Emotional I Ching : Hexagram 04

04 Masking, Educating, Socialising
In a context of containment we utilise discernment.

Trigrams : containment (bottom), discernment (top) : with/from containment comes discernment. [mountain over water]

The mud from which 04 has emerged is best described by analogy to the under-stated qualities of hexagram 19, approaching/deferring.

Commentary

In hexagram 04 the goal here is learning (the lines deal with both student and teacher) and thus developing a sense of security. This is the act of learning how to put on one's social 'mask' with an emphasis on rote teaching/learning.

Five-Phase Relationships : The trigram of Water reflects Consumption. The trigram of Mountain reflects Filtration-through-discernment. Consumption through filtration is expressed as masking, the 'containment' of the youth - socialisation - learning 'good' habits.

Goal of 04 - hexagram 27 (or 'how do I 27? - 04')

04 is the goal of 41 (or 'how do I 04? - 41' How do I/am I mask/masked? Through concentration, distillation of data)

The I Ching tells us about hexagram 04:

Genotype	Description	Phenotype
(01)	How does this hexagram express singlemindedness, competitiveness?	49
(02)	What is this hexagram's potential form?	4
(03)	How does this hexagram 'sprout'?	61
(04)	How does this hexagram learn social skills?	2
(05)	How does this hexagram wait for opportunity to come?	37
(06)	How does this hexagram compromise, meet half way?	45
(07)	How does this hexagram express uniformity, establishment of?	23
(08)	How does this hexagram passively attract?	59
(09)	How does this hexagram express making small gains to be noticed?	63
(10)	How does this hexagram traverse a path carefully?	17
(11)	How does this hexagram balance/harmonise, mediate?	22
(12)	How does this hexagram neutralise attacks on its core beliefs?	47
(13)	How does this hexagram express association with the likeminded?	43
(14)	How does this hexagram manage from the centre? Direct operations? Push ideology?	55
(15)	How does this hexagram level things out, keep words close to facts?	18
(16)	How does this hexagram express foresight/planning?	64
(17)	How does this hexagram find a faith? What is its faith?	10
(18)	How does this hexagram correct corruption, express that correction?	15
(19)	How does this hexagram express approaching the 'high'; defer to the 'low'?	27
(20)	How does this hexagram elicit admiration and so invigorate others passively?	29
(21)	How does this hexagram resolve problems?	54
(22)	What does this hexagram look like, how does it present itself to the outside?	11
(23)	How does this hexagram 'housekeep', clear chaff to bring out the wheat?	7
(24)	How does this hexagram 'start', express 'beginning'?	41
(25)	How does this hexagram stand up to say its piece, ignoring consequences, disentangle?	58
(26)	How does this hexagram express 'holding firm' to traditions?	36
(27)	What is the basic, skeletal form of this hexagram, The mud from which it has emerged?	19
(28)	How does this hexagram express excess, go beyond what is required?	33
(29)	How does this hexagram assert containment/control?	20
(30)	How does this hexagram express guidance/direction setting?	34
(31)	How does this hexagram 'woo', express restrained enticement?	44
(32)	How does this hexagram express commitment?	56
(33)	How does this hexagram draw-in its enemies, competitively entice?	28
(34)	How does this hexagram actively invigorate others?	30
(35)	How does this hexagram bring something into the 'light'?	40
(36)	How does this hexagram protect its 'light' when not its time?	26
(37)	How does this hexagram reflect rigid structure as a form of tension release?	5
(38)	How does this hexagram 'mirror', deal with opposition?	51
(39)	How does this hexagram obstruct, go against, stand up to, the flow?	57
(40)	How does this hexagram express tension release through relaxing structure?	35
(41)	How does this hexagram achieve clarity, concentration, distillation?	24
(42)	How does this hexagram reflect augmentation?	60
(43)	How does this hexagram 'seed', spread the word?	13
(44)	How does this hexagram persuade/seduce?	31
(45)	How does this hexagram celebrate its 'faith'?	6
(46)	How does this hexagram become more entangled with something/someone?	52
(47)	How does this hexagram integrate with the context, be it by choice or otherwise?	12
(48)	Where does this hexagram get its nutrition, what sustains it, keeps it going?	53
(49)	How does this hexagram reveal, unmask?	1
(50)	How does this hexagram express conversion of the raw to the cooked, transformation?	62
(51)	How does this hexagram express surprise, enlightenment, shock?	38
(52)	How does this hexagram express blocking, discernment?	46
(53)	How does this hexagram express gradual development, maturity?	48
(54)	How does this hexagram expend early energy, immaturity?	21
(55)	How does this hexagram deal with abundance/overflowing?	14
(56)	How does this hexagram demonstrate conditional loyalty; loyalty at a distance?	32
(57)	How does this hexagram cultivate and become influential?	39
(58)	How does this hexagram express itself intensely, self-reflect?	25
(59)	How does this hexagram make things clear, dispel illusions? lift the fog?	8
(60)	How does this hexagram standardise?	42
(61)	How does this hexagram express empathy? yielding, soft core, hard exterior?	3
(62)	How does this hexagram express overacting to establish unconditional loyalty?	50
(63)	How does this hexagram complete, 'get it right'?	9
(64)	How does this hexagram remain 'open', mis-sequence?	16

