Hexagram 40: Deliverance → Hexagram 5: Waiting

Deliverance
Thunder / Water
Waiting
Water / Heaven
Changing LinesStable Lines

Changing Lines

This transformation involves 4 changing lines (lines 1, 3, 4, 5).

Line 1

初六 无咎。

no
jiùblame

Six at the beginning means: Without blame.

Line 3

六三 負且乘。致寇至。貞吝。

shouldering
qiěwhile
chéngmounted
zhìinviting
kòuthieves
zhìto approach
zhēnpersistence
lìn(is) embarrassing

Six in the third place means: If a man carries a burden on his back And nonetheless rides in a carriage, He thereby encourages robbers to draw near. Perseverance leads to humiliation.

Line 4

九四 解而拇。朋至斯孚。

jiěrelease
éryour
big toe
péng(when) companion
zhìapproach
(in
trust

Nine in the fourth place means: Deliver yourself from your great toe. Then the companion comes, And him you can trust.

Line 5

六五 君子維有解。吉。有孚于小人。

jūnnoble
young one
wéiin bondage
yǒu(still
jiěfreedom(s)
promising
yǒubeing
true
for
xiǎo(the) small
rénones

Six in the fifth place means: If only the superior man can deliver himself, It brings good fortune. Thus he proves to inferior men that he is in earnest.

Trigram Changes

Upper TrigramThunder WaterThe Arousing → The Deep
Lower TrigramWater HeavenThe Deep → The Creative

Yilin Verse

許嫁既婚,利福在身。適惠生桓,為我魯君。

Betrothed and now wed; blessings and fortune rest upon her. She goes to the house of Hui and bears Huan, who becomes our lord of Lu.

— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE

Commentary

Thunder over water delivers blessings through an auspicious marriage. The verse alludes to the ducal succession of Lu: a woman properly betrothed and married brings fortune to herself and her lineage. 'Going to Hui and bearing Huan' points to the mother of Duke Huan of Lu, whose union with Duke Hui produced the heir who became 'our lord of Lu.' The marriage follows proper rites — betrothal then wedding — and fortune flows naturally from that propriety. From Deliverance to Waiting, the transformation shows how release from uncertainty culminates in patient trust. Clouds gather above heaven, and the one who waits correctly receives the heir that secures the future.

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