Hexagram 13: Fellowship with Men
Hexagram
13. Fellowship with Men · Tong Ren
Structure of the sign
The image of the upper primary trigram, Ch'ien, is heaven; that of the lower, Li, is flame. It is the nature of fire to flame upward to heaven. This gives the idea of fellowship. It is the second line that, through its central nature, unites the five strong lines around itself. This hexagram is the counterpart of No. 7, The Army. There: danger within, obedience without, as the nature of a warlike army, which requires the one strong line among the many weak to hold it together. Here: clarity within, strength without, as the nature of the peaceful union of men, which requires the one yielding line among the many firm to hold it together.
The Judgment
Fellowship with men in the open: success. It furthers one to cross the great water. The perseverance of the superior man furthers. True fellowship among men must come about on the basis of a cosmic sympathy. Not the separate aims of the ego, but the goals of humanity bring forth lasting fellowship among men; therefore it is said: Fellowship with men in the open has success. When such unity prevails, even difficult and dangerous tasks, such as crossing the great water, can be accomplished. But in order to be able to bring about such fellowship, a persevering and enlightened leader is required, one who has clear, convincing, and inspiring goals and knows how to carry them out with strength. (The inner trigram signifies clarity, the outer strength.)
The Image
Heaven together with fire: the image of Fellowship with Men. Thus the superior man organizes the clans and distinguishes things. Heaven has the same direction of movement as fire and yet is distinct from it. Just as the luminous bodies in heaven serve to structure and divide time, so too human society and all things that truly belong together must be organically structured. Fellowship should not be a mingling of individuals and a confusion of things—that would be chaos, not fellowship; rather, it requires structured diversity in order to lead to order.
The lines
Line 1
Fellowship with men at the gate. No blame. The beginning of a union of men should take place before the door. All stand equally close to one another. No particular striving exists as yet. Thus one makes no mistake. The foundations of any union must be accessible to all participants in equal measure. Secret agreements bring misfortune.
Line 2▶ ruling line
Fellowship with men in the clan: humiliation. Here lies the danger of a faction based on personal and selfish interests. Such factions, which are exclusive and have no room for all, which must condemn one part of humanity in order to rally the rest together, arise from base motives and therefore lead in the long run to humiliation.
Line 3
He hides weapons in the thicket, climbs the high hill before it. For three years he does not rise up. Here fellowship has turned into mistrust. One distrusts others, lays a secret ambush, and seeks from afar to spy upon them. One is dealing with a tough adversary who cannot be overcome in this way. Here impediments are shown that stand in the way of fellowship with others. One harbors ulterior motives oneself and seeks an occasion to take the other by surprise. But this very thing breeds suspicion; one looks for the same deceit in the adversary and seeks to spy on them. Consequently, one moves further and further away from true fellowship. The longer it lasts, the more estranged one becomes.
Line 4
He climbs upon his wall; he cannot attack. Good fortune! Here reconciliation draws nearer after estrangement. Dividing walls are indeed still there, upon which the two sides face each other. But the difficulties are too great. One comes into distress, and through distress one comes to one's senses. One cannot fight, but precisely upon this rests good fortune.
Line 5▶ ruling line
The men bound in fellowship first weep and lament, but afterward they laugh. After great struggles they succeed in meeting. Here are two people outwardly separated, but united in heart. They are kept apart by their station in life. Between them arise many obstacles and hindrances that cause them sorrow. But they let no obstacle part them; rather, they remain true to one another. And although overcoming these obstacles costs severe struggles, they will nonetheless triumph, and then their sorrow will turn to joy when they find one another. Confucius says of this: 'Life leads the thoughtful man on a varied, winding path. Often the vigor of his course is hindered, then straight again it goes. Here an eloquent mind may pour itself out freely in words, There the heavy burden of knowledge must close itself in silence. Yet where two people are at one in their innermost heart, There they shatter even the strength of iron or bronze. And where two people understand each other completely in their innermost heart, Their words are sweet and strong like the fragrance of orchids.'
Line 6
Fellowship with men in the meadow: no remorse. Here the warm attachment of the heart is lacking. One stands, in truth, already outside the fellowship with others. Yet one joins in. The fellowship does not embrace all, but only those who dwell together outwardly. The meadow is the pasture outside the town. The ultimate goal of the union of mankind is not yet reached here. Still, one need not reproach oneself. One joins the company without selfish aims.
Bottom ☲ Fire (Li)
- Direction
- S
- Element
- Fire · Sun · Light
- Attributes
- Clarifying · Luminous · Clinging · Conscious · Beautiful
- Family
- Middle Daughter
Top ☰ Heaven (Kien)
- Direction
- NW
- Element
- Heaven · Metal
- Attributes
- Creative · Strong · Untiring · Luminous
- Family
- Father