 - Obstruction

no2DO - eine Annäherung aus Westen

Contemporary Interpretation

39 - Obstruction

Disengage.
Observe.
Solve.

How to swallow
What you cannot swallow?
Don't swallow it!
Disengage.
And then,
Following your own intuition,
Firstly consider the matter
from a
[By your standards]
Exotic point of view
And then
Solve
It.

The Changes

yin yang yin yang yin yin

Upper Trigram: Kan, Water

2nd Core Character: Li, Fire

1st Core Character: Kan, Water

Lower Trigram: Gen, Mountain

Information regarding the interpretation model

Classical Interpretation

Obstruction (39) signifies difficulty.

The image

Water on top of the mountain: the image of obstruction. Thus the superior man turns towards himself and fosters his own character.

The judgement

Obstruction. The south west furthers. The north east does not further. It furthers one to see the great man. Perseverance brings good fortune. Full text of Richard Wilhelm's 1924 translation by Cary F. Baynes

Dynamics of the Hexagram

The Changes: 39 - obstruction

Lower Trigram: Gen, the Mountain

Gen stands for our ability to disengage. Through letting go of what has become obsolete we can focus on what is essential, ... Read more concentrate our energies and make room for the new. Disengagement harmonizes and focuses our actions and results in reorientation and new beginnings. Gen invites us to honestly examine our possessions, feelings and/or thoughts regarding their validity, and to permanently let go of what is old or outdated. Hide

First Change: Gen → Kan, the Water

Kan develops when a (broken) yin line is added (dark arrow; yin symbolizes receptivity). Gen's disengagement opened a path for ... Read more us to reconnect with our spiritual self: our own inner, intuitive wisdom, collected all along our path to here and now, ready to nurture us. Hide

Second Change: Kan → Li, the Fire

Li develops when a (solid) yang line is added (red arrow; yang symbolizes energy, activity). Head (Li) and gut (Kan) often ... Read more seem to strive into different directions. If we examine the issue carefully we may find the clue to the inner logic of own being: That what seemed to be contradicting unties to personal strength. Hide

Third Change: Li → Kan, the Water

Kan develops when a (broken) yin line is added (dark arrow; yin symbolizes receptivity). Our ability to intellectually differentiate ... Read more impressions, facts, feelings etc. (Li) gives us clarity and creates a sense of calm. A peaceful mind yet makes it easier for us to trustingly open ourselves to the messages from our spiritual grounds (Kan): gut feelings, presentiments, intuitions. Hide

Upper Trigram: Kan, the Water

Kan represents our basic trust and our unconscious resources, a distillate of our own - and sometimes third party ... Read more - experiences and information that lie beyond our daily consciousness. Impulses and inspirations emerge from Kan and may trigger decisions or initiate actions. If we follow this gut feeling our actions will have a special quality: they feel a particular way "right". Hide

Follow the Path of the Dao: A Western Approximation

The interpretations shown above gradually moved away from Eastern concepts. Let us proceed even a little further. In this section I develop a model of interpretation from a Western perspective, more precisely: from the perspective of philosophical anthropology.
A detailed article on the subject can be found here: A Western Approximation

Dem Weg des Dao folgen: Annäherung aus Westen

Exemplary Experiences

Support no2DO: Give me feedback!

You can help the further development of no2DO by sending me the question you asked the I Ching and its response (the hexagram's name and number). Each hexagram's tendencies open up most clearly when examined in the context of a personal situation.

References and Connotations