Some PAIRINGS of hexagram 04 with other hexagrams:

In the binary sequence hexagram 04 pairs with hexagram 07.

This pairing of 07 and 04 reflects the generic focus on collective formation, either through social education (04) or through enforced uniformity (07). In hexagram 04 the socialisation is in the form of a mask such that one can retain some sense of discernment in decisions. On the other hand, in hexagram 07 the conformity, the uniformity, is total in that one must also learn to 'think Army' where decision issues are solved by reference to 'standing orders'.

In the binary sequence hexagram 04 opposes hexagram 49.

The opposition of 04 to 49 reflects the focus on masking (04) vs that of unmasking (49) where the emphasis is on revelation and revolution.

At the LOCAL level we are dealing with an octet of hexagrams with the WATER trigram as base. In this sequence hexagram 04, the focus upon masking, socialisation, 'opposes' hexagram 47, the focus on enforced enclosure. More so, the exaggerated sense of forcing integration with the context through enclosure (47) is reflected in a more balanced format through the masking of youth through education (04). Thus the overall theme is 'to wrap' and the degree is by general masking or intense, particular, enclosing.

In the traditional sequence hexagram 04 pairs with hexagram 03.

This pairing of 03 with 04 reflects issues in initial development, the individual focus on 'breaking through' reflected in 03, compared to the need for mixing-in with society through learning social requirements, being educated as an act of socialisation rather than for explicit understanding of what has been taught. The bias in the traditional sequence is to the distinctions of purity (reflected in 03) as compared to mixing (reflected in hexagram 04).

BEGINNINGS:

03 : beginnings - through sprouting (pierce the earth) 03 sprouting comes out of a context described by hexagram 20 - admiring(encouragement)

04 : beginnings - through socialising (masking) (beneath the surface) 04 masking comes out of a context described by hexagram 19 - approach (defer)

In the traditional sequence hexagram 04 opposes hexagram 61.

The focus in 04 is on the exterior, the mask itself, the ensuring that it fits 'correctly'. The focus in 61 is on the interior, the soft core beneath the hard exterior where that core allows for expressions of sympathy/empathy to operate from 'behind' the mask.

The generic properties of hexagram 04 reflect the mixing of the generic properties of hexagram 07 mixed with the generic properties of hexagram 19.

Hexagram 07 has an overall focus on establishing some form of 'order', of regimentation. Hexagram 19 has an overall focus on allowing the 'inferior' to approach the 'superior' where the superior 'defers'. Mixing these generic characteristics of 07 and 19 give us the generic characteristics of 04.

In the variations on a theme sequence, hexagram 04 complements hexagram 41.

Both hexagrams 04 and 41 reflect forms of 'refinement' where 04 reflects a focus on particular education of the young as a form of socialisation and 41 reflects this refinement process as an act of distillation, of concentrating 'raw' to make the 'refined', the 'pure'. As such, 04 is more 'social' oriented, 41 more 'personally' oriented. In the act of masking, of socialising, so one can develop "clouded awareness" and as such be "dull; ignorant".