履 → 无妄
Hexagram 10: Treading → Hexagram 25: Innocence
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 1 changing line (line 2).
Line 2
九二 履道坦坦。幽人貞吉。
Nine in the second place means: Treading a smooth, level course. The perseverance of a dark man Brings good fortune.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
雎鳩淑女，賢聖配偶；宜家壽福，吉慶長久。
The osprey cries for a virtuous maiden; the worthy and sagely make their match. Bringing joy to the household, long life and blessings; auspicious fortune, enduring and lasting.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Heaven above the lake blesses a perfect union. Ospreys cry by the river islet — the opening image of the Shijing itself — as a modest maiden matches a worthy lord. The household prospers, longevity and blessings abound, and good fortune endures. The verse directly quotes the 'Guan Ju' ode, the poem that Confucius praised as 'joyful without excess, sorrowful without injury.' From Treading to Innocence, heaven's thunder moves without contrivance. The transformation captures the essence of guileless conduct: when one treads in natural harmony, unions form without manipulation, and blessings arrive unsought — the very definition of wu wang, innocence without falsehood.
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