觀 → 需
Hexagram 20: Contemplation → Hexagram 5: Waiting
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 4 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 3, 6).
Line 1
初六 童觀。小人无咎。君子吝。
Six at the beginning means: Boy like contemplation. For an inferior man, no blame. For a superior man, humiliation.
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 6
上九 觀其生。君子无咎。
Nine at the top means: Contemplation of his life. The superior man is without blame.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
鴻波逆流，主人潛去，蒿蓬代柱，大屋顛仆。
A great wave surges upstream, the master slips away in secret; wormwood stalks replace the pillars -- the great house topples and falls.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Wind sweeps the earth while great waves surge against the current. The master of the house slips away in secret, and wormwood stems are propped up where pillars once stood — the grand mansion topples. The imagery is architectural collapse: floodwaters reverse the natural flow, the householder flees, and makeshift weeds replace structural timber. Wormwood cannot bear the weight of roof beams. From Contemplation to Waiting, the transformation warns that observation without preparation invites catastrophe. Water clouds gather above heaven in Waiting, demanding patience before the deluge. Here, however, no one waited: the flood arrived, the owner fled, and the house fell to ruin for want of sound foundations.
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