乾 → 觀
Hexagram 1: The Creative → Hexagram 20: Contemplation
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 4 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 3, 4).
Line 1
初九 潛龍勿用。
Nine at the beginning means: Hidden dragon. Do not act.
Line 2
九二 見龍在田。利見大人。
Nine in the second place means: Dragon appearing in the field. It furthers one to see the great man.
Line 3
九三 君子終日乾乾。夕惕若厲。无咎。
Nine in the third place means: All day long the superior man is creatively active. At nightfall his mind is still beset with cares. Danger. No blame.
Line 4
九四 或躍在淵。无咎。
Nine in the fourth place means: Wavering flight over the depths. No blame.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
江河淮海，天之奧府。眾利所聚，可以饒有。樂我君子，百福是受。
The Yangtze, the Yellow River, the Huai, the sea: heaven’s hidden treasury. Where all profits gather, one may have abundance. Rejoice, O noble man; receive a hundred blessings.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Rivers, streams, the Huai, and the sea — heaven's grand storehouses where all profitable things gather, enough to enrich anyone. The noble one rejoices, receiving a hundred blessings. From Creative to Contemplation, wind moves over the earth and the sage-king surveys his realm, observing the people to guide them. The verse transforms the act of looking outward into discovery of abundance: the great rivers are heaven's treasury, visible to anyone who truly contemplates the landscape. Guan's counsel is to look broadly and deeply. Here, contemplation itself reveals that the world already overflows with resources — one need only recognize them. The hundred blessings flow like rivers to the attentive observer.
The Six Lines app includes all 4,096 Yilin verses, each with original ink brush artwork and full commentary. Download on the App Store