謙 → 小過
Hexagram 15: Modesty → Hexagram 62: Small Exceeding
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 3, 6).
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 6
上六 鳴謙。利用行師。征邑國。
Six at the top means: Modesty that comes to expression. It is favorable to set armies marching To chastise one's own city and one's country.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
梅李冬實，國多賊盜；擾亂並作，王不能制。
Plum and apricot bear fruit in winter; the state swarms with thieves and bandits. Turmoil erupts on every side; the king cannot control it.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Earth holds the mountain, but plum and pear trees fruit in winter — a portentous inversion of natural order. The state is overrun with bandits; disorder erupts on all sides, and the king cannot control it. Trees bearing fruit out of season is a traditional omen of political chaos: nature's calendar disrupted mirrors governance gone awry. From Modesty to Small Exceeding, thunder rumbles atop the mountain, a small creature flying too high. Small Exceeding counsels humility in action — 'err on the side of deference, grief, and frugality.' Yet the verse shows a kingdom where even these modest correctives have failed: the king's authority is insufficient, and the bandits exceed all bounds. When seasonal order collapses, small excesses compound into uncontrollable disorder.
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