Duration

                                                                       32.   Heng / Duration

                                     "Duration is  a state whose movement is not worn down by hindrances .   It is not a state of rest, for mere standstill is regression .  Duration is rather the self-contained and therefore self-renewing movement of an organized, firmly integrated whole, taking place in accordance of immutable laws and beginning anew at every ending .   The end is reached by an inward movement, by inhalation, systole, contraction, and this movement turns into a new beginning, in which the movement is directed outward, in exhalation, diastole, expansion .

                                      " Heavenly bodies exemplify Duration .  They move in their fixed orbits, and because of this their light-giving power endures .   The seasons of the year follow a fixed law of change and transformation, hence can produce effect that endure .  

                                        "So likewise the dedicated man embodies an enduring meaning in his way of life, and thereby the world is formed .   In that which gives things their Duration, we can come to understand the nature of all beings in heaven and on earth ."