賁 → 困
Hexagram 22: Grace → Hexagram 47: Oppression
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 6 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).
Line 1
初九 賁其趾。舍車而徒。
Nine at the beginning means: He lends grace to his toes, leaves the carriage, and walks.
Line 2
六二 賁其須。
Six in the second place means: Lends grace to the beard on his chin.
Line 3
九三 賁如濡如。永貞吉。
Nine in the third place means: Graceful and moist. Constant perseverance brings good fortune.
Line 4
六四 賁如皤如。白馬翰如。匪寇婚媾。
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。
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.
Line 6
上九 白賁。无咎。
Nine at the top means: Simple grace. No blame.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
鳳生五雛，長於南郭。君子康寧，悅樂身榮。
The phoenix bears five chicks, raised in the southern quarter. The noble man is at ease and well; delighting in glory and honor.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire beneath the mountain nurtures extraordinary life. A phoenix hatches five chicks, raised in the southern quarter of the city. The superior person enjoys health and serenity, delighting in glory and bodily well-being. The phoenix bearing five young is a supreme omen of dynastic flourishing — not one but five heirs to the cosmic bird's virtue. The southern quarter, associated with fire and the vermilion bird, is the natural home for such creatures. From Grace to Oppression, fire beneath the mountain transforms into the lake drained of water. The contrast is stark: the verse's abundance sits against Oppression's image of exhaustion. Perhaps the phoenix's nest in the southern city represents the memory of what was — the joy that preceded the lake going dry.
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