Bi :: Alliance

First divination: great offerings :: Those who join late : misfortune

比

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6 :: first

Faithful allies like wine in clay jugs. Latecomers are disappointed. Auspicious.

True alliances are built on deep trust and spiritual commonality. Do not wait for difficulties to arise before you ask for help. Make alliances while things are good and feelings are fresh and powerful.

9 :: second

Alliances with insiders. Auspicious.

Deepening trust and expanding agreements within existing alliances (loving friends or family members) brings supreme success. Unity with those who are already close to you is strong and sound.

6 :: third

Alliance with offenders. Inauspicious.

Beware of alliances made with the wrong people. Do not let your ambition blind you to the weaknesses and corruption in potential partners. Do not partner with inferior people.

9 :: fourth

Alliance with outsiders. Auspicious.

Unexpectedly discovering new allies, outside your circle of friends, brings great good fortune. Meeting and integrating forces with new friends in new places is a great joy. These alliances build confidence. Together you can step out of the shadows.

9 :: fifth

The game driven into the prince's field escapes. No blame.

When alliances are solidly established and all doubt is gone, the practice of divination becomes a graceful formality. This line describes a hunting form of divination¹ where a ruler wants to bag an auspicious animal -- an omen for success. In this case, confidence is so strong, the animals are allowed to escape.

6 :: top

Alliances without heads.² Inauspicious.

Joining forces with those who are weak in their commitments is dangerous. Those who lack leadership, unity, clarity and loyalty do not succeed.

Image

Bi is about those who strengthen their power through new and renewed alliances with capable people. It is about the confidence to go forward when trustworthy allies and coherent plans unite. Those who do not use this wisdom (join late) do not succeed.

Auspices

When Bi is divined a close and committed association brings success.

Good for all group efforts, foreign travel, family gatherings, marriage, and remarriage.

Bad for procrastination, postponement, and solo ventures.

Comment

Bi describes the cosmic idea that our natural interconnectedness, what people truly have in common, is all-powerful. It is perhaps the central wisdom of the Zhouyi.

A leader, who feels the heart-felt needs of the people and allies him/her-self with their needs, always succeeds. This is what the Confucianists call the mandate of Heaven. Trusted alliances with like-minded people enlarge one's influence and power naturally without swelling one's responsibilities.

Alliance makes all things possible. The Zhouyi simply states that an alliance with others makes our lives richer and more satisfying. Success becomes true good fortune when it can be expressed by a group celebration in which rewards are shared. In Zhou times this celebration included, but was not limited to, the ancestral rites.

Other Correspondences

Business: Mergers, taking partners, new investments, travel, and meetings.

Disharmonies: Indigestion, spleen deficiency, and kidney deficiency.

Prognosis: Good. The patient may need to change physician or even find and use a whole new medical model.