謙 → 隨
Hexagram 15: Modesty → Hexagram 17: Following
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 4 changing lines (lines 1, 3, 4, 5).
Line 1
初六 謙謙君子。用涉大川。吉。
Six at the beginning means: A superior man modest about his modesty May cross the great water. Good fortune.
Line 3
九三 勞謙君子。有終吉。
Nine in the third place means: A superior man of modesty and merit Carries things to conclusion. Good fortune.
Line 4
六四 无不利撝謙。
Six in the fourth place means: Nothing that would not further modesty In movement.
Line 5
六五 不富以其鄰。利用侵伐。无不利。
Six in the fifth place means: No boasting of wealth before one's neighbor. It is favorable to attack with force. Nothing that would not further.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
雙鳥俱飛，欲歸稻池；經涉雚澤，為矢所射。傷我胸臆。
Two birds fly together, longing for the rice pond. Passing through the reed marsh; they are struck by arrows. My breast is wounded.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Earth holds the mountain still, but two birds take flight together, heading toward a rice pond to feed. Crossing a reed-thick marsh, they are struck by arrows — the archer wounds them through the breast. The paired birds seeking nourishment evoke innocence undone by hidden peril; the reed marsh conceals the bowman's ambush. From Modesty to Following, thunder rests beneath the lake, suggesting a time when one should follow rather than lead, retreating into dusk and rest. Yet the birds did not follow this counsel — they flew boldly into danger. The verse warns that modest intention does not guarantee safe passage. Following's wisdom is knowing when to pause; the birds that pressed forward through treacherous marshland paid with their lives.
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