恆 → 渙
Hexagram 32: Duration → Hexagram 59: Dispersion
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 4 changing lines (lines 3, 4, 5, 6).
Line 3
九三 不恆其德。或承之羞。貞吝。
Nine in the third place means: He who does not give duration to his character Meets with disgrace. Persistent humiliation.
Line 4
九四 田无禽。
Nine in the fourth place means: No game in the field.
Line 5
六五 恒其德貞。婦人吉。夫子凶。
Six in the fifth place means: Giving duration to one's character through perseverance. This is good fortune for a woman, misfortune for a man.
Line 6
上六 振恆凶。
Six at the top means: Restlessness as an enduring condition brings misfortune.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
警蹕戒道，先驅除害，王后親桑，以率群功。
Heralds cry out, clearing the road; the vanguard removes all harm. The queen herself tends the silkworms, to lead the assembled works.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Thunder above wind, Duration's orderly rhythm, flows into wind above water — Dispersion's scattering restoration. The imperial outriders clear the road with warning cries; advance guards remove hazards from the path. The queen herself tends the silkworms, leading all women by personal example. The verse depicts a well-ordered state ceremony: the procession moves in sequence, each element performing its established role. The queen's silkworm ritual was one of the most important rites of the agricultural calendar, mirroring the emperor's spring plowing. From Duration to Dispersion, the steady order disperses outward as beneficial influence. Wind upon water spreads what was concentrated into universal reach. The queen's example, like wind over water, carries the culture of diligence from the palace to every household in the realm.
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