乾 → 未濟
Hexagram 1: The Creative → Hexagram 64: Before Completion
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 3, 5).
Line 1
初九 潛龍勿用。
Nine at the beginning means: Hidden dragon. Do not act.
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 5
九五 飛龍在天。利見大人。
Nine in the fifth place means: Flying dragon in the heavens. It furthers one to see the great man.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
長面大鼻，來解己憂。遺吾福子，與我惠妻，惠吾嘉喜。
A long-faced, large-nosed one comes to dispel my worries. He leaves me a blessed son; gives me a gracious wife; grants me fine happiness.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
A figure with a long face and large nose arrives to dispel one's worries. He bestows a blessed son and grants a virtuous wife — leaving only joy and good fortune. The long face and prominent nose suggest an unusual, perhaps divinely sent visitor whose appearance, though striking, brings nothing but benevolence. From Creative to Before Completion, fire burns above water — two elements still seeking their proper positions. Wei Ji means the crossing is not yet complete; everything remains in flux. Yet the verse offers comfort precisely at this juncture: even before completion, a benefactor appears with gifts that address the deepest human desires — family, companionship, peace of mind. The transformation suggests that blessings can arrive before the journey ends, sustaining the traveler through the final, unfinished stretch.
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