18. Work on What Has Been Spoiled
蠱 · Gǔ · Il Lavoro sul Guasto · lines from the bottom: 011001
The two trigrams
The Judgement
This hexagram speaks of something that has gone bad, like food left out too long, which it now falls to you to set in order. The good news is that the text promises great progress and full success to whoever handles the situation in the right way. If you feel the weight of a disorder you did not create, a neglected family business, a home full of debts, a relationship in which problems have piled up for years, know that repair is possible and worth doing. It takes, though, the effort of someone crossing a great river: a superficial tidying will not do. The practical advice lies in the detail of the three days before and the three days after the turning point: before you intervene, take the time to understand how the decay came about; and after you act, stay and check that things do not fall back into the old habit. Do not move on impulse, do not do the job halfway, and do not expect the damage to mend itself: it is work, but it is work that carries you far.
Source: James Legge, The Yî King (Sacred Books of the East, vol. XVI) (1882) · read the original passage
The Image
The image is that of wind blowing at the foot of the mountain and being driven back, scattering everything it meets: this is how a state of disorder looks. The wise person responds in two ways that belong together: helping those around them and nurturing their own qualities. If you find yourself putting right something others let slide, do not do it with resentment. The advice is to devote part of your energy to those who depend on you, children, colleagues, ageing parents, and another part to yourself: study, health, one good habit. Setting the world in order begins with setting yourself in order.
Source: James Legge, The Yî King (Sacred Books of the East, vol. XVI) (1882) · read the original passage
The six lines
First line
The first line shows a son dealing with the troubles left by his father. It is the case of someone who inherits a problem: a struggling business, a debt, a bad family habit. If you prove able, the text says, your father will no longer be blamed for having erred: mending the past is also a way of honouring it. The position is delicate, the risk is there, but the final outcome is good. The advice: start right away, humbly, with the smallest problems, without judging those who came before you.
Source: James Legge, The Yî King (Sacred Books of the East, vol. XVI) (1882) · read the original passage
Second line
The second line speaks of troubles caused by the mother, and gives valuable warning: do not carry your firmness all the way. Some disorders spring from a person to whom you owe respect and affection, and with whom harshness would be a wound. If you must correct a situation created by someone fragile or dear, a parent, a partner, a friend in difficulty, use gentleness: be clear about what has to change, but do not humiliate, do not throw it back in their face. Measure counts for more than being right.
Source: James Legge, The Yî King (Sacred Books of the East, vol. XVI) (1882) · read the original passage
Third line
The third line again shows someone grappling with the father's troubles, but this time with too much energy: there will be some small cause for regret, though no great error. It is the portrait of someone who throws themselves into the repair with vigour and perhaps overdoes the tone or the haste. If you recognise yourself, do not stop: a little friction is the price of work done in earnest. The advice is to admit excesses promptly, apologise when needed, and carry on without losing momentum.
Source: James Legge, The Yî King (Sacred Books of the East, vol. XVI) (1882) · read the original passage
Fourth line
The fourth line describes someone who looks indulgently on the father's troubles, that is, someone who sees the problem and chooses to let it slide. If they go on this way, the text warns, they will find cause for regret. It is the hexagram of comfortable postponement: the unresolved matter with a relative, the account that does not add up, the flaw everyone pretends not to see. Be careful: tolerance here is not generosity, it is weakness. The advice is to set a precise date to face what you keep putting off, and to keep it.
Source: James Legge, The Yî King (Sacred Books of the East, vol. XVI) (1882) · read the original passage
Fifth line
The fifth line shows someone dealing with the father's troubles and winning praise for using the fit instrument for the work. It is the position of someone with responsibility who does not do everything alone: they know whom to turn to, know how to delegate, choose the right help. If you have to restore a complicated situation, do not believe you must be the expert in everything. Look for the consultant, the doctor, the competent friend, the trusted collaborator. Getting good help takes nothing from your merit: it is precisely what you will be appreciated for.
Source: James Legge, The Yî King (Sacred Books of the East, vol. XVI) (1882) · read the original passage
Sixth line
The sixth line steps away from family affairs: it shows someone who serves neither king nor feudal lord and in a lofty spirit prefers to attend to their own concerns. It is the portrait of someone who, the repair work finished, or having stayed outside it, chooses to devote themselves to inner growth rather than to career or power struggles. If you feel the need to pull out of the disputes, to decline that appointment, to give yourself to what nourishes you, this line backs you: it is not flight, it is a worthy choice. The advice is to tend your own world seriously, not out of contempt for others but out of faithfulness to yourself.