解 → 噬嗑
Hexagram 40: Deliverance → Hexagram 21: Biting Through
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 6).
Line 1
初六 无咎。
Six at the beginning means: Without blame.
Line 2
九二 田獲三狐。得黃矢。貞吉。
Nine in the second place means: One kills three foxes in the field And receives a yellow arrow. Perseverance brings good fortune.
Line 6
上六 公用射隼于高墉之上。獲之无不利。
Six at the top means: The prince shoots at a hawk on a high wall. He kills it. Everything serves to further.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
鷁飛中退，舉事不遂。且守仁德，猶免失墜。
The yi birds fly forth then retreat; the venture undertaken does not succeed. Yet holding to benevolence and virtue, one may still avoid falling and ruin.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Thunder over water resolves into fire and thunder — the decisive bite that enforces order. The yi-bird retreats mid-flight; undertakings fail to reach completion. The yi (a large waterbird) flying backward in the wind was a famous omen recorded in the Spring and Autumn Annals: in 644 BC, six yi-birds were seen retreating over Song's capital, blown backward by a high wind. The verse counsels: hold to benevolence and virtue, and you may yet avoid falling. From Deliverance to Biting Through, the storm gives way to lightning that illuminates and punishes. When enterprises stall mid-course, only moral clarity — not more force — prevents disgrace.
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