坎 → 臨
Hexagram 29: The Abysmal Water → Hexagram 19: Approach
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 2 changing lines (lines 1, 5).
Line 1
初六 習坎。入于坎窞。凶。
Six at the beginning means: Repetition of the Abysmal. In the abyss one falls into a pit. Misfortune.
Line 5
九五 坎不盈。祗既平。无咎。
Nine in the fifth place means: The abyss is not filled to overflowing, It is filled only to the rim. No blame.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
羊驚狼虎，獼猴群走。無益於僵，為齒所傷。
Sheep startled by wolves and tigers; monkeys flee in a troop. It avails nothing against the stiff and fallen; wounded by teeth.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Water upon water, panic spreads through the herd. Sheep scatter in terror before wolves and tigers, monkeys flee in troops. Yet flight brings no relief — stiffened with fear, they are caught and torn by fangs. The verse captures the futility of panicked retreat: running without strategy only delivers prey more completely to predators. From The Abysmal to Approach, perilous water should give way to the lake's gentle bank — the earth overseeing the waters with teaching and protection. Yet the verse shows what happens when approach is misapplied: the powerful descend upon the weak not as shepherds but as predators, and the flock's terror renders all escape meaningless.
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