大過 → 頤
Hexagram 28: Great Exceeding → Hexagram 27: Nourishment
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 6 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).
Line 1
初六 藉用白茅。无咎。
Six at the beginning means: To spread white rushes underneath. No blame.
Line 2
九二 枯楊生稊。老夫得其女妻。无不利。
Nine in the second place means: A dry poplar sprouts at the root. An older man takes a young wife. Everything furthers.
Line 3
九三 棟橈。凶。
Nine in the third place means: The ridgepole sags to the breaking point. Misfortune.
Line 4
九四 棟隆。吉。有它吝。
Nine in the fourth place means: The ridgepole is braced. Good fortune. If there are ulterior motives, it is humiliating.
Line 5
九五 枯楊生華。老婦得其士夫。无咎无譽。
Nine in the fifth place means: A withered poplar puts forth flowers. An older woman takes a husband. No blame. No praise.
Line 6
上六 過涉滅頂。凶。无咎。
Six at the top means: One must go through the water. It goes over one's head. Misfortune. No blame.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
三奇六耦,各有所主。周南召南,聖人所在。德義流行,民悅以喜。
Three odd, six even; each has its proper lord. Zhounan, Shaonan; where the sage resides. Virtue and righteousness flow forth; the people delight and rejoice.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Lake over wind settles into mountain above thunder — Nourishment, where one is careful about what sustains. Three odd and six even, each with its proper ruler. The odes of Zhou Nan and Shao Nan mark where the sage dwells. Virtue and righteousness flow freely; the people rejoice. The 'three odd and six even' refer to the trigram structure — three yang lines and six yin lines of the hexagram system, each in its ordained place. Zhou Nan and Shao Nan are the first two sections of the Shijing, traditionally associated with the civilizing influence of Kings Wen and Wu and the Duke of Zhou. From Great Exceeding to Nourishment, the overburdened beam finds its proper support in ordered hierarchy. True nourishment comes from each element occupying its rightful position, as the sages' virtue flows outward through poetry and moral example.
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