In this tao where our attention is open to feeling (line 5 is yin) if our feelings are active, as they become here, there is no blockage to the flow.

Open feeling is very versatile and will carry our lives in whatever direction is suitable. Directions are suitable when they are there in our circumstances, if we need to create them with our desires there would be error but here we can follow and the tao contains all that we need and think we need.

Our involvement in the lack of activity of the outer world (line 3) in this tao is not because we are worried by it, we can see the difference between our ego-activity and that of the life force; we see that if our activity is not that of the life force we become separate or out of phase with it, and being out of phase is full of effort.

This also implies that realizing that others have different needs, we do not impose our way upon them.

To become more involved in the emerging energy of this tao is not to be in possession of it but to be possessed within it.

He is blessed by heaven because the experience comes upon us like a gift, not by effort. What occurs is the achievement of the life force—but we are a part of this and in no way left out.

With our life energy moving into an inactive phase, and having the feeling of difficulties we wish to get out of, we may be persuaded to push some activity to make things better; this is not going to be useful when we are in a state where we do not see our way very well.

The gossip comes from all those parts in us which think we can get out of difficulty by doing something but do not realize that the difficulty is an unawareness that we cannot help at present. Good fortune comes eventually because this state is itself part of change.

Here we become free of involvement in difficulty by a re-awakening of our intuitive feeling about our circumstances instead of trying to sort it out with our conflicting ideas.

Resolving a conflict of ideas is not the only way of dealing with it, although when we are in conflict it may seem so. We can simply return to our observing centre and cease to project any idea on what we experience. Kin are those who are related, and within our personal self the related parts which were in conflict do not blame each other, instead they change their way entirely (symbolized by the number 3 for change and hundred for the entirety).

Not taking sides in a conflict is sometimes quite difficult. Initially it is a hard course because participants within us wish to join in, but eventually it is rewarding as we understand more widely.

The middle way is the ancient virtue; it attains its ends because conflict is always temporary and fluctuating. If we are ruled by some identification (in service of a king) it is better not to further it now.

Here we are accepting a world active in conflict. As we accept it, we do not fight to resolve it.

Here we can see the conflict from outside and so do not take sides. We see that the argument is fruitless.

In this tao our feeling is closed to the “other” so conflict arises; here we recognize this closed feeling and see it as causing the conflict or as an important element in it.

There can only be conflict when views are narrow—when they are wide they overlap.

The active life energy emerging into this tao becomes conflict due to lack of insight. Here we accept this as the tao, as our way of inner being, but conflict as a way of being resolves nothing and pushes identity further into its identifying isolation. In a wide sense, we lose when in conflict, whether we win or lose the contest.

The situation in contest changes all the time and this (the number 3) takes our advantage from us. The gains are superficial and transitory.

The first sign of inner movement is not the time to make outer action. We should not be too eager or we shall not have the support of the life force and whatever we do will be superficial and unsatisfactory.

Activity is identity’s chosen role; here we feel the inactivity of the life force and fear for our ability to act.

In the darkness (activity is the “light” of consciousness) there are calls for light, for activity to avert extinction of our ability to identify, but we are armed with the light of the tao—the movement will come when it comes, we need not fear to miss but we will stay alert, that is how we are armed.

Here we are not peaceful enough to withstand the anticipation of the tao and we create outer activity which will divert the life flow.

The cheekbones enable us to read determination in another’s face; here there is this power of self-will which is misfortunate in this context because no amount of it can be effective and it produces stress with no flow for its relief. The wide-seeing superior man is just going about his business, not trying to push things, and this is correct in our present circumstances.

Here we are involving our identity in outer inactivity, which is to say we are worried about it and consider it a problem to be solved; this is an impatience for activity and is not supported by the life force.

The muscles of the thigh carry us forward, and here there is no support from the life force if we go forward. If we were following the life force we would not have this problem.

Our intuitive state is inactive (line 2) so here we become aware of this lack of feeling. This has dangers in this tao because unless we can persevere with quiet feeling, our interest will arouse desire for active feeling; if we create activity with desire we will miss the next movement of circumstances.

The middle way is neither identified outside nor inside, it is non-identified, clinging to the real or wholeness or earth. Staying with what exists, not searching, is the advice contained here.

This whole tao is a watching for potential to be manifest and this sixth line is the watcher of the emerging life force; if we cease to be alert it will catch us by surprise and we will be out of step with it.