The Twelfth Song: Heaven and Earth Do Not Mix, Liu Bang Slices the Serpent
Light shines three feet in the hand;
Heaven does not keep the Qin, so it is permissible to defy them.
A stroke of the sword cuts the void, slicing through the jade ring.
The King of Chu was defeated and had no way to return to Chu.
Hexagram interpretation:
"The hexagram representing obstruction means stagnation and lack of progress. This hexagram is the complete opposite of the "Heaven and Earth Unite" hexagram that preceded it. The "Heaven" hexagram represents the sky, with its yang energy above and rising. The "Earth" hexagram represents the ground, with its yin energy descending. This signifies the separation and lack of flow between the yin and yang energies of heaven and earth. If we compare this to human affairs in society, the upper trigram, Heaven, represents strength, while the lower trigram, Earth, represents gentleness. This means that those in power are arrogant and do not care for their subordinates, while those below are cowardly and incompetent. The wills of those above and below are not united. On one hand, the gentleman represented by the Heaven trigram is in the outer trigram, signifying being rejected or excluded. The villain represented by the Earth trigram is in the inner trigram, holding power. Consequently, the Way cannot be practiced (stagnation and lack of progress), and the world falls into chaos. Therefore, it is named the "Obstruction" hexagram."