hexagram3
above K’AN THE ABYSMAL, WATER below CHêN THE AROUSING, THUNDER The name of the hexagram, Chun, really connotes a blade of grass pushing against an obstacle as it sprouts out of the earth–hence the meaning, “difficulty at the beginning.” The...
hexagram4
above KêN KEEPING STILL, MOUNTAIN below K’AN THE ABYSMAL, WATER Youthful folly is the natural extension of difficulty at the beginning. Whenever we venture into the unknown or new circumstance we are vulnerable to the folly of our own inexperience. In this...
hexagram5
above K’AN THE ABYSMAL, WATER below CH’IEN THE CREATIVE, HEAVEN All beings have need of nourishment from above. But the gift of food comes in its own time, and for this one must wait. this hexagram shows the clouds in the heavens, giving rain to...
Hexagram 6, Conflict
Hexagram 6, Conflict above CH’IEN THE CREATIVE, HEAVEN below K’AN THE ABYSMAL, WATER The upper trigram, whose image is heaven, has an upward movement; the lower trigram, water, in accordance with its nature tends downward. Thus the two halves move away...
hexagram7
above K’UN THE RECEPTIVE, EARTH below K’AN THE ABYSMAL, WATER this hexagram is made up of the trigrams K’an, water, and K’un, earth, and thus it symbolizes the ground water stored up in the earth. In the same way military strength is stored up...
hexagram8
above K’AN THE ABYSMAL, WATER below K’UN THE RECEPTIVE, EARTH The waters on the surface of the earth flow together wherever they can, as for example in the ocean, where all the rivers come together. Symbolically this connotes holding together and the...
hexagram11
above K’UN THE RECEPTIVE, EARTH below CH’IEN THE CREATIVE, HEAVEN The Receptive, which moves downward, stands above; the Creative, which moves upward, is below. Hence their influences meet and are in harmony, so that all living things bloom and...
hexagram12
above CH’IEN THE CREATIVE, HEAVEN below K’UN THE RECEPTIVE, EARTH this hexagram is the opposite of the preceding one. Heaven is above, drawing farther and farther away, while the earth below sinks farther into the depths. The creative powers are not in...
hexagram19
above K’UN THE RECEPTIVE, EARTH below TUI THE JOYOUS, LAKE The Chinese word lin has a range of meanings that is not exhausted by any single word of another language. The ancient explanations in the Book of Changes give as its first meaning, “becoming...
hexagram21
above LI THE CLINGING, FIRE below CHêN THE AROUSING, THUNDER this hexagram represents an open mouth (cf. hexagram 27) with an obstruction (in the fourth place) between the teeth. As a result the lips cannot meet. To bring them together one must bite energetically...