BROKENNESS: AN ANCIENT PERSPECTIVE
A Yin line according to the I Ching is visually represented by two dashes. — — Oftentimes, it's referred to as a broken line or a yielding line.
To compare that to a Yang line that is visually represented. ___It's a solid line that does not have space as an interruption.
A yielding, interrupted or broken line is a receptive line. There is space within the line, suggesting the Void aspect of the Yin, and when the Void is expressed and filled, the line becomes solid, materialized; it becomes Yang.
It's important for me to discuss how in ancient Chinese esoteric practice, the idea of "broken” does not mean fucked up or something is wrong with it. Broken simply means there's space for receptivity - something very different from the mindset of the West.
And I think in terms of examining our lives, and maybe the parts that we deem broken, this idea of broken meaning receptive is potentially redemptive. That nothing is irreparable, that you don't just throw things in the trash when they "stop working".
When something "breaks", it indicates that there's space now, it means that there's space to hold something new. This is the original "zero waste" concept. The ancient Chinese mystics have always understood this, that there is no such thing as waste.
So to take back the term "broken", and to restore it to its rightful place of "broken" meaning "yielding" or "spacious" or "reclaiming capacity", and we can apply this inwards and outwards, it changes everything. To create change, to manifest, to mend, is to return to the "broken".
— excerpt from Week 2 of Wood + Metal Module of the Mystery Mentorship. Join us in this sacred temple of learning with Yin, Yang, and the Elements as our Teachers. Return to the broken with us. More info HERE. Sliding scale tuition still currently available.
Mimi XO
founder, spirit communicator + Wu shamanic occultist