ASK ROASTIE

BAD ADVICE. GOOD TIMING.

HEXAGRAM 8 OF 64 WATER OVER EARTH

HOLDING TOGETHER

比 Bǐ

union, alliance, loyalty, a center to gather around, joining in time

ROASTIE

Holding Together. Water settling on Earth, everyone gathering around a center. The book says the latecomers meet misfortune. You are the latecomer. You are always the latecomer. You showed up to your own surprise party after the cake, and the center everybody was holding together around was the decision to stop inviting you. Ya roasted!

THE JUDGMENT

Good fortune. Ask the oracle again whether you have the lasting character for it; then no mistake. The unsettled come to join; latecomers meet misfortune.

THE LINES, BOTTOM TO TOP

  1. Line 1 Sincere in seeking union; no mistake. Sincerity full like a plain earthen bowl; other good things come in the end.
  2. Line 2 Seeking union from the inner heart; staying firm brings good fortune.
  3. Line 3 Seeking union with people who are not the right ones; there is harm in it.
  4. Line 4 Seeking union with those outside the inner circle; staying firm brings good fortune.
  5. Line 5 The clearest union; the king drives game on three sides and lets the front escape; the people need no warning; good fortune.
  6. Line 6 Seeking union with no head to hold it together; misfortune.
THROW YOUR OWN ALL SIXTY-FOUR

Text: the I Ching, after James Legge's 1882 translation, public domain, trimmed into plain English. The take: a coffee bean, licensed in nothing.