King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Hexagram 39 蹇 changing to hexagram 32 恒

jiǎn
→
héng

Changing lines (counted from the bottom): 2, 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 39 蹇

利西南,不利東北;利見大人,貞吉。

In (the state indicated Kien advantage will be found in the south-west, and the contrary in the north-east. It will be advantageous (also) to meet with the great man. (In these circumstances), with firmness and correctness, there will be good fortune.

Judgment of hexagram 32 恒

恆:亨,无咎。利貞,利有攸往。

Hăng indicates successful progress and no error (in what it denotes). But the advantage will come from being firm and correct; and movement in any direction whatever will be advantageous.

The two hexagrams

Hexagram 39 蹇 — judgment

利西南,不利東北;利見大人,貞吉。

In (the state indicated Kien advantage will be found in the south-west, and the contrary in the north-east. It will be advantageous (also) to meet with the great man. (In these circumstances), with firmness and correctness, there will be good fortune.

Hexagram 32 恒 — judgment

恆:亨,无咎。利貞,利有攸往。

Hăng indicates successful progress and no error (in what it denotes). But the advantage will come from being firm and correct; and movement in any direction whatever will be advantageous.

The changing lines of hexagram 39

LineChineseLegge
2王臣蹇蹇,匪躬之故。The second line, divided, shows the minister of the king struggling with difficulty on difficulty, and not with a view to his own advantage.
4往蹇來連。The fourth line, divided, shows its subject advancing, (but only) to (greater) difficulties. He remains stationary, and unites (with the subject of the line above).
5大蹇朋來。The fifth line, undivided, shows its subject struggling with the greatest difficulties, while friends are coming to help him.

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.