Comments on: Living with confusion

By: Nelson

Nelson — Tue, 05 Jul 2005 13:07:30 +0000

From my small experience sometimes my demeanor
and emotion has something to do with the answer
I get.
I think I had an attitude of conquering and
achieving and divination can be a part of
accomplishing that. If you do then it, the
answers, will reflect or a way of explaining it
the answers will “bounce” back in the way
the questions left.

So I am trying my best to accept the answer-
as far as I know in my problem there is nothing
I can do except, from my reading of the answer,
receive a mandate from heaven.
Nelson

By: Hilary

Hilary — Mon, 04 Jul 2005 11:29:18 +0000

I’m no doubt a very strange diviner, but if you have another look, you’ll see that wasn’t what I was arguing for. (Try re-reading the quotation from Stephen, for instance.) I didn’t say Yi can’t or doesn’t resolve uncertainty. I said it didn’t do so instantly, and the desire for it to do so instantly can get in the way of actually paying attention to the answer. No ‘just add oracle for instant simplification’ – or not without some distilled attention in the mix. It’s a way of going through, not round; going further in to find your way out.

By: Bob

Bob — Mon, 04 Jul 2005 11:06:25 +0000

I agree with the need to accept uncertainty, and it is a key tenet of several religions. Only God knows what is really going on. It is presumptuous for us to claim that knowledge. We should learn to accept the terms of our humanity.

However, don’t you think this leads to a bit of a paradox regarding divination? Why else do we consult the Yi except to clarify our doubts and understand our problems? If reading the Yi cannot resolve uncertainty, then what is the point of using it? After all, it does seem we can save ourselves a lot of bother by accepting uncertainty, embracing our limitations, doing our best, and forgetting about the Yi. After all, why wrestle with the Yi fruitlessly when you can wrestle directly with life at worst with the same result? Especially if the Yi has no power to untie knots or resolve doubts or reveal hidden knowledge.

It is a strange diviner who argues for the impotence of her oracle.