Hexagram 19: Approach → Hexagram 12: Standstill

Approach
Earth / Lake
Standstill
Heaven / Earth
Changing LinesStable Lines

Changing Lines

This transformation involves 5 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 4, 5, 6).

Line 1

初九 咸臨貞吉。

xiánunited
líntaking charge
zhēnpersistence
promising

Nine at the beginning means: Joint approach. Perseverance brings good fortune.

Line 2

九二 咸臨吉。无不利。

xiánunited
líntaking charge
promising
without
doubt
worthwhile

Nine in the second place means: Joint approach. Good fortune. Everything furthers.

Line 4

六四 至臨。无咎。

zhìcomplete
líntaking charge
no
jiùblame

Six in the fourth place means: Complete approach. No blame.

Line 5

六五 知臨。大君之宜。吉。

zhīinformed
líntaking charge
great
jūnnoble
zhī...'s
necessity
promising

Six in the fifth place means: Wise approach. This is right for a great prince. Good fortune.

Line 6

上六 敦臨。吉。无咎。

dūnauthentic
líntaking charge
promising
no
jiùis wrong

Six at the top means: Greathearted approach. Good fortune. No blame.

Trigram Changes

Upper TrigramEarth HeavenThe Receptive → The Creative
Lower TrigramLake EarthThe Joyous → The Receptive

Yilin Verse

唐邑之墟,晉人之居。虞叔受福,寔沈是國,世載其樂。

The ruins of the Tang capital, the dwelling of the Jin people. Uncle Yu received blessings -- truly Shen was his domain, and his line enjoyed its happiness for generations.

— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE

Commentary

Earth above the lake meets heaven and earth refusing to communicate — the Standstill of Pi. The ruins of Tang become the dwelling of the Jin people; Uncle Yu receives blessings, and the state of Shen is truly this land, its joy carried on for generations. Tang was the ancient fief granted to Shu Yu, son of King Wu, which later became the state of Jin. The verse traces how one domain's collapse becomes another's foundation: Tang's ruins sustain Jin's rise, and the lineage flourishes across generations. From Approach to Standstill, the paradox is striking — even when heaven and earth cease communicating, inherited virtue endures. The joy that persists through stagnation is not new prosperity but the deep root-system of ancestral blessing, quietly sustaining life beneath frozen ground.

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