蠱 → 需
Hexagram 18: Work on the Decayed → Hexagram 5: Waiting
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 5, 6).
Line 1
初六 幹父之蠱。有子。考无咎。厲終吉。
Six in the beginning means: Setting right what has been spoiled by the father. If there is a son, No blame rests upon the departed father. Danger. In the end good fortune.
Line 5
六五 幹父之蠱。用譽。
Six in the fifth place means: Setting right what has been spoiled by the father. One meets with praise.
Line 6
上九 不事王侯。高尚其事。
Nine at the top means: He does not serve kings and princes, Sets himself higher goals.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
執義秉德，不危不殆。延頸盤桓，安其室檀。屯耗未得，終無大恤。
Holding fast to duty and virtue, neither endangered nor imperiled. Craning the neck, lingering at the threshold; resting secure in one dwelling. Though stalled and unfruitful, in the end there is no great distress.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Wind beneath the mountain calls for restoration, and the transformation leads to clouds gathering above heaven — the patience of Waiting. Holding fast to righteousness and upholding virtue, one faces no peril. Craning the neck in hesitation, yet secure in one's own dwelling. Though supplies are depleted and gains have not yet arrived, ultimately no great calamity befalls. The verse counsels steadfast composure: when decay surrounds you, do not abandon principle for expedience. From Work on the Decayed to Waiting, the remedy for corruption is not frantic action but principled patience. Like clouds massing above heaven before the nourishing rain, the right moment will come to those who hold their ground.
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