益 → 恆
Hexagram 42: Increase → Hexagram 32: Duration
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 6 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).
Line 1
初九 利用為大作。元吉无咎。
Nine at the beginning means: It furthers one to accomplish great deeds. Supreme good fortune. No blame.
Line 2
六二 或益之十朋之龜。弗克違。永貞吉。王用享于帝吉。
Six in the second place means: Someone does indeed increase him; Ten pairs of tortoises cannot oppose it. Constant perseverance brings good fortune. The king presents him before God. Good fortune.
Line 3
六三 益之用凶事。无咎。有孚中行。告公用圭。
Six in the third place means: One is enriched through unfortunate events. No blame, if you are sincere And walk in the middle, And report with a seal to the prince.
Line 4
六四 中行。告公從。利用為依遷國。
Six in the fourth place means: If you walk in the middle And report the prince, He will follow. It furthers one to be used In the removal of the capital.
Line 5
九五 有孚惠心。勿問元吉。有孚惠我德。
Nine in the fifth place means: If in truth you have a kind heart, ask not. Supreme good fortune. Truly, kindness will be recognized as your virtue.
Line 6
上九 莫益之。或擊之。立心勿恆。凶。
Nine at the top means: He brings increase to no one. Indeed, someone even strikes him. He does not keep his heart constantly steady. Misfortune.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
鹿得美草，鳴呼其友。九族和睦，不憂飢乏。
The deer finds fine grass and cries out to its companions. The nine clans dwell in harmony, never fearing hunger or want.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Wind and thunder bestow increase, and the transformation leads to thunder and wind in perpetual partnership — the steadfast continuity of Duration. A deer finds fine grass and calls out to its companions. The nine clans live in harmony, free from fear of hunger or want. The deer calling its friends to share good pasture is one of the oldest images of communal generosity, drawn from the Shijing ode 'Luming': 'The deer cry out, eating the celery of the fields; I have honored guests.' From Increase to Duration, the dynamic is one of abundance shared so widely that it becomes self-sustaining. Thunder and wind reinforce each other perpetually; the gentleman stands firm and does not change course. When good fortune is shared among kinfolk, the nine degrees of relation all flourish without end.
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