44. Coming to Meet (姤)

The melon is a yin thing that lies below, sweet and delicious yet prone to decay. The medlar is a tall, large, and sturdy tree.

Nine in the Fifth Place, with yang firmness, centrality, and correctness, presides over the Gua above, and below it guards against the newly arising yin that is bound to decay; its image is like this.

However, the alternating triumph of yin and yang is the constant course of the seasons and fortune. If one can conceal and veil one's brilliant beauty, subduing it through tranquility, one can turn the course of nature around.

"Something falling from heaven" is an image of something originally absent that suddenly arrives.

The character she (捨) is pronounced like she (舍).

Nine in the Fifth Place also has no correspondence below and does not have an immediate encounter; yet having attained the Way of meeting, in the end it will surely have an encounter. The meeting between superior and subordinate stems from mutual seeking.

The medlar is a tall tree with large leaves; dwelling on high, large in body, and able to wrap things—this is the medlar. The fine fruit that lies below is the melon. What is fine yet dwells below is the image of a worthy person in obscure and humble circumstances.

Nine in the Fifth Place resides honorably in the ruler's position and seeks worthy talent below; from the utmost height it seeks the utmost lowliness, just as medlar leaves wrap a melon, able to humble and condescend itself like this.

Furthermore, it inwardly harbors the virtue of centrality and correctness, fully enriched with brilliant beauty. When a ruler of men is like this, there is nothing he seeks that he does not meet.

Even if one humbles oneself to seek the worthy, if one's virtue is not correct, the worthy will not deign to come. Therefore, one must hold within oneself brilliant beauty and inwardly accumulate utmost sincerity; then "there will be something falling from heaven."

This is like saying descending from heaven, meaning it will surely be attained.

Since antiquity, when a ruler of men with utmost sincerity condescends and seeks the worthy of the world through the Way of centrality and correctness, there has never been one who failed to meet them.

King Gaozong being moved in his dream, and King Wen meeting his minister by the fishing line—both arose from this Way.

What is called "harboring brilliance" means harboring within oneself the virtue of centrality and correctness. When virtue is fully enriched, it forms brilliance and possesses radiant brightness. "Mandate" is Heavenly Principle; "abandon" means to go against.

With utmost sincerity, centrality, and correctness, humbling oneself to seek the worthy and keeping one's will in accord with Heavenly Principle—this is why there is something falling from heaven, which will surely be attained.

The medlar is a plant that grows in fertile ground. The wrapped melon is a thing that is tied up and not eaten.

Nine in the Fifth Place treads into the honorable position yet does not meet its correspondence; it has attained the land yet cannot eat, harboring brilliance without displaying it; not meeting its correspondence, its mandate has not yet spread.

Yet dwelling in its proper place, firm in substance and residing in the center, its will does not abandon the mandate and it cannot be overthrown; hence it is said, "There is something falling from heaven."

"Nine in the Fifth Place wraps a melon with medlar leaves" up to "there is something falling from heaven." The Sub-commentary states: As for "wrapping a melon with medlar leaves," the medlar is a plant that grows in fertile land; the melon is a thing tied up and not eaten.

Nine in the Fifth Place dwells in the honorable position yet does not meet its correspondence; this is attaining fertile ground yet not eating, hence it says "wrapping a melon with medlar leaves."

As for "harboring brilliance, there is something falling from heaven," not meeting its correspondence, its mandate has not yet spread, and no external thing brings forth its beauty; hence it is said to "harbor brilliance."

Yet firm in substance and residing in the center, though properly positioned, its mandate has not yet spread, yet it cannot change its integrity, and nothing can overthrow it; hence it says, "There is something falling from heaven." This means that only Heaven can let it fall.

The commentary notes: "The medlar is a plant that grows in fertile ground." The Sub-commentary states: Regarding "the medlar is a plant that grows in fertile ground," earlier scholars' explanations of the medlar also differed. Ma Rong said: "The medlar is a large tree."

The Zuo Zhuan says: "The medlar, the catalpa, hides, and leathers come from Chu," which refers to the medlar of the medlar and catalpa. Master Zixia's Commentary states: "Written as medlar and gourd." Xue Yu's Record states: "The medlar is the medlar-willow.

The nature of the medlar is pliant and tough, suited to bending and flexing, resembling a bottle gourd." This again takes it as the medlar-willow. We note: Master Wang says it "grows in fertile ground," presumably taking the medlar to be today's wolfberry (gouqi).

The Sub-commentary states: As for "centrality and correctness," because of centrality and correctness it has beauty; because of having no correspondence it "harbors brilliance" without displaying it.

If it were not for Nine in the Fifth Place being central and correct, it would have no beauty to harbor; hence the line position is cited to speak of "centrality and correctness."

As for "its will does not abandon the mandate," though its mandate has not yet spread, it dwells in the honorable and correct position, and "its will does not abandon the mandate"; hence it is said that "it cannot be overthrown."