鼎 → 明夷
Hexagram 50: The Cauldron → Hexagram 36: Darkening of the Light
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 4 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 4, 6).
Line 1
初六 鼎顛趾。利出否。得妾以其子。无咎。
Six at the beginning means: A ting with legs upturned. Furthers removal of stagnating stuff. One takes a concubine for the sake of her son. No blame.
Line 2
九二 鼎有實。我仇有疾。不我能即。吉。
Nine in the second place means: There is food in the ting. My comrades are envious, But they cannot harm me. Good fortune.
Line 4
九四 鼎折足。覆公餗。其形渥。凶。
Nine in the fourth place means: The legs of the ting are broken. The prince's meal is spilled And his person is soiled. Misfortune. A man has a difficult and responsible task to which he is not adequate. Moreover, he does not devote himself to it with all his strength but goes about with inferior people; therefore the execution of the work fails. In this way he also incurs personal opprobrium. Confucius says about this line: "Weak character coupled with honored place, meager knowledge with large plans, limited powers with heavy responsibility, will seldom escape disaster. "
Line 6
上九 鼎玉鉉。大吉。无不利。
Nine at the top means: The ting has rings of jade. Great good fortune. Nothing that would not act to further.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
申公患楚，危不自安。重耳出奔，側喪其魂。
Duke Shen dreads Chu, imperiled and unable to find safety. Chong'er flees abroad, his soul shaken and nearly lost.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire over wind fills the cauldron; fire sinks into the earth as light darkens. Shen Gong dreads the power of Chu, unable to find safety. Chong Er flees into exile, his soul nearly lost along the way. The verse pairs two displaced figures: 'Shen Gong' likely refers to Shen Gong Wuchen (申公巫臣), the Chu minister who eloped with Xia Ji and fled to Jin, living in perpetual fear of Chu's vengeance. Chong Er, future Duke Wen of Jin, wandered nineteen years in exile before his triumphant return. Both survive by enduring darkness. From The Cauldron to Darkening of the Light, the transformation demands concealment. Fire enters the earth; brilliance must be hidden. The cauldron's flame is banked — those who would survive must dim their light and wait.
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