The Eight Roles
The Chinese Caste system underwent many changes reflecting the historical circumstances. Confucianism, which deals with moral governance, set forward the ideals of the social classes. The ranking starts with the Emperor and the proceeds downwards. The descent to lower classes is based partly on perceived usefulness in the society, but we are not interested in that aspect so much as we are looking at the inner basis for the classes. The classes represent states of interaction and interdependence with the world and emotions. One class will usually be our focus, an inner and outer role, and that may change over the course of our life. They are all within us so if the circumstances are right this inner role will come to the surface. Most of us operate within several of them. The ranking has to do with difficulties that each of the inner classes also posses, the amount of purification, generation, and stability they afford.
The Emperor can be thought of as the Self, and we can say the empire is the world we are in, both the actual world, and the world that our mind has created. One must first govern the self, have a measure of inner awareness and the ability to generate personal transformation. From that our virtue radiates out congruently into the kingdom. The Emperor was to abide in calmness and allow the kingdom to unfold. For if the emperor became ambitious, full of lust for fame, desire for greatness, then the kingdom would reflect that by generating wars of conquest, unrest, and struggles for power. The Emperor is receptive to spirit.
The Scholar, in ancient China studied and passed civil service exams in order to gain a government post. The object of study was the traditional Confucian cannon. The inner scholar seeks higher knowledge, this has three parts, inner knowledge, higher knowledge, and knowledge by identity. The mind should be made flexible, expanded, able to be receptive, and to express what needs to occur. The traces of old unexamined ideas that are mechanically repeated, the surge of lower emotional energies that motivate speech must be removed, the form of reason over contact with identity, must be torn down. The Scholar works on knowledge of Self.
The Farmer is one who plants and waits for the harvest, measures out resources, knows the cycles of time, has the support of the community, is a responsible steward. This role comes out most often in family. Having children means that we have to give up our personal time for others and must focus on a group endeavor to use resources effectively. Personal identity becomes part of the tribe/family. The dark side of this role is often being stuck on the land, so to speak, we often give up active parts our self, parts that were growing in order to take on the responsibilities of family, when the kids grow up these parts of ourselves often reemerge. Balancing personal growth and family can be a difficult task if other family members don't support your changes. Our personal roles and emotions are often shared and spread out through the family members. The Farmer works on family issues.
The Artisan, is the maker of objects, this role is often one that stems from necessity and adaptation, but when freed from circumstance it is the role of the improver not only of the physical world, say with someone doing permaculture, or tinkering on alternative energy improvements to the home, but also with education, music, and other areas of development through hobbies, it is characterized by a need to improve. A need to express and reveal the inner life. The downside is seeking fame, need for emotional recognition, esteem issues, and taste issues. The Artisan works on taste issues.
Merchants are the risk takers and seekers. The merchants measure resources not to insure stability of the family, but they seek to improve their position and wealth. They seek to accomplish great tasks, they are willing to risk loss, they see resources as opportunities. They include knowledge and the ability to present the self, professionalism, marketing, they also are the part of ourselves that allow for long term planning beyond immediate need, the farmer sees ahead to times where there is drought, the merchant looks forward to create a time of great wealth, so this part of ourselves should be well versed in making use of common investment tools for retirements, takes care of insurance, health care, and buys the car and house. Not just the tractor and the water heater! Many people have money issues, both with fear and emotional vicissitudes. The merchant enjoys life, from the barter to the boat. Merchants work on money issues.
Soldiers have the ability to be disciplined and endure hardship, they can give very strong determination, concentration, and be thorough, alert and dedicated. The soldier is efficient, able to use flexibility of the mind, and will to dominate situation, and people. They can go against the grain of their personal preferences and comfort. However often the warrior is trapped by survival emotions. The Warrior works on personal issues.
Emperor
Scholars
Farmers
Artisans
Merchants
Soldiers
There are two additional roles that are not used as basis for development. These two have to do with the personal awakening of the person and the circumstances. Confucianism over time marginalized the noble class out of the caste system.
The Noble is someone of good circumstances, but little self awareness. They may have many good qualities and excellent balance as a person, but they are simply cruise through life without any inner awareness. This is often the case of people with good wealth, and in the modern period this can include much of the middle class, who don't have to work too hard. They can indulge their personal interests and inclinations. Without there being a larger self conception. Nobles have good character, but they avoid the self. Fly under the radar of the Emperor. The noble works to feel comfort and enjoyment.
The Slave
This is a person who is basically dominated by circumstances. People with serious illnesses, mental impairment, suffer from drug addictions, or live in poverty, war, severe social oppression, or natural devastation. They may have an awakening and if given opportunity would excel in many areas, but they are a seed on infertile soil. The slave has no opportunity for self expression. The slave is compelled to work.
There also interact in sixty-four variations. Meaning you can pair any of the eight. So for instance when you put the merchant and the soldier together you get the diplomat. This can be useful in working out conflicts between emerging roles. So for instance the soldier and merchant give your diplomat can be useful in understanding the learning process of martial arts person opening their own training academy. The roles will often conflict initially over money issues and their art. It is not necessary to work out all the possible combinations, rather if one understands the eight within oneself, you will easily see them in others. You will also flow between them without much thought and be able to adapt to situations and to interact from seeing the interdependence.
Some are interesting if rare occurrences, the Emperor/Slave, for instance someone who controls their death process, dying in a hospital they wait for the last person they need to see to come to them from far away before dying. The Slave/Emperor where someone may be severely mentally and physically handicapped, but is surrounded by love, and generates benefits for the people who are the caretakers.
The Noble/Scholar can be someone who has knowledge of some depth in a particular area, such as psychology, but has not any real substance of it from their own experience. Some people also read many books, listen to plenty of motivational speakers, are accepting of all the hidden powers of nature, for instance energy healing or astral projection, they go to see psychics, and talk the talk, but don't do any practice, going from psychic to psychic or to the next new and different thing with a crystal and a litany of its effects.
Each of the eight roles also has three elements, the personal, the circumstances, and the inner depth. All three interact. The inner depth is at the core, bottom line, then comes the personal, then the circumstances. They are either favorable, solid, or unfavorable, broken. This produces the eight Trigrams.
One can spend much time arranging ideas, or one can look at people and see how they deal with the three elements. Some can have very negative circumstances and overcome them, or come from very poor personal molds, alchoholic family memembers, and overcome it, or be the reverse as when someone has a good job, shows great ability and wisdom only to have tragic personal failings.
