睽 → 比
Hexagram 38: Opposition → Hexagram 8: Holding Together
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 5 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 4, 5, 6).
Line 1
初九 悔亡。喪馬勿逐自復。見惡人。无咎。
Nine at the beginning means: Remorse disappears. If you lose your horse, do not run after it; It will come back of its own accord. When you see evil people, Guard yourself against mistakes.
Line 2
九二 遇主于巷。无咎。
Nine in the second place means: One meets his lord in a narrow street. No blame.
Line 4
九四 睽孤。遇元夫。交孚。厲无咎。
Nine in the fourth place means: Isolated through opposition, One meets a like-minded man With whom one can associate in good faith. Despite the danger, no blame.
Line 5
六五 悔亡。厥宗噬膚。往何咎。
Six in the fifth place means: Remorse disappears. The companion bites his way through the wrappings. If one goes to him, How could it be a mistake?
Line 6
上九 睽孤。見豕負塗。載鬼一車。先張之弧。後說之弧。匪寇婚媾。往遇雨則吉。
Nine at the top means: Isolated through opposition, One sees one's companion as a pig covered with dirt, As a wagon full of devils. First one draws a bow against him, then one lays the bow aside. He is not a robber; he will woo at the right time. As one goes, rain falls; then good fortune comes.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
鼎煬其耳，熱不可舉。大塗塞壅，旅人心苦。
The cauldron scorches its ears; too hot to lift. The great road is blocked and choked; the traveler's heart is bitter.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire above the lake, and the heat migrates to the wrong place. A cauldron blazes until its ears burn too hot to grip — no one can lift it, no one can move it, and its contents are trapped. Meanwhile, the great road is choked and blocked, leaving travelers stranded and heartsick. The cauldron's ears, meant for carrying, become instruments of immobility; the road, meant for passage, becomes a wall. Both images converge on the same frustration: essential connections severed, vital channels sealed. From Opposition to Holding Together, water rests upon the earth, forming the basis of alliance and mutual support. Only by cooling the overheated vessel and clearing the obstructed path can estranged parties rediscover solidarity.
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