中孚 → 蠱

Commentary

Wind stirs above the lake, but a thin calamity strikes with sudden violence. Wind drives the clouds back; what tries to rise cannot ascend, and must return to its starting place. The verse captures frustrated ambition: an upward impulse is beaten back by forces beyond one's control — perhaps political sabotage, perhaps natural setback. From Inner Truth to Work on the Decayed, the lake's sincerity meets wind trapped beneath the mountain. Gu (蠱) is corruption, inherited disorder that must be actively repaired. The verse's failure to rise suggests that the decay is not yet addressed; the wind cannot clear the mountain because the rot is internal. One must first return home and confront what is broken before attempting to climb again.