旅 → 既濟
Hexagram 56: The Wanderer → Hexagram 63: After Completion
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 2 changing lines (lines 5, 6).
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
逐鹿南山，利入我門。陰陽和調，國无災殘。長子出遊，須其仁君。
Chasing the deer on the southern mountain; the prize enters my gate. Yin and yang in harmony; the realm suffers no ruin. The eldest son ventures forth, awaiting his benevolent lord.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire on the mountain, and a deer is driven south toward the hunter's gate. The chase succeeds: fortune enters through the door, yin and yang harmonize, and the state knows no disaster. The eldest son sets out on a journey, awaiting his benevolent lord. The deer hunt recalls the ancient metaphor for pursuing the mandate of heaven — 'chasing the deer' (逐鹿) signifying the contest for sovereignty. Here the pursuit ends well: the quarry enters willingly, balance is achieved, and the heir travels abroad to find the ruler worthy of his service. From The Wanderer to After Completion, water rests above fire in perfect equilibrium. The verse celebrates that rarest of moments: the journey complete, all elements aligned, nothing lacking.
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