Hello and Happy Monday! Welcome to the new iteration of Monday Morning Notes. In the morning now, I am hosting a group divination session, the link for which is evergreen and the note describing how we divine together is pinned to the top of the homepage for Monday Morning Notes. Meanwhile, following the morning session, I will be writing up some summary and commentary and posting here by the end of the day. As well, the recordings of our session will be posted within 24 hours and show up as The Lion, The Witch and The Oracle Podcast. Enjoy!
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Modesty used to be a very popular and well-appreciated virtue. It was always featured in any portrait of the hero or heroine who was loved and lauded for this particular quality. Today in our reading for the week, Hexagram 15 - Qiån, often called Modesty as well as Humility and Integrity was our initial hexagram. This morning’s inquiry went as follows:
What is ours to do this week, with a focus on individual contribution to our larger sentient world?
So, what, then, is modesty in response to this inquiry? Modesty, according to Carol Anthony, a translator of the I Ching, “This is the image of modesty—a state of becoming—an attitude of conscientiousness in trying to do what is correct.” Correct in the ways of self-cultivation does not involve right and wrong in the conventional sense. Correct here, means that we remain connected, in relationship with ourselves. To do what is correct is to do that which is genuine and authentic to one’s true nature. The only way such an attitude is possible is through honesty with oneself. And in being honest with oneself, you see both your potential and your partiality equally, you don’t over-inflate your talent or virtue and you don’t denigrate your choices or activities.
Importantly, you come to your honesty and your modesty through openness and integrity. You move through your own heart and soul with focus and care, but as a ‘becoming’ a flow, you could say. A river does not stop at the rocks that lie within it, it simply continues to flow with the impediments it encounters. You as a becoming can move through your life like a river, headed in a direction, while open to all that you meet. This is true modesty.
At the top we had a changing line, a place where a choice will have to be made. Since we inquired for the week, this choice point is likely to show up toward the end of the week. The moment pointed at by this line is a moment when you will be required to keep your focus, possibly even take action to stay in your integrity. Staying in integrity you become ever more yourself, ever more modest and ever more clear about your boundaries and your desires. As you identify what is moving in you and what is receiving or absorbing what is happening, you keep your balance. On the outside this might look like stillness or no movement at all, while inside this could be a very dynamic dialogue.
Funnily enough, then, our resulting hexagram was 52 - Gèn - Stillness. You might remember, that this was our initial hexagram last week. An interesting movement where we may be called back to our mountain core, our stability, our feet on the ground through whatever this change is asking of us. You can read more about this hexagram and the stillness it portrays in last week’s note.
On to the support for this week, the essential oil of Patchouli. I know a lot of folks have strong feelings and/or strong memories with regard to Patchouli. Patchouli is a strong base note and can evoke a lot of emotion. It can also encourage us to transform the emotions that occur. Interestingly, transformation is not a process we can push or create, but rather it is a process that occurs naturally when the conditions are hospitable. I find it also interesting that the word hospitable has a resemblance to modesty, one definition of hospitable is to be “readily receptive”, a quality we as a group identified this morning as being part of our modesty and our integrity.
To quote David Whyte, from a poem called Coleman’s Bed:
“Be taught now, among the trees and rocks, how the discarded is woven into shelter, learn the way things hidden and unspoken slowly proclaim their voice in the world. Find that far inward symmetry to all outward appearances, apprentice yourself to yoursel, begin to welcome back all you sent away, be a new annunciation, make yourself a door through which to be hospitable, even to the stranger in you."
Patchouli will show you the places where things might have been pent-up or brewing inside you. These are the things ready for transformation. And just like our reading, to make best use of the invitation provided by both the reading and the essential oil, you will want to sit quietly, even quite still, until you can no longer smell the Patchouli. This might be a challenge as base notes like Patchouli can last hours in the air and in your awareness. But do sit long enough to listen to “that far inward symmetry” and take some of that sensation with you as you carry on through your day. Again and again, I am reminded that the essence of modesty and integrity is the capacity to allow and receive any and all experience, all kinds of emotion with some kind of openness and equanimity. Patchouli will support you in this effort.
To use Patchouli, you’ll need to get a drop out of the bottle. Sometimes it is hard to get a drop because it can be very thick, but once you do you can place that drop in a cup of hot water and allow the steam to bring the smell to you. You can also place the drop on a cotton ball and place it near you. Just know that if you place it on a cotton ball, the smell will linger even longer as the drop slowly evaporates, up to days even, unless of course you flush it down the toilet or put it in a covered trashcan.
You are invited to share any experience you have with anything mentioned in these posts especially if you try out the essential oils. I love to hear from you!
