I Ching: Friday, September 18

One of the sixty-four hexagrams

This is an archived reading, kept as it was published.

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Treading

Hexagram 10 is the book's most quoted image: treading on the tiger's tail, and it does not bite. The Judgment is a statement of fact rather than a promise. The tiger is real, the danger is real, and correct conduct is the entire margin of safety. The Image is heaven above the lake, and the noble person distinguishing high from low so everyone knows where they stand. Today you are near something that could bite. It will not, provided you tread properly: courteous, exact, unhurried, without pretending the tiger is a cat. Manner is what saves you here, not strength and not speed. Mind where you put your feet.

For your star sign

The same reading, taken through each sign of the zodiac.

Aries

You will step on the tail on purpose to see what happens. The hexagram is about not being bitten, and the margin is manner. Today, be exactly courteous to the thing that could hurt you.

Taurus

You tread carefully by nature and today that is the whole skill. Do not let anyone hurry you past the tiger. Slow, correct, and unhurried is what the Judgment means by not bitten.

Gemini

You will chat to the tiger. Say less today. Correct conduct near something dangerous is mostly restraint, and the tail is stepped on by whoever is talking while they walk.

Cancer

You feel the tiger before you see it, which is an advantage. The addition is that the danger is real and the response is conduct rather than retreat. Walk past it properly today.

Leo

You will treat the tiger as an equal. It is not. Today the hexagram asks you to know your position exactly, high or low, and to step accordingly. Pride is how the tail gets trodden.

Virgo

You will study the tiger's habits before you move. Study them briefly. Today the safety is in the manner of walking, not in the research, and the manner can be practised at once.

Libra

Distinguishing high from low is what the Image asks, and it is the distinction you avoid making. Make it today. Knowing where you stand relative to the tiger is what keeps your feet safe.

Scorpio

You have stepped on tails before and survived. This tiger is different. Today the conduct is the margin, and your usual method of daring it to bite is exactly the wrong one.

Sagittarius

You will not notice the tiger until you are on the tail. Look down today. The hexagram is about treading, and treading means knowing what is under your foot.

Capricorn

You tread correctly by habit and today the habit is the whole instruction. Do not innovate near the tiger. The established manner is the established manner for a reason.

Aquarius

You will question why the tiger should be treated with deference. Because it bites. Today the hexagram is not interested in the principle; it is interested in your feet.

Pisces

You will drift too close without meaning to. Today keep your outline sharp and your steps deliberate. The tiger does not bite the person who knows exactly where they are.

For your Chinese animal

The same reading, taken through each animal of the Chinese zodiac.

Rat

You know where the tiger is and will get close for the advantage. Today conduct is the advantage. Tread correctly, take nothing you were not offered, and the tail stays untrodden.

Ox

You will walk past the tiger the same way you walk past everything: slowly and without looking. Look today. Correct conduct includes knowing what you are being correct toward.

Tiger

You are the tiger and today you are also the one treading. Keep both roles straight. The hexagram's danger is real, and being it does not make you immune to it.

Rabbit

You are never near the tiger by choice and today you are. The hexagram says you will be fine, provided the manner is right. Be courteous, exact, and do not run.

Dragon

You will assume the tiger defers to you. It does not. Today, distinguish high from low honestly, and tread as one who knows the danger is not impressed.

Snake

You tread quietly and correctly by nature and this is your day. The one caution is not to tread so quietly that the tiger is startled. Be seen, and be correct.

Horse

You will run past the tiger. Walk. The hexagram is about treading, and speed near the tail is how the foot lands on it.

Goat

You will apologise to the tiger in advance. Do not. Correct conduct is not appeasement. Today, be courteous and firm, and know your position without shrinking it.

Monkey

You will play with the tail because it is there. Not today. The Judgment is a fact, not a dare, and manner is the only margin on offer.

Rooster

You will correct the tiger's conduct. Correct your own. Today the hexagram is about your feet and nobody else's, and the tail is stepped on by whoever was looking elsewhere.

Dog

You will put yourself between the tiger and someone else. The hexagram does not ask for that. Today tread correctly yourself, and trust that the others know where their feet are.

Pig

You will assume the tiger is friendly because it has not bitten yet. It has stayed calm because of how you walked. Keep walking that way today.

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