Hexagram 22: Grace → Hexagram 33: Retreat

Grace
Mountain / Fire
Retreat
Heaven / Mountain
Changing LinesStable Lines

Changing Lines

This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 4, 5).

Line 1

初九 賁其趾。舍車而徒。

adorn
these
zhǐfeet
shědismiss
chē(the) carriage
érand (so
go on foot

Nine at the beginning means: He lends grace to his toes, leaves the carriage, and walks.

Line 4

六四 賁如皤如。白馬翰如。匪寇婚媾。

elegant
so
(to be) (of) pure
so
bái(and
horse(man)
hànwinged
as if
fěi(it
kòu(a
hūn(but) (a) marital
gòusuitor

Six in the fourth place means: Grace or simplicity? A white horse comes as if on wings. He is not a robber, He will woo at the right time.

Line 5

六五 賁于丘園。束帛戔戔。吝。終吉。

adorned
amidst
qiū(the) hill(sides
yuán(and) (in) gardens
shù(a
(of) silk(s)
jiān(is) (a
jiānremnant
lìnembarrass
zhōng(but) in
promising

Six in the fifth place means: Grace in the hills and gardens. The roll of silk is meager and small. Humiliation, but in the end good fortune.

Trigram Changes

Upper TrigramMountain HeavenKeeping Still → The Creative
Lower TrigramFire MountainThe Clinging → Keeping Still

Yilin Verse

析薪熾酒,使媒求婦。和合齊宋,姜子悅喜。

Red candles blaze high, reflecting off the gold screen. Drums and music in the courtyard escort the betrothal gifts. Cheers from both families echo through the lanes — the shared wedding cup warms the fragrant hall.

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

Commentary

Fire beneath the mountain is a rewrite — the original verse reads: 'Splitting firewood to warm the wine, sending a matchmaker to seek a bride; harmonizing Qi and Song, the Jiang maiden is delighted.' This describes a formal betrothal: the groom's family prepares ceremonial wine, dispatches a matchmaker, and the union between two states (Qi and Song, or their ruling clans) is sealed. The 'Jiang maiden' refers to a woman of the Jiang clan — the ruling house of Qi. From Grace to Retreat, fire beneath the mountain yields to heaven above the mountain. The lavish wedding is a moment of display before withdrawal: the bride adorns herself in Grace, then retreats into the propriety of married life. The match itself is a strategic retreat — alliance through marriage rather than conflict.

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