旅 → 需
Hexagram 56: The Wanderer → Hexagram 5: Waiting
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 2, 5, 6).
Line 2
六二 旅即次。懷其資。得童僕貞。
Six in the second place means: The wanderer comes to an inn. He has his property with him. He wins the steadfastness of a young servant.
Line 5
六五 射雉。一矢亡。終以譽命。
Six in the fifth place means: He shoots a pheasant. It drops with the first arrow. In the end this brings both praise and office.
Line 6
上九 鳥焚其巢。旅人先笑後號咷。喪牛于易。凶。
Nine at the top means: The bird's nest burns up. The wanderer laughs at first, Then must needs lament and weep. Through carelessness he loses his cow. Misfortune.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
奮翅鼓翼，翱翔外國。逍遙徙倚，來歸溫室。
The great Peng spreads its wings three thousand li, crossing mountains and seas without tiring. Having seen all the flowers and snow at the world's edge — returning to the old nest, the moon is perfectly full.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire on the mountain releases a great bird into the open sky. The original verse — 'Spreading wings and beating plumes, soaring through foreign lands; wandering at ease, returning to the warm chamber' — captures the arc of a confident traveler abroad. The bird ranges far and wide across unfamiliar territories but never loses its homing instinct. This is the wanderer at full power: venturing boldly yet knowing when to return. From The Wanderer to Waiting, the restless fire settles into patience. Clouds gather above heaven, promising nourishment. The bird's return to its warm roost mirrors Waiting's counsel: after bold exploration, the wise traveler rests, feasts, and lets fortune arrive in its own time rather than chasing endlessly.
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