乾 → 姤
Hexagram 1: The Creative → Hexagram 44: Coming to Meet
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 1 changing line (line 1).
Line 1
初九 潛龍勿用。
Nine at the beginning means: Hidden dragon. Do not act.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
仁政不暴，鳳凰來舍。四時順節，民安其處。
Benevolent government, not cruel; the phoenix comes to dwell. The four seasons follow their order; the people are at peace in their places.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Benevolent governance free of cruelty — the phoenix comes to roost. The four seasons follow their proper rhythm; the people dwell in peace. The phoenix appears only under a sage ruler's reign, its arrival the ultimate cosmic endorsement. From Creative to Coming to Meet, heaven above wind — the sovereign's proclamation spreading to the four quarters. Gou describes the unexpected encounter between strong and yielding, the moment when something unbidden arrives. The phoenix is precisely this: one cannot summon it; one can only create conditions worthy of its presence. When governance is humane and time runs in order, the sacred bird arrives uninvited — the meeting of heaven and wind made manifest in feathered form.
The Six Lines app includes all 4,096 Yilin verses, each with original ink brush artwork and full commentary. Download on the App Store