明夷 → 復
Hexagram 36: Darkening of the Light → Hexagram 24: Return
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 1 changing line (line 3).
Line 3
九三 明夷于南狩。得其大首。不可疾貞。
Nine in the third place means: Darkening of the light during the hunt in the south. Their great leader is captured. One must not expect perseverance too soon.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
偽言妄語，轉相詿誤，不知狼處。
False words and reckless speech; passed along, leading each other astray. Not knowing where the wolf dwells.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire sinks beneath the earth as thunder stirs in the earth — Return, the moment when the first yang line re-enters from below. The verse, however, paints a picture of compounded deception: 'False words and reckless lies, one deception breeding another, not knowing where the wolf lurks.' Return's promise of renewed light is here corrupted by a chain of falsehoods that obscure reality further. The 'wolf' — a classical metaphor for the treacherous minister — cannot be located because deception has made the entire landscape unreadable. From Darkening of the Light to Return, the transformation should offer hope, but the verse warns that if the returning light enters a field of lies, the very mechanism of renewal is poisoned. One must first clear the deceptions before authentic return can occur.
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