妤 If the girl is strong, do not use it to get the girl.
The pronunciation of the word "姤" is gòu. " Shuowen Jiezi " notes "姤, even", which means to meet. Some scholars believe that "妤" here should be translated as "阘" or "媾", the meeting of yin and yang, which is extended to the meaning of marriage and intercourse between men and women. Although the hexagram begins with "If a woman is strong, do not take a woman", I feel that I should be right to understand the relationship between men and women. But if you interpret all the hexagrams and lines together, you will find that what the author wants to express is not such a simple thought. In other words, I think "妤" does not mean "阘" or "徾", and it should be understood from its original meaning.
In other words, "姤" should be met in its original meaning. Since encounter is of course a matter between people, it can also be between a country and a country. Teaching people how to behave when meeting others is the art of interpersonal communication. What if it is between states? Of course, when discussing state governance, we often mention diplomacy. Although the content of the hexagrams and lines is very simple, it can reflect many principles and principles of diplomacy. The content of this hexagram and line can be summarized as "the way of diplomatic relations".
Although it talks about interpersonal communication or state diplomacy, the author still uses marriage as an example to give general advice - "If a girl is strong, do not take a girl." The meaning is very straightforward. The woman is too strong, so it is best not to marry her home. The connotation of this sentence is not difficult to understand. In the process of marriage, we pay attention to being well-matched. In the process of interacting with people, there are also differences in levels. Although this kind of discipleship is a bad habit that is criticized in modern society, it is probably too difficult for people who have to worry about daily necessities to only talk about romance. Similarly, in interactions between states, one must have a relatively accurate assessment of oneself. If one rushes to form an alliance with a state whose national power is too much stronger than one's own, the result is likely to be loss of power, humiliation of the country, and becoming a vassal of others.
What attitude should a country with strong national power adopt in foreign affairs? The author of " I Ching " didn't talk about it, but you can refer to Laozi's view on the relationship between states in his "Tao Te Ching" that "the one who is a big state is obscene, and the world is full of females." It is pointed out that even major powers should maintain a low profile during diplomatic relations. In the diplomacy of a major country, on the one hand, one must be willing to live in a low position; on the other hand, one must know how to be tolerant and how to use softness to overcome strength, just like those female animals in the world, although they are all weak and tolerant. In this way, in the eyes of others, this powerful person will not be a "strong woman", and others will not have the idea of "don't use women". Only by its governance concepts and strategies can it become an example for the whole world to learn from, so that its philosophy and culture can be recognized by more people, and ultimately achieve the ultimate goal of bringing the world back to its core. This is called "the female of the world".
