益 → 革
Hexagram 42: Increase → Hexagram 49: Revolution
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 3, 4, 6).
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 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
雀行求粒，誤入罟罭。賴仁君子，復脫歸室。
The sparrow ventures out seeking grain and stumbles into net and snare. Thanks to a benevolent soul, it is freed and returns to its home.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Wind and thunder bestow increase, and the transformation leads to fire within the lake — the decisive change of Revolution. A sparrow hops about seeking grain but blunders into a net and snare. Fortunately, a benevolent gentleman comes along and frees it, allowing it to return safely home. The sparrow's predicament is innocent hunger leading to entrapment — a common creature caught by an apparatus designed to exploit its basic need. The rescuer does not condemn the bird for its error but simply liberates it. From Increase to Revolution, the verse reveals that true revolution is merciful, not merely destructive. Fire in the lake transforms by eliminating what is unjust. Here, the net — the oppressive structure — is what must be reformed, and the revolutionary act is one of compassion: freeing the trapped rather than punishing them.
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