Hexagram 46The Upward Surge
Upper : Earth (Kun) - ☷Lower : Wind (Xun) - ☴
"The upward surge achieves sublime success. One must seek the great man. Do not be afraid. The journey southward brings fortune."
The tree (Wind/Wood) gently yet inexorably emerges from the earth (Kun). This is not the swift ascent of Thunder, but the patient, supple, and continuous effort of the sap rising. Nothing can halt a growing tree. It is an exceedingly favorable moment for gradual evolution, career development, or the construction of long-term projects. Fear nothing, advance resolutely (toward the south, the light).
"Within the earth grows the wood: the image of the upward surge. Thus the noble man dedicates himself to his character and accumulates the small to create the great."
A mighty oak is but the accumulation of millions of tiny cells growing day after day in the same direction.
The process of individuation in its most organic and harmonious phase. Your consciousness (the tree) rises by drawing nourishment from the depths of your unconscious (the earth). There is no conflict here. The Ego accepts the growth dictated by the Self. Continue your inner work, your readings, your therapy, or your art with metronomic regularity. The final result will be majestic.
It is the anti-entropic action of the Living (Capillarity or Photosynthesis). The universe naturally tends toward disorder (entropy) and gravity pulls everything downward. Yet, the plant (and consciousness) defies gravity and degradation by using information and energy (the solar photon) to organize matter and push upward. It is the miraculous victory of order over chaos.