小過 → 豫
Hexagram 62: Small Exceeding → Hexagram 16: Enthusiasm
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 4, 6).
Line 1
初六 飛鳥以凶。
Six at the beginning means: The bird meets with misfortune through flying.
Line 4
九四 无咎。弗過遇之。往厲必戒。勿用永貞。
Nine in the fourth place means: No blame. He meets him without passing by. Going brings danger. One must be on guard. Do not act. Be constantly persevering.
Line 6
上六 弗遇過之。飛鳥離之。凶。是謂災眚。
Six at the top means: He passes him by, not meeting him. The flying bird leaves him. Misfortune. This means bad luck and injury.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
低頭竊視，有所畏避。行作不利，酒酢魚餒，眾莫貪嗜。
Head bowed, eyes stealing glances, avoiding something feared; actions bring no profit; wine has soured, fish gone rancid; none will touch the feast.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Thunder rumbles above the mountain, but one ducks and peers furtively, avoiding something feared. Action brings no advantage; the wine has soured, the fish has spoiled, and no one wants to taste them. The verse is a portrait of paralysis disguised as caution: lowered heads, stolen glances, movements that dare not commit. The spoiled provisions — vinegared wine and rancid fish — signal that the moment for enjoyment has already passed. From Small Exceeding to Enthusiasm, the mountain's thunder becomes thunder breaking forth from the earth in joyous release. The transformation is bitterly ironic: Enthusiasm demands bold, timely action, but the verse shows someone who missed the window entirely. What should have been a feast has curdled into waste through excessive hesitation.
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