Yijian · Understand the I Ching at your own pace Free learning · No sign-in required
Yijian

Eight Introductory Lessons / 08

A Worked Example from Start to Finish

Put the first seven lessons together: from six numbers all the way to a passage of original text.

The case

Suppose a casting produces these six numbers, read from the bottom up:

first line 9, second line 8, third line 8, fourth line 7, fifth line 7, top line 8.

The four steps that follow are all a matter of applying rules; none of them calls for inspiration. Try them yourself before reading the answers below.

Step one: build the primary hexagram

Odd numbers are yang and even numbers are yin, so from the bottom up the lines read: yang, yin, yin, yang, yang, yin.

The lower trigram is lines one to three — yang, yin, yin — which is Zhen ☳. The upper trigram is lines four to six — yang, yang, yin — which is Dui ☱.

Zhen below and Dui above is hexagram 17, Following. Its judgement reads "Following. Supreme success. Perseverance furthers. No blame."

Up to this point nothing about change has been used.

Step two: build it yourself

The six numbers from the first step are 9, 8, 8, 7, 7, 8, read from the bottom up. Nine and seven are yang, eight and six are yin, so the lines are yang, yin, yin, yang, yang, yin from the bottom. The lower three form Zhen ☳ and the upper three form Dui ☱; Zhen below Dui is hexagram 17, Sui. Of the six numbers only the bottom nine is an old yang, so this hexagram has exactly one moving line.

Step three: moving lines and the resulting hexagram

Look back at the six numbers: 9, 8, 8, 7, 7, 8. Moving lines are sixes and nines, and here the only one is the 9 on the bottom line. So exactly one line moves, and it is the lowest.

Flip that line to yin and copy the rest across: yin, yin, yin, yang, yang, yin.

The lower trigram becomes Kun ☷ while the upper one stays Dui ☱. Kun below and Dui above is hexagram 45, Gathering.

So the primary hexagram is Following, the resulting hexagram is Gathering, and the only difference is the bottom line.

Step four: which passage to read

Exactly one line moves, so by the scheme in lesson six the main text is that line's statement in the primary hexagram. The primary hexagram is Following, the moving line is the bottom one, and that line is yang — so we want the "nine in the first place" of Following.

It reads: "Nine in the first place: the standard is changing. Perseverance brings good fortune. To go out of the door with results brings achievement."

Note that this step reads the statement from Following, the primary hexagram, not from Gathering. In this case the resulting hexagram indicates the direction of change; it is not the main text.

That completes the work at the level of symbols. What follows is the point of lesson seven: treat the passage as a question to hold against your own situation, rather than as an answer to copy down.

Try it yourself

This lesson has a hands-on exercise. It is built into the Traditional Chinese lesson page, where you can try it straight away: open the interactive exercise.

Quick Quiz

For the values 9, 8, 8, 7, 7, 8 read bottom-up, what is the lower trigram?
  • Zhen ☳
  • Gen ☶
  • Dui ☱
View answers and explanations for every option

Zhen ☳ (Correct) : Correct. 9, 8, 8 means yang, yin, yin, forming Zhen from bottom to top.

Gen ☶ : Gen is yin, yin, yang, with yang at the top. Here yang is at the bottom, so it is Zhen.

Dui ☱ : Dui is this hexagram's upper trigram (7, 7, 8 = yang, yang, yin), not its lower.

With the same six values, how is the resulting hexagram obtained?
  • The 9 on the bottom line moves; flip it to yin and the lower trigram goes from Zhen to Kun.
  • Flip all six lines.
  • Swap the upper and lower trigrams.
View answers and explanations for every option

The first line's 9 changes. Turning it to yin changes lower Zhen into Kun. (Correct) : Correct. Kun below and Dui above form Hexagram 45, Cui, differing from the original Sui only in the first line.

Flip all six lines. : Only changing lines flip. Here only the first value is 9; the others are 7 or 8 and remain unchanged.

Swap the upper and lower trigrams. : No such rule exists. The resulting hexagram is produced only by flipping changing lines.

In this worked example, which passage is finally read?
  • The "nine in the first place" statement of Following, the primary hexagram.
  • The judgement of Gathering, the resulting hexagram.
  • The judgement of Following, the primary hexagram.
View answers and explanations for every option

The first nine's text in the original hexagram, Sui. (Correct) : Correct. With one changing line, read that line in the original. It is the first line and yang, so it is “nine at the beginning.”

The judgement of Gathering, the resulting hexagram. : That is the method for six changing lines. With only one, the main reading remains in the original.

The judgement of Following, the primary hexagram. : The judgment is the main reading for zero changing lines. Here one changes, so the rule points to its line text.

Back to Lessons