大過 → 革
Hexagram 28: Great Exceeding → Hexagram 49: Revolution
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 2 changing lines (lines 1, 2).
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.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
從猬見虎，雖危不殆。終已無咎。
Following the hedgehog, one meets the tiger; though perilous, it is not deadly. In the end there is no blame.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Lake over wind meets lake above fire — Revolution, the decisive transformation of the old order. Following the hedgehog, one encounters a tiger. Though perilous, one is not truly endangered; in the end there is no blame. The hedgehog-tiger pairing recalls the 'hedgehog as Gongcao' motif: the small, well-armored creature that can subdue the great predator. Here, 'following the hedgehog' means adopting its defensive strategy — presenting an impregnable exterior to the tiger's aggression. Revolution demands courage, but not recklessness; the hedgehog's approach to the tiger is to stand firm rather than attack. From Great Exceeding to Revolution, the collapsing structure is remade. The encounter with the tiger is the crisis that Revolution requires, and the hedgehog's method — endurance through defense — is how the transformation is survived.
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