Hexagram 21 噬嗑 changing to hexagram 9 小畜
Changing lines (counted from the bottom): 2, 3, 4, 5.
What to read
Four changing lines: read the two unchanged lines of the resulting hexagram; the lower one is the main one. (Rule set out by Zhu Xi in the Yixue qimeng.)
Hexagram 9 小畜, line 1
復自道，何其咎，吉。
The first line, undivided, shows its subject returning and pursuing his own course. What mistake should he fall into? There will be good fortune.
Hexagram 9 小畜, line 6
既雨既處，尚得載，婦貞厲，月幾望，君子征凶。
The topmost line, undivided, shows how the rain has fallen, and the (onward progress) is stayed;—(so) must we value the full accumulation of the virtue (represented by the upper trigram). But a wife (exercising restraint), however firm and correct she may be, is in a position of peril, (and like) the moon approaching to the full. If the superior man prosecute his measures (in such circumstances), there will be evil.
The two hexagrams
Hexagram 21 噬嗑 — judgment
亨。利用獄。
Shih Ho indicates successful progress (in the condition of things which it supposes). It will be advantageous to use legal constraints.
Hexagram 9 小畜 — judgment
亨。密雲不雨，自我西郊。
Hsiâo Khû indicates that (under its conditions) there will be progress and success. (We see) dense clouds, but no rain coming from our borders in the west.
The changing lines of hexagram 21
| Line | Chinese | Legge |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 噬膚滅鼻，无咎。 | The second line, divided, shows one biting through the soft flesh, and (going on to) bite off the nose. There will be no error. |
| 3 | 噬昔肉，遇毒；小吝，无咎。 | The third line, divided, shows one gnawing dried flesh, and meeting with what is disagreeable. There will be occasion for some small regret, but no (great) error. |
| 4 | 噬乾胏，得金矢，利艱貞，吉。 | The fourth line, undivided, shows one gnawing the flesh dried on the bone, and getting the pledges of money and arrows. It will be advantageous to him to realise the difficulty of his task and be firm,—in which case there will be good fortune. |
| 5 | 噬乾肉，得黃金，貞厲，无咎。 | The fifth line, divided, shows one gnawing at dried flesh, and finding the yellow gold. Let him be firm and correct, realising the peril (of his position). There will be no error. |
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.