Nourishment

Nourishment. Perseverance brings good fortune. Pay heed to the providing of nourishment and to what a person seeks to fill their own mouth with.

Nourishment is not just about food. It is about what you take in through every sense. The superior person is careful of their words and temperate in eating and drinking. Thunder at the foot of the mountain — the energy of speech and consumption, held in check by stillness. Pay attention to what you are feeding yourself. Your body, your mind, your spirit — each needs its own kind of nourishment.

Hexagram 27, Yi (Nourishment), depicts Thunder beneath Mountain — the energy of consumption held in check by stillness. The image is striking: the superior person is careful of words and temperate in eating and drinking. The mouth is the gateway through which both food and speech enter the world. The judgment instructs us to pay heed to the providing of nourishment and to what a person seeks to fill their own mouth with — a teaching about discernment in what we take in and what we put out. The I Ching describes the present moment with such precision that the next natural movement becomes visible. Understanding the pattern you are in is the first step toward wise action.