The I Ching in 30 Pages
The Dry Lake
When you're stuck and you've tried everything, what is still yours?
Original
困：亨，貞，大人吉，无咎，有言不信。
彖曰：困，剛揜也。險以說，困而不失其所亨，其唯君子乎！……有言不信，尚口乃窮也。
象曰：澤无水，困；君子以致命遂志。In plain words
Exhaustion: success; be upright. For the great person, good fortune and no blame. What you say will not be believed. The Tuan Commentary says: Exhaustion means the strong are covered over. In danger, yet glad; hemmed in, yet not losing the place where it gets through: who but the noble person can do this? … What you say is not believed, because leaning on words leads to a dead end. The Image says: A lake with no water: Exhaustion. The noble person gives his life to carry out his aim.
Key words
- 困kùnHemmed in, at a dead end; pictured as a lake drained dry.
- 尚口shàng kǒuLeaning on words; trying to talk your way out.
- 致命遂志zhì mìng suì zhìTo give your life over to fulfilling your aim.
Reading it step by step
On the last page the water was still flowing. On this one it is gone. Kun (Exhaustion) has the Lake above and Water below: the water has drained out from under the lake, and the lake has dried up.
First: the body is trapped; the heart need not be. Surprisingly, the Judgment begins with “success.” Hemmed in, yet getting through. The old explanation is that what is trapped is your body and your circumstances, not necessarily your heart. The commentary describes the two trigrams as danger inside and gladness outside. To stay calm in a hard place, even a little at ease, is a matter of character. It goes on: “hemmed in, yet not losing the place where it gets through: who but the noble person can do this?” On ordinary days you can't tell who is noble. When people are cornered, you can. The Great Commentary puts it plainly: hardship is where character shows. You only learn that the pine keeps its needles in winter.
There's a curious pattern in the lines. The three yang lines are each trapped by something that looks good: wine and food, a golden carriage, scarlet robes of office. The three yin lines are caught in plants: a dead stump, thorns, creeping vines. Poverty traps people, and so does wealth. No need to envy anyone's situation; everyone has their own Kun.
the three yang lines
trapped by good things
the three yin lines
trapped by brambles
the noble person
body trapped, heart free
Poverty traps people, and so does wealth.
Second: “what you say is not believed.” In hard times, words don't persuade. When someone whose business is failing says, “I'll pay you back in three months,” the listener hears the trouble, not the promise. The more you explain, complain and guarantee, the more anxious you look, and the narrower the road gets. Leaning on words leads to a dead end. Say less. Do the next thing you can do, and do it well. Let facts speak for you.
Third: “give your life to carry out your aim.” The Great Image says that a lake with no water is Kun, and the noble person gives his life to fulfil his aim. Hardship takes a lot away: money, reputation, chances, other people's trust. What's left shows you clearly what you are living for. The aim here is not promotion or wealth but the kind of person you mean to be. Circumstances can't take that. Only you can put it down.
Hardship has a kind of quiet, too. The phone stops ringing; nobody comes by. At first you just endure it. Later you can accept it. Later still you may find it gave you something ordinary days couldn't: a book read to the end, a question thought through, a clear view of who your friends are.
The lake is dry, but you can still read a book on its floor.
Your body can be trapped. Your aim needn't be.
Today's question
If you're stuck right now, what has been taken from you? What hasn't been? Write down the thing that hasn't.
Quick check
What does “leaning on words leads to a dead end” advise someone in hardship?
Words carry no weight in hardship; action is what gets you out.
III · When Things Are Hard — You can't choose the situation; you can choose the response
Notes from the Margin
Twice a month: a story from history and a question the pages don’t ask. Free.
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