Every hexagram of the Book of Changes in the King Wen sequence — the Judgment, the Image, the meaning, the reading for love and career, and all six moving lines.
Cast Your Own Hexagram — FreeA hexagram is a figure of six lines, each either solid (yang, —) or broken (yin, – –). Six lines give sixty-four possible figures, and the I Ching — the Book of Changes, a Chinese oracle roughly three thousand years old — assigns each one an archetypal situation and a body of text: a Judgment (the verdict), an Image(the counsel, drawn from the two trigrams that make up the figure), and a line text for each of the six positions, read when that line is “moving”.
Every hexagram is two trigrams stacked. The lower three lines describe the inner situation; the upper three describe the outer. Heaven over Earth is Standstill (12) — the two moving apart. Earth over Heaven is Peace (11) — the two moving together. The whole book turns on that kind of reading.
Heaven
乾 · Qián
the creative — strength, initiative, the father
Lake
兌 · Duì
the joyous — pleasure, openness, the youngest daughter
Fire
離 · Lí
the clinging — clarity, attachment, the middle daughter
Thunder
震 · Zhèn
the arousing — movement, shock, the eldest son
Wind
巽 · Xùn
the gentle — penetration, gradual influence, the eldest daughter
Water
坎 · Kǎn
the abysmal — danger, depth, the middle son
Mountain
艮 · Gèn
keeping still — stillness, boundary, the youngest son
Earth
坤 · Kūn
the receptive — devotion, yielding, the mother
Click any hexagram for its full meaning, love and career reading, and moving lines.
1. The Creative
Qián · Heaven over Heaven
Pure creative force — the power to begin, and the discipline to keep beginning.
2. The Receptive
Kūn · Earth over Earth
Pure receptive strength — the power to carry, nourish, and follow the right lead.
3. Difficulty at the Beginning
Zhūn · Water over Thunder
The struggle of something new pushing into the world — hard, and going somewhere.
4. Youthful Folly
Méng · Mountain over Water
Not knowing — and the teachable state that not knowing can become.
5. Waiting
Xū · Water over Heaven
Waiting with confidence — because the thing you are waiting for is genuinely coming.
6. Conflict
Sòng · Heaven over Water
A conflict you can survive by meeting halfway — and lose by insisting on winning.
7. The Army
Shī · Earth over Water
Organised strength under a worthy leader — power that works because it is disciplined.
8. Holding Together
Bǐ · Water over Earth
Union around a true centre — belonging that holds because it is chosen, and chosen in time.
9. The Taming Power of the Small
Xiǎo Chù · Wind over Heaven
Great force held back by a small restraint — progress by gentleness and detail, not by push.
10. Treading
Lǚ · Heaven over Lake
Treading on the tiger’s tail without being bitten — the power of correct, careful conduct.
11. Peace
Tài · Earth over Heaven
Heaven and earth in communion — the season when everything that should grow, grows.
12. Standstill
Pǐ · Heaven over Earth
Heaven and earth pulling apart — a season of stagnation to wait out with integrity intact.
13. Fellowship with Others
Tóng Rén · Heaven over Fire
Fellowship in the open — union built on a shared purpose bigger than any clique.
14. Possession in Great Measure
Dà Yǒu · Fire over Heaven
Great possession — abundance held with clarity and modesty, so that it is a blessing rather than a weight.
15. Modesty
Qiān · Earth over Mountain
The mountain that stays within the earth — greatness that does not need to be seen to be real.
16. Enthusiasm
Yù · Thunder over Earth
Thunder rising from the earth — the enthusiasm that moves people because it moves with the grain of things.
17. Following
Suí · Lake over Thunder
Following what is right, at the right time — and knowing when to rest.
18. Work on What Has Been Spoiled
Gǔ · Mountain over Wind
Decay that must be repaired — the work of fixing what someone else let rot.
19. Approach
Lín · Earth over Lake
The approach of something good — a window that is open now and will not stay open forever.
20. Contemplation
Guān · Wind over Earth
Contemplation from the tower — seeing the whole, and being seen as an example.
21. Biting Through
Shì Kè · Fire over Thunder
Biting through the obstacle — the decisive act that clears what has been blocking the jaws from closing.
22. Grace
Bì · Mountain over Fire
Grace and adornment — beauty of form, which makes the small things lovely and the large things unresolved.
23. Splitting Apart
Bō · Mountain over Earth
The bed being stripped from beneath — a collapse to survive by not acting until it has finished.
24. Return
Fù · Earth over Thunder
The turning point — one line of light returning after the darkest day, and the whole year turning with it.
25. Innocence
Wú Wàng · Heaven over Thunder
Innocence — acting from what is natural and true, without scheming, and being met by the unexpected.
26. The Taming Power of the Great
Dà Chù · Mountain over Heaven
Great power held by great restraint — strength stored like a mountain stores its weight, until the time to release it.
27. Nourishment
Yí · Mountain over Thunder
The corners of the mouth — what you take in, what you give out, and whether either is nourishing.
28. Preponderance of the Great
Dà Guò · Lake over Wind
The ridgepole sags — a structure carrying more than it can bear, and a moment that demands extraordinary action.
29. The Abysmal
Kǎn · Water over Water
Danger doubled — the abyss you get through only by being water: sincere, flowing, and never stopping to fill the pit.
30. The Clinging, Fire
Lí · Fire over Fire
Fire that burns by clinging to what feeds it — clarity that depends on what it illuminates.
31. Influence
Xián · Lake over Mountain
Mutual attraction — the influence that draws two beings together when the strong one is willing to be beneath the gentle one.
32. Duration
Héng · Thunder over Wind
Duration — what lasts because it keeps renewing itself, like thunder and wind that never stop moving.
