Hexagram 57: The Gentle Wind → Hexagram 51: The Arousing Thunder

The Gentle Wind
Wind / Wind
The Arousing Thunder
Thunder / Thunder
Changing LinesStable Lines

Changing Lines

This transformation involves 6 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6).

Line 1

初六 進退。利武人之貞。

jìnadvance
退tuìand retreat
meriting
the military
rénone
zhī's
zhēnpersistence

Six at the beginning means: In advancing and in retreating, The perseverance of a warrior furthers.

Line 2

九二 巽在牀下。用史巫。紛若。吉。无咎。

xùnencroach(ment)
zàioccur
chuángthe bed
xiàunder
yòngemploy
shǐscribes
and diviners
fēnan assortment
ruòof such
promising
no
jiùblame(worthy)

Nine in the second place means: Penetration under the bed. Priests and magicians are used in great number. Good fortune. No blame.

Line 3

九三 頻巽吝。

pínfrequent
xùnadaptation
lìnembarrass(ment)

Nine in the third place means: Repeated penetration. Humiliation.

Line 4

六四 悔亡。田獲三品。

huǐregret(s)
wángpass
tiánin the field
huòtake
sānthree
pǐnkind

Six in the fourth place means: Remorse vanishes. During the hunt Three kinds of game are caught.

Line 5

九五 貞吉悔亡。无不利。无初有終。先庚三日。後庚三日。吉。

zhēnpersistence
is promising
huǐregret(s)
wángpass
without
doubt
worthwhile
without
chūthe beginning
yǒuthere is
zhōngan conclusion
xiānbefore
gēngreform
sānthree
days
hòuafter
gēngreform
sānthree
days
promising

Nine in the fifth place means: Perseverance brings good fortune. Remorse vanishes. Nothing that does not further. No beginning, but an end. Before the change, three days. After the change, three days. Good fortune.

Line 6

上九 巽在牀下。喪其資斧。貞凶。

xùnencroach(ment)
zàioccur
chuángthe bed
xiàunder
sànglosing
one's own
resources
and an ax
zhēnpersistence
xiōngis disappointing

Nine at the top means: Penetration under the bed. He loses his property and his ax. Perseverance brings misfortune.

Trigram Changes

Upper TrigramWind ThunderThe Gentle → The Arousing
Lower TrigramWind ThunderThe Gentle → The Arousing

Yilin Verse

日月運行,一寒一暑。榮寵赫赫,不可得保。顛隕墜墮,更為士伍。

Sun and moon revolve; one cold, one hot in turn. Blazing glory cannot be kept. Fallen and cast down; reduced again to common ranks.

— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE

Commentary

Wind upon wind transforms into doubled thunder: the Gentle becomes The Arousing. The sun and moon revolve — one season cold, the next warm. Glory and imperial favor burn brilliantly, but cannot be preserved. One tumbles and falls, demoted to the rank of common soldier. The verse traces the full arc of political fortune: from the zenith of power to utter degradation. The cosmic rhythm of alternating seasons frames human inconstancy — what blazes in summer must freeze in winter. From The Gentle to The Arousing, doubled thunder strikes with terrifying force, and the gentleman cultivates reverence through fear. The shock of demotion is a thunderclap that strips away all illusion. Yesterday's honored courtier is today's foot soldier, and the turning of heaven's wheel spares no one.

The Six Lines app includes all 4,096 Yilin verses, each with original ink brush artwork and full commentary. Download on the App Store

Related Pages