Positive IV.

Sever your thumb, and then your

friend will come and believe you.

Interpretation. "Sever your thumb'"-because the position is improper.

Negative V. Honourable men cut off [their connection with small-minded men], and will be lucky. The effect will be seen in small-minded men.

Interpretation.

"Honourable men "Honourable men cut off [their connection with small-minded men]," that is smallminded men will retire.

Negative VI. A prince shoots with the bow a falcon on a high wall. The bird is obtained, and it will be advantageous in every way.

Interpretation. "A prince shoots with the bow a falcon"-this implies that the refractory is to be discarded.

EXAMPLES.

DEBT OF YAMASHIROYA WASUKE.

Mr. Yamashiroya Wasuke was born in the province of Chōshu. During the time of Genji and Keio, he celebrated himself by military achievements, but after the Revolution he altered his course in life, became a marchant, bound for the Military Department. In the 5th. or 6th. year of Meiji, he was defeated in his business and came very near to bankruptcy, his total debt from the Department, being about 400,000 yen of which the term for 150,000 yen was the shortest and pressing near hand. He was ordered very severely that unless he can have either Yamashiroya or Tomiya for his guarantor, no delay will be given. He then sent a man to me at Atami, and asked me to return home; and I returned

home with him to Yokohama. When I arrived at my house, I met Mr. Okawa Jinbei, his agent, there, who related to me the details of the matter, and asked me to stand as the security. I divined and met with the change of the hexagram of "Kai ()" into that of "Ki-Mai (' and adressed the agent as follows:

"Do you know the general nature of lending and borrowing of money? I shall tell you. Its nature is to promise a futurity before it happens, or to take a future responsibility in the present. The two parties must have been confident of each other, and have promised, when they bargained, a future profit or loss. The Department and your master have been confiding each other, and have sent forth a large sum of money. As long as your master was prósperous it never demanded and now when he is pressed, it presses upon him and demands a guarantor. The two parties are thus throwing their loss upon me. I have now consulted with the 'Eki,' and know that this money can be paid. It can be paid, but if I interfere with, it will be all spoiled. For supposing I enter as a security between them, your master's endeavour of payment will be changed, and the course of demanding of the Department will be directed upon me alone, and I shall be alone inflicting the trouble of the two parties. I shall now explain to you the principle of the 'Eki.'

"I have obtained the change of ‘Kai' into ‘Kimai.’ 'Kai' is a hexagram of difficulty as it has 'Shin' for its upper and Kai for its lower complement; and the 'Exposition' says, 'Kai is perilous and moving; and moving, it escapes from danger; such is Kai!,' therefore if a diviner obtains this hexagram, and if he is not yet in the peril, he must retreat and avoid it, as the 'Figuration' says 'Advantageous in the southwest. When there is no place to go, it will be lucky to come

back,' where southwest is to retreat. If he is, however, already in peril and unable to retreat, he must try to avoid it by advancing, and that quickly, as it continues. 'When there is a place to go, it will be lucky to be quick.' Now your master is already in peril, and I, not yet; so that he must quickly advance and avoid it, and I retreat. Moreover I obtained the 'Negative I' which says, 'is free from blame,' as I am retreating without meeting the peril. I am thus all right, but your master must not retreat; he must try to leave the peril behind by advancing himself.

"The 2nd. and 3rd. are all within the danger of 'Kan,' and I see that you will receive two more severe urges from the Department, and the latter of which will be the severest. The Negative III' says 'Bears a burden and at the same time rides; invites enemies,' whose 'Appendix' says 'to bear a burden is the action of small-minded men, and to ride is that of great men. As the small-minded men are riding on great men, thieves will detect it and rob it away,' which is an emblem of a 'small man's' borrowing a large sum of money and receiving severe demands. These two demands are the extreme distresses to your master. But on the next or the 3rd. demand, it will advice him that he must banish his clerk, and manage his house properly, as the fault is due to that clerk, and not to himself. "The 'Positive IV' says, 'Sever your thumb and then your friend will come and believe you;' on the 4th., it will offer your master with a good clerk for his assistance. The 'Negative V' says, 'Honourable men cut off [their connection with small-minded men], and will be lucky. The effect will be seen in small-minded men;' on the 5th., perhaps it will be in want of many utensils, and will indicate a best course to be pursued; or if you are deficient in capitals, it will lend you some and assist you in the payment of your debts with the in

terests. The Negative VI' says, 'A prince shoots with a bow a falcon on a high wall. The bird is obtained, and it will be advantageous in every way; at this time, the losses will be filled up, and the debts will all be finished. You must then be patient, and proceed in this order."

The agent accepted my advice and went home. However, as Yamashiroya was not acquainted with the 'Eki' he could not bear a second demand and he scratched his abdomen and committed suicide on the very night.

ANTICIPATION OF KŌSHEN-OSHO'S TOPIC OF
CONVERSATION, BEFORE SEEING HIM.

Mr. Kōshen Imagawa, incumbent of Enkakuji of Kamakura, is, as every one knows, a learned and intelligent priest. I once went to Kamakura to see him. I thought that if I will see him he will speak on Buddhism and I on Eki, and I tried to divine by what kind of reasonings he will oppose me. I calculated and obtained the "Negative VI” of “Kai (f

).”

"Kai means to vanish, to vanish away the bond of selfish desires,' so that it refers to Buddhism. The lower complement Kan' which is water,' danger,' 'entrapping,' an emblem of 'sinking in the agony of life and death. Kai is also 'sickness at heart,' or an emblem of selfish desire.' Again, it is the 6th. in order, an emblem of the 'six gates of future life.' 'The upper complement is 'Shin' which is 'motion,' and 'eldest son,' or the emblem of well-ended man of the Buddhists. Again, 'Shin' is shore,' and 'advancing,' an emblem of advancing to the opposite shore of life.' Combining all these emblems, we have the meaning of the complements of 'Kai,' that is, to bless people sunk in

the agony of life and death, and assist them in reaching the opposite shore. Therefore, the 'Exposition' says, 'Kai is perilous and moving; and moving, it escapes from danger. Such is Kai. The Negative VI' is at the extremity of the hexagram, and the meaning of the hexagram expires here, so that, the Oshō is at the extreme limit of understanding.

"The 'Negative VI' says, ‘À prince shoots with a bow a falcon on a high wall. The bird is obtained, and it will be advantageous in every way,' in which falcon is the most spright of birds. The Osh will speak of the quickness of the rising and descending of the spirit, by comparing it to a falcon. Shoots a falcon on a high wall,' means to investigate the properties of the spirit, and understand the developement of conscience, by means of sublime learnings and continual experiences. These are the objects of metaphysical sciences, and it may be regarded as the greatest pleasure in life, to investigate them in leisures, for any one. The topic of the Osho's conversation, to-day, will be merely on the meaning of 'Kai. Again the inversion of this hexagram is 'Ken ()' in which 'Kan' is ear and 'Gon' is hand which is the enigma 'hear the voice of a single hand' of the Buddhists. Also 'Ken' is lame, which refers to the 'sitting in religious abstractions.' The Oshō will try me with these topics."

He was very

Then I went to the Temple to him. much pleased with my visit, and welcomed me very heartily. The conversation of the priest was exactly as I divined. I explained him the divination of 'Ken' and 'Kai' to him, and after a time, I took leave of him.