小過 → 大壯
Hexagram 62: Small Exceeding → Hexagram 34: Great Power
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 2 changing lines (lines 1, 2).
Line 1
初六 飛鳥以凶。
Six at the beginning means: The bird meets with misfortune through flying.
Line 2
六二 過其祖。遇其妣。不及其君。遇其臣。无咎。
Six in the second place means: She passes by her ancestor And meets her ancestress. He does not reach his prince And meets the official. No blame.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
水无魚池，陸為海涯。君子失居，小人相攜。
Water without fish, the pond becomes land at the shore of the sea; the noble man loses his dwelling; petty men keep company with each other.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Thunder rumbles above the mountain, but the natural order has inverted: the pond has no fish, dry land has become the ocean's shore. The gentleman loses his dwelling, while petty men band together and thrive. Water without fish is a barren resource; land becoming seashore signals a world turned inside out. The verse describes systemic displacement: the worthy are exiled while the unworthy consolidate power through mutual support. From Small Exceeding to Great Power, the mountain's thunder becomes thunder roaring above heaven — overwhelming force. But the verse warns that great power wielded by the wrong hands produces monstrous inversion: when petty people command thunderous authority, the gentleman has no ground to stand on. Power without virtue reshapes the landscape itself.
The Six Lines app includes all 4,096 Yilin verses, each with original ink brush artwork and full commentary. Download on the App Store