Hexagram 46: 升 (shēng)
Judgment
元亨，用見大人，勿恤，南征吉。
Shăng indicates that (under its conditions) there will be great progress and success. Seeking by (the qualities implied in it) to meet with the great man, its subject need have no anxiety. Advance to the south will be fortunate.
Commentary on the judgment (彖傳)
柔以時升，巽而順，剛中而應，是以大亨。用見大人，勿恤；有慶也。南征吉，志行也。
The image (大象)
地中生木，升；君子以順德，積小以高大。
The six lines
| Line | Chinese | Legge | Changes to |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 – – | 冥升，利于不息之貞。 | The sixth line, divided, shows its subject advancing upwards blindly. Advantage will be found in a ceaseless maintenance of firm correctness. | 18 |
| 5 – – | 貞吉，升階。 | The fifth line, divided, shows its subject firmly correct, and therefore enjoying good fortune. He ascends the stairs (with all due ceremony). | 48 |
| 4 – – | 王用享于岐山，吉无咎。 | The fourth line, divided, shows its subject employed by the king to present his offerings on mount Kkl There will be good fortune; there will be no mistake. | 32 |
| 3 — | 升虛邑。 | The third line, undivided, shows its subject ascending upwards (as into) an empty city. | 7 |
| 2 — | 孚乃利用禴，无咎。 | The second line, undivided, shows its subject with that sincerity which will make even the (small) offerings of the vernal sacrifice acceptable. There will be no error. | 15 |
| 1 – – | 允升，大吉。 | The first line, divided, shows its subject advancing upwards with the welcome (of those above him). There will be great good fortune. | 11 |
Lines are numbered from the bottom. Each line page shows the line text with its small image commentary; each “changes to” link opens the reading for that changing line.
Related hexagrams
- Inverse (lines in reverse order): hexagram 45
- Opposite (every line changed): hexagram 25 · reading
- Nuclear (lines 2–4 and 3–5): hexagram 54
English: James Legge, The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East vol. 16 (1882) — public domain; OCR text of the 1882 printing, checked against the proofread hexagrams. Chinese: Zhou Yi from Chinese Wikisource.
Character glossary
- 元yuánfirst; dollar; origin; head
- 亨hēngprospering, going smoothly
- 用yòngto use, to employ, to apply; use
- 見jiànto see, to observe, to meet, to appear
- 大dàbig, great, vast, high, deep
- 人rénman, person; people
- 勿wùmust not, do not; without, never
- 恤xùto help, to relieve, to take pity on
- 南nánsouth; southern; southward
- 征zhēngto summon, to recruit; levy, tax; journe
- 吉jílucky, propitious, good
- 允yǔnto grant, to consent; just, fair
- 升shēngto advance; to arise; to hoist, to raise
- 孚fúto brood over eggs; to have confidence
- 乃nǎithen; really, indeed, after all
- 利lìgains, advantage, profit, merit
- 禴yuèsacrifice
- 无wúno, not; lacking, -less
- 咎jiùfault, defect; error, mistake
- 虛xūfalse; worthless, hollow, empty; vain
- 邑yìarea, district, city, state
- 王wángking, ruler; royal; surname
- 享xiǎngto share; to enjoy; to benefit from
- 于yúat, in, on; to, from; alas!
- 岐qíto diverge, to branch; the name of a mou
- 山shānmountain, hill, peak
- 貞zhēnvirtuous, chaste, pure; loyal
- 階jiēstairs, steps; degree, rank
- 冥míngdark, gloomy, night; deep
- 不bùno, not, un-; negative prefix
- 息xīto end, to cease, to put a stop to; paus
- 之zhīmarks preceding phrase as modifier of fo
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.
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