The Gate of Surrender
Other Names: Grace
Biology: kidney and pancreas
Archetypal Insight from the I Ching, by Ma Deva Padma; when this description resonates, a shift from novice expression to wisdom is likely imminent:
Ancient cultures throughout the world revered those who were exceptionally gifted or beautiful as manifestations of God’s grace on earth – a link between the divine creator and humankind. Today we call such people “stars,” but what we really revere is their celebrity and fame rather than their individual qualities. To be a true star, however, is to radiate well-being and an attitude that says “I feel at home with myself and with the world.” Everyone, in this sense, has the potential for stardom; it is our birthright, regardless of our physical appearance, social standing, abilities, or the whims of fashion.
Despite what the cult of stardom would have us believe, real beauty and the grace that surrounds it is never contrived. It is a luminosity that emanates from within, ephemeral and ageless, a natural glow that arises from living a balanced life. Like the lotus blossom that appears above the muddiest of waters, the lifelong challenge we face is to transform the dark and the difficult into light, fragrance, and, ultimately, the flower of consciousness.
Beauty and our perception of it manifests in myriad ways. For a scientist, it might appear as a flash of clarity when one of the mysteries of the universe reveals its hidden design. For a painter, it could be in the interplay of shifting color or light and shadow in the landscape. A composer might hear music in the night sky or in sunlit waters. The creative impulse in us springs from those moments of grace when all the divergent elements of life seem to harmonize perfectly; when, everywhere we look, we perceive the brilliance and mystery of a masterwork that transcends the knowable. Our expressions of creativity are essentially a homage to the Tao.
Awareness of beauty is inextricably bound with a sense of impermanence. Everywhere in nature beauty is born, fades, and returns again to beget beauty, in a continuous, creative unfoldment. We create many problems for ourselves by wanting to demystify and possess beauty and grace, to reproduce an essentially ephemeral experience and make it permanent. When all efforts fail, as they inevitably must, we become stuck in an impossible longing to recreate what was lost through some contrivance of our own. If we can manage to withdraw from this desire to grasp and possess, the experience of grace becomes a source of inner nourishment that deepens our aesthetic pleasure and joy in life.
Learn simply to greet beauty when it comes, to reflect upon it and become one with it, with no demands or expectations. Contemplate beauty and allow it to infuse your life; you will be beautified by it, and an aesthetic sense will naturally arise in you. Recognize that beauty is fleeting; meditate on the transitoriness of all things, which will kindle in you the desire to be aware in every moment and to give life’s beauty some form of expression. This moment is an invitation to shine and to give of your best, graciously and wholeheartedly. Let your model be Mother Nature, whose elegance and generosity knows no bounds, and whose capacity to beautify is never less than perfect. The beauty of nature is love.
The Changes (additional insight for applying the Line of an activated Gate)
Line 1 – Investigator/Information
Kick off your shoes and dance; it’s food for your soul – especially if it is out of gratitude for being alive. Grace is an outpouring of love, an expression of beauty and wonder. No need to be anything other than just who you are, or to do anything but what you enjoy the most.
Line 2 – Responder/Hermit
Take care not to get so dazzled by the beauty of the container that you neglect the contents within. Whether in your relations with others or your relationship to yourself, it is time to turn your attention to the source of this beautiful moment and all beautiful moments – and to nourish that source in ways both large and small.
Line 3 – Explorer
When everything is so perfect, it can be tempting just to sit down in the hope that the moment will thereby be frozen in time and last forever. No such luck – life is energy, energy needs movement, and movement means change. Celebrate that, too, and it’s more likely that the next moment will bring beauties of its own.
Line 4 – Stabilizer
The more you are willing to enter into the wonder of “I don’t know what’s going to happen,” the greater the possibility for delight. Every painter begins with a blank canvas and has the choice either to think and plan or to jump into the task and see what happens. No creative venture is ever born from withholding; it is fundamentally an adventure. Forget about being brilliant. Instead, put the focus on nurturing harmony and allowing spontaneity – brilliance will follow naturally.
Line 5 – Visionary Leader
It is not necessary for a creation to be great, or even for it to be seen by anyone else. The basic requirement is to open up to playfulness, experimenting like a child. The world is full of possibilities now, so drop any tendency to play “judge” with yourself or those around you. Judgment causes contraction and crushes joy. Innocence delights in self-expression and is willing to risk appearing goofy or making a mess.
Line 6 – Adept/Role Model
It’s always enriching to look with fresh eyes at the infinite play of color, form, texture, and sound that is everywhere around you. Sometimes the profusion seems chaotic, and that’s fine! Let your eyes and hands and ears respond. Grace moves with what is, not with ideas about what should be. And “what is” can often be the simplest, most unpretentious and heartfelt thing.
Other aspects
Astrological Sign: Pisces
Dynamics: Clinging (fire) + Keeping Still (mountain)
Color: yellow + dark green
Attributes: enlightening, clarifying, communicative, intelligent + rest, meditation, stillness, enduring
Action(s): to radiate and limit
Developmental: conception + maturity