鼎 → 既濟
Hexagram 50: The Cauldron → Hexagram 63: After Completion
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 5 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 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 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 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
膠車駕東，與雨相逢。五楘解墮，頓阨獨坐，憂為身禍。
The glue-sealed cart drives east and meets the rain. The five leather bindings loosen and fall; halted in distress, he sits alone, fearing it will become his ruin.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire over wind fills the cauldron; water settles above fire in After Completion. A glue-stiffened cart heads east and meets rain along the way. The five leather straps loosen and fall apart, leaving the driver stranded and sitting alone, worrying the mishap will bring further harm. Glue dissolves in water — the very substance meant to hold the cart rigid becomes its vulnerability when rain arrives. The five 'mu' (楘) are the decorative leather bindings of a chariot's yoke; when they disintegrate, the vehicle is useless. From The Cauldron to After Completion, the transformation warns that even finished work remains fragile. Water above fire: everything is in its right place, but the slightest external pressure — a rainstorm — unravels what seemed complete. The cauldron is done cooking, yet the meal may still be lost on the road.
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