Hexagram 12 否 changing to hexagram 27 頤
Changing lines (counted from the bottom): 1, 4, 5.
What to read
Three changing lines: read the judgments of the original and the resulting hexagram; the original is the main one. (Rule set out by Zhu Xi in the Yixue qimeng.)
Judgment of hexagram 12 否
否之匪人，不利君子貞，大往小來。
In Phî there is the want of good understanding between the (different classes of) men, and its indication is unfavourable to the firm and correct course of the superior man. We see in it the great gone and the little come.
Judgment of hexagram 27 頤
貞吉。觀頤，自求口實。
Î indicates that with firm correctness there will be good fortune (in what is denoted by it). We must look at what we are seeking to nourish, and by the exercise of our thoughts seek for the proper aliment.
The two hexagrams
Hexagram 12 否 — judgment
否之匪人，不利君子貞，大往小來。
In Phî there is the want of good understanding between the (different classes of) men, and its indication is unfavourable to the firm and correct course of the superior man. We see in it the great gone and the little come.
Hexagram 27 頤 — judgment
貞吉。觀頤，自求口實。
Î indicates that with firm correctness there will be good fortune (in what is denoted by it). We must look at what we are seeking to nourish, and by the exercise of our thoughts seek for the proper aliment.
The changing lines of hexagram 12
| Line | Chinese | Legge |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 拔茅茹以其彙，貞吉。亨。 | The first line, divided, suggests the idea of grass pulled up, and bringing with it other stalks with whose roots it is connected. With firm correctness (on the part of its subject), there will be good fortune and progress. |
| 4 | 有命，无咎，疇離祉。 | The fourth line, undivided, shows its subject acting in accordance with the ordination (of Heaven), and committing no error. His companions will come and share in his happiness. |
| 5 | 休否，大人吉。其亡其亡，繫于包桑。 | In the fifth line, undivided, we see him who brings the distress and obstruction to a close,—the great man and fortunate. (But let him say), 'We may perish! We may perish!' (so shall the state of things become firm, as if) bound to a clump of bushy mulberry trees. |
English: James Legge (1882), public domain. Chinese: Zhou Yi.
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0); Chinese Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.