中孚

Hexagram 60: Limitation → Hexagram 61: Inner Truth

Limitation
Water / Lake
中孚
Inner Truth
Wind / Lake
Changing LinesStable Lines

Changing Lines

This transformation involves 1 changing line (line 6).

Line 6

上六 苦節貞凶。悔亡。

bitter
jiélimitation
zhēnpersistence
xiōngis unfortunate
huǐbut
wángpass

Six at the top means: Galling limitation. Perseverance brings misfortune. Remorse disappears.

Trigram Changes

Upper TrigramWater WindThe Deep → The Gentle
Lower TrigramLake Lake

Yilin Verse

江有寶珠,海多大魚。亟行疾至,所以得財。

The river holds precious pearls; the sea teems with great fish. Travel swiftly, arrive quickly; thus one obtains wealth.

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

Commentary

Water over lake guards its resources, and this verse reveals those resources in their most concentrated form. Rivers hold pearls; seas teem with great fish. Move swiftly, arrive quickly, and wealth is yours for the taking. The verse combines natural abundance with the urgency of seizing the moment — treasures exist, but only the swift and decisive can claim them. From Limitation to Inner Truth, the transformation deepens the meaning of these treasures. Wind over lake — the crane cries from the marsh and its young respond. Inner Truth operates through sincerity that penetrates without force, like wind stirring the lake's surface. Limitation's careful husbanding of resources becomes Inner Truth's genuine connection: the pearl is not seized by force but recognized through authentic perception. Speed here is not greed but the quickness of one who sees truly and acts without hesitation.

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