隨 → 小過
Hexagram 17: Following → Hexagram 62: Small Exceeding
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 3, 5).
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.
Line 3
六三 係丈夫。失小子。隨有求得。利居貞。
Six in the third place means: If one clings to the strong man, One loses the little boy. Through following one finds what one seeks. It furthers one to remain persevering.
Line 5
九五 孚于嘉。吉。
Nine in the fifth place means: Sincere in the good. Good fortune.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
慈烏鳴鳩,執一無尤;寢門內治,君子悅喜。
Compassionate crow, cooing dove, holding to one thing without fault; at the sleeping-chamber gate, the household is governed -- the gentleman is pleased and glad.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Thunder rests within the lake, and the compassionate crow and cooing dove embody steadfast devotion. The crow — symbol of filial piety in Chinese tradition, as it feeds its aging parents — and the dove, known for even-handed distribution of food among its young, together represent constancy without blame: 'holding to one, no fault.' Within the household, the inner chambers are well governed, and the gentleman finds quiet satisfaction. From Following to Small Exceeding, thunder atop the mountain in Xiao Guo counsels going slightly beyond in humility and frugality. The verse shows how small, consistent virtues — filial feeding, fair nurture, domestic order — accumulate into the 'small excess' of goodness that Xiao Guo celebrates.
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