未濟 → 既濟

Commentary

Fire above water, and two primordial forces clash in the open. A great serpent and a great fish battle in the wilderness. Lord and minister are cut off from each other, and the Duke of Guo is expelled from his house. The serpent-and-fish combat may represent the struggle between competing elemental powers — water creature against earth creature — while the political dimension names a specific consequence: the ruler is isolated, the minister displaced. The 'Duke of Guo' (郭公) in classical usage often refers to a ruler who has lost his state. From Before Completion to After Completion, fire-over-water transforms into water above fire — every element finally in its proper place. Yet the verse suggests that completion comes at a cost: the battle must be fought, the duke must be expelled, before the new order can settle into alignment.