坎 → 无妄
Hexagram 29: The Abysmal Water → Hexagram 25: Innocence
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 4 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 4, 6).
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 2
九二 坎有險。求小得。
Nine in the second place means: The abyss is dangerous. One should strive to attain small things only.
Line 4
六四 樽酒簋貳。用缶。納約自牖。終无咎。
Six in the fourth place means: A jug of wine, a bowl of rice with it; Earthen vessels Simply handed in through the Window. There is certainly no blame in this.
Line 6
上六 係用徽纆。寘于叢棘。三歲不得。凶。
Six at the top means: Bound with cords and ropes, Shut in between thorn-hedged prison walls: For three years one does not find the way. Misfortune.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
獐鹿同走,自燕嘉喜。公子好遊,他人多有。
Roe deer and stag run together; from Yan comes celebration and joy. The young lord delights in roaming; others have much to share.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Water upon water, yet the deer run free. Roe deer and fallow deer gallop together from the direction of Yan, bringing joy and felicity. The young lord loves to roam, and others share in his abundance. The imagery is pastoral and buoyant: wild animals moving in unison signal natural harmony, and the mention of Yan (the northern state) suggests blessings arriving from an unexpected quarter. From The Abysmal to Innocence, heaven's thunder rolls beneath — action aligned with cosmic timing rather than human scheming. The deer do not calculate their path; they simply run as nature dictates. This spontaneous rightness is Innocence's essence: prosperity that comes without contrivance.
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