Archetype 36: Darkening
Then the soldiers of the governor took Jesus into the governor’s headquarters, and they gathered the whole cohort around him. They stripped him and put a scarlet robe on him, and after twisting some thorns into a crown, they put it on his head. They put a reed in his right hand and knelt before him and mocked him, saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” They spat on him, and took the reed and struck him on the head. After mocking him, they stripped him of the robe and put his own clothes on him. Then they led him away to crucify him.
—Matthew 27:26–31
The Reading
Jesus has been beaten, mocked, and humiliated. He has been deserted by his followers. He is alone and facing a terrifying death. The light that he has brought seems about to be snuffed by the darkness and oppression of the Roman Empire.
The Hexagram
The image of the lower trigram is Fire. The image of the upper trigram is Earth. The light of the fire has been buried under the earth. Darkness reigns.
The Archetype
There is a time...
- To recognize that evil has taken power.
- To accept that it is the nature of evil to do harm to those who follow Wisdom.
- To not be swept away by evil but remain inwardly committed to the truth.
- To be flexible on the outside while holding to the light on the inside.
- To be willing to hide one’s light in the short term to achieve one’s goals in the long term.
- To avoid provoking hostility through careless behavior.
- To embrace humility in social interactions.
Now is that time.
Moving Lines
Other interpretations of Archetype 36:
- Tom Christensen's interpretation [click here]
- Cafe Au Soul's interpretation [click here]
- LiSe's interpretation [click here]
- Richard Wilhelm's interpretation [click here]
Internal Links:
- Return to the Hexagram Index Table [click here].
- Return to Consulting the Christian I Ching [click here].
- Purchase a printed copy of Wisdom's Way; The Christian I Ching [click here].
- Learn about our Online Christian I Ching Workshop [click here].
- Find out about personal consultations [click here].
Reproduced with permission from Wisdom's Way; The Christian I Ching copyright (c) 2015 Roger Sessions.