鼎 → 需
Hexagram 50: The Cauldron → Hexagram 5: Waiting
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 4 changing lines (lines 1, 4, 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 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 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
容民畜眾，不離其居。
Sheltering the people, nourishing the multitude; none depart from their dwelling.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire over wind fills the cauldron; clouds gather above heaven, signaling patient waiting. 'Accommodate the people and shelter the multitude, never leaving their dwelling' — this phrase echoes the Image text of hexagram 7, The Army, almost verbatim. The cauldron feeds not one household but an entire populace, and the leader who nourishes them need not leave home to do so. Abundance radiates from a stable center. From The Cauldron to Waiting, the transformation reveals that true provision is not urgent action but sustained readiness. The cauldron simmers; the clouds have not yet released their rain. One shelters the people by remaining steady, preparing the feast before the need arrives.
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