鼎 → 夬
Hexagram 50: The Cauldron → Hexagram 43: Breakthrough
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 5, 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 5
六五 鼎黃耳金鉉。利貞。
Six in the fifth place means: The ting has yellow handles, golden carrying rings. Perseverance furthers.
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
東行西坐，喪其犬馬。南求驊騮，失車林下。
Walking east, sitting west; losing his dogs and horses. Seeking a fine steed to the south, he loses his cart beneath the forest trees.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire over wind fills the cauldron; the lake rises above heaven in Breakthrough. Walking east then sitting west, one loses dogs and horses. Seeking a fine Hua-liu steed to the south, the cart is lost beneath the trees. Direction and purpose dissolve: east, west, south — every heading leads to loss. Dogs, horses, the prized Hua-liu (a legendary breed of excellent horse), even the cart itself — all vanish. The scattering is total and omnidirectional. From The Cauldron to Breakthrough, the transformation demands decisive action to resolve what is untenable. Lake above heaven must rain down; accumulated tension must be released. Yet here the figure dithers in every direction, and the breakthrough never comes — instead of resolving the crisis, every move deepens it.
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