觀 → 姤
Hexagram 20: Contemplation → Hexagram 44: Coming to Meet
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 2, 3, 4).
Line 2
六二 闚觀。利女貞。
Six in the second place means: Contemplation through the crack of the door. Furthering for the perseverance of a woman.
Line 3
六三 觀我生進退。
Six in the third place means: Contemplation of my life Decides the choice Between advance and retreat.
Line 4
六四 觀國之光。利用賓于王。
Six in the fourth place means: Contemplation of the light of the kingdom. It furthers one to exert influence as the guest of a king.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
狗逐兔走,俱入谷口;與虎逢晤,迫不得去。
A dog chases a rabbit, both plunging into the mouth of the gorge; meeting the tiger face to face, pressed too close to withdraw.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Wind over earth watches a hunt go terribly wrong. A dog chases a hare, and both run into a valley's mouth — only to encounter a tiger. Pressed by the predator, there is no way to escape. The chain of pursuit inverts suddenly: the hunter becomes the hunted, the confined space that should trap the quarry traps everyone. Heaven over wind forms Coming to Meet, where an unexpected force enters from below. From Contemplation to Coming to Meet, the transformation captures the shock of the uninvited encounter: what emerges from the valley was never anticipated. The pursuit that seemed routine suddenly confronts overwhelming power, and the narrow gorge that funneled the chase now prevents retreat.
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