隨 → 萃
Hexagram 17: Following → Hexagram 45: Gathering Together
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 1 changing line (line 1).
Line 1
初九 官有渝。貞吉。出門交有功。
Nine at the beginning means: The standard is changing. Perseverance brings good fortune. To go out of the door in company Produces deeds.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
燕雀衘茆，以生孚乳。兄弟六人，妓好悌孝。得心歡欣，和悅相樂。
Sparrows and swallows carry straw to hatch and nurse their young. Six brothers, skilled in deference and filial piety -- hearts filled with gladness, harmonious and joyful.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Thunder rests within the lake, and sparrows and swallows carry straw to build nests where they brood and hatch their young. Six brothers live together in harmony, skilled and filial, delighting in one another's company with joyful concord. The nesting birds mirror the human family — natural instinct to build shelter and raise offspring becomes the foundation of fraternal love. From Following to Gathering, the lake upon the earth collects all streams. Cui's principle is congregation: what the family bonds together in affection, the state gathers through shared identity. The six brothers are a microcosm of the assembled community — following family bonds naturally scales into collective belonging.
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