33. Retreat
Dùn · Heaven over Mountain
Retreat with dignity — the strong person stepping back at the right moment, so that strength is preserved.
34. The Power of the Great
Dà Zhuàng · Thunder over Heaven
Great power in motion — strength that succeeds only when it is matched by the restraint not to butt every hedge.
35. Progress
Jìn · Fire over Earth
Progress like the sun rising over the earth — swift, bright advancement earned by a clear and honest character.
36. Darkening of the Light
Míng Yí · Earth over Fire
The light wounded — brightness that must be hidden to survive a dark time, without ever going out.
37. The Family
Jiā Rén · Wind over Fire
The family — order at home built on warmth, clear roles, and words that match actions.
38. Opposition
Kuí · Fire over Lake
Opposition — two forces pulling apart, and the small, patient moves that let them see each other again.
39. Obstruction
Jiǎn · Water over Mountain
Obstruction — the mountain ahead and the water behind, and the turn inward that finds the way around.
40. Deliverance
Xiè · Thunder over Water
Deliverance — the tension breaks like a spring storm, and the right response is to return quickly to ordinary life.
41. Decrease
Sǔn · Mountain over Lake
Decrease — giving up what is below to strengthen what is above; sincerity with two small bowls beats ceremony with none.
42. Increase
Yì · Wind over Thunder
Increase — a flow of gain from above to below, and the time to undertake great things while the flow lasts.
43. Breakthrough
Guài · Lake over Heaven
Breakthrough — five strong lines against the last one of darkness; the resolute, public, and lawful removal of what must go.
44. Coming to Meet
Gòu · Heaven over Wind
Coming to meet — a single dark line entering from below; an encounter that is charming, unexpected, and to be handled with care.
45. Gathering Together
Cuì · Lake over Earth
Gathering together — people massing around a worthy centre, with a purpose large enough to hold them.
46. Pushing Upward
Shēng · Earth over Wind
Pushing upward — the tree growing through the earth, effort by effort, until it stands where it could not be seen before.
47. Oppression
Kùn · Lake over Water
Oppression — the lake drained dry, resources exhausted; the test of whether your inner strength holds when nothing else does.
48. The Well
Jǐng · Water over Wind
The well — the unchanging source everyone draws from, which fails only when it is neglected or the rope is too short.
49. Revolution
Gé · Lake over Fire
Revolution — the moulting of an old skin; change so complete it needs the right day, the right reasons, and the people’s belief.
50. The Cauldron
Dǐng · Fire over Wind
The cauldron — the vessel in which raw things are transformed into nourishment for the worthy; culture, refinement, and the sacred use of what you have.
51. The Arousing, Shock
Zhèn · Thunder over Thunder
Shock repeated — thunder that terrifies for a hundred miles, and the composure of the one who does not drop the sacrificial spoon.
52. Keeping Still, Mountain
Gèn · Mountain over Mountain
Keeping still — the mountain doubled; stopping so completely that the self is forgotten, and from that stillness the right movement comes.
53. Development, Gradual Progress
Jiàn · Wind over Mountain
Gradual development — the wild goose moving from shore to cliff to plateau in its proper order; the slow, correct progress of a marriage or a tree.
54. The Marrying Maiden
Guī Mèi · Thunder over Lake
The marrying maiden — entering a relationship or role where you are not the principal; success only through tact, modesty, and clear eyes about the arrangement.
55. Abundance
Fēng · Thunder over Fire
Abundance — the sun at midday, fullness and clarity at their height; and the knowledge that noon does not last.
56. The Wanderer
Lǚ · Fire over Mountain
The wanderer — a stranger passing through; success in small things through modesty, reserve, and the care of one who has no home ground.
57. The Gentle, Wind
Xùn · Wind over Wind
The gentle wind doubled — influence that penetrates by persisting; success in small things through steady, unforced pressure in one direction.
58. The Joyous, Lake
Duì · Lake over Lake
Joy doubled — the open, easy pleasure of true friendship and honest conversation; joy that is strong inside and gentle outside.
59. Dispersion
Huàn · Wind over Water
Dispersion — the wind over water that melts what has frozen; egotism and division dissolved so that people can be gathered again.
60. Limitation
Jié · Water over Lake
Limitation — the bamboo’s joints that let it grow tall; boundaries that give form, and the warning against boundaries so harsh they cannot be kept.
61. Inner Truth
Zhōng Fú · Wind over Lake
Inner truth — sincerity so complete it reaches even pigs and fishes; the trust that opens hearts and crosses great waters.
62. Preponderance of the Small
Xiǎo Guò · Thunder over Mountain
Preponderance of the small — the bird that should not fly high; a time when small, careful, humble actions succeed and great ones fail.
63. After Completion
Jì Jì · Water over Fire
After completion — every line in its proper place, perfect balance achieved; and the moment when, precisely because it is perfect, decline begins.
64. Before Completion
Wèi Jì · Fire over Water
Before completion — the young fox crossing the river with its tail nearly dry; the last stretch, where care matters most and everything is still possible.
Bottom to top. The first line is the beginning of the situation, the second its development, the third the transition from inner to outer, the fourth the entry into the outer world, the fifth the ruling position, and the sixth the end or the excess. Judgment first, Image second.The Judgment is the oracle's verdict; the Image draws the practical counsel from the two trigrams. Moving lines are the specifics. A line that totalled 6 or 9 in the cast is changing, and its text is the most personal part of the reading. Change every moving line and you have the relating hexagram — where things are heading.
Casting your own is simple: hold a question, toss three coins six times, and build the figure from the bottom. Or use the free I Ching reading and get the whole cast interpreted at once. For relationship questions, the love I Ching reads every hexagram through the lens of the connection.
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