未濟 → 兌
Hexagram 64: Before Completion → Hexagram 58: The Joyous Lake
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 5, 6).
Line 1
初六 濡其尾。吝。
Six at the beginning means: He gets his tail in the water. Humiliating.
Line 5
六五 貞吉无悔。君子之光。有孚吉。
Six in the fifth place means: Perseverance brings good fortune. No remorse. The light of the superior man is true. Good fortune.
Line 6
上九 有孚于飲酒。无咎。濡其首。有孚失是。
Nine at the top means: There is drinking of wine In genuine confidence. No blame. But if one wets his head, He loses it, in truth.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
望幸不到，文章未就。王子逐兔，犬踦不得。
The string snaps mid-song; the wine is spent, the cup empty. Guests depart, the tower stands empty — moonlight falls on the abandoned feast.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire above water, and the moment of joy has passed. The original verse reads: 'Hopes for the royal visit go unmet; the literary work remains unfinished. The prince chases a rabbit, but the lame dog cannot catch it.' Anticipation is disappointed at every turn — the awaited guest never arrives, the creative project stalls, and even the hunt fails because the instrument is broken. From Before Completion to the Joyous, fire-over-water transforms into doubled lake, the image of shared delight and mutual learning. The irony is exquisite: the Joyous promises companionship and fulfillment, yet the verse delivers solitude and incompletion. Joy here exists only in its absence — the empty cups, the broken string, the guest who never came.
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