On the Difference Between Stems and Branches in Like and Dislike (Xi Ji Gan Zhi You Bie)

Stems Act, Branches Wait

Two stems of the same element cannot be equated with two branches of it, and Shen gives the reason: a stem is single, heavenly and in motion; a branch is earthly, still, and stores several stems at once. Two xin revealed in the stems genuinely double the officer, while two you in the branches merely give the officer a thicker root. The chapter closes with the exception that keeps it from being mechanical: a branch can still wound, but only once it has gathered with others into a moving element.