Hexagram 48 井 changing to hexagram 5 需
Changing line (counted from the bottom): 1.
What to read
One changing line: read the text of that line in the original hexagram. (Rule set out by Zhu Xi in the Yixue qimeng.)
Hexagram 48 井, line 1
井泥不食，舊井无禽。
The first line, divided, shows a well so muddy that men will not drink of it; or an old well to which neither birds (nor other creatures) resort.
The two hexagrams
Hexagram 48 井 — judgment
改邑不改井，无喪无得，往來井井。汔至亦未繘井。羸其瓶，凶。
(Looking at) Zing, (we think of) how (the site of) a town may be changed, while (the fashion of) its wells undergoes no change. (The water of a well) never disappears and never receives (any great) increase, and those who come and those who go can draw and enjoy the benefit. If (the drawing) have nearly been accomplished, but, before the rope has quite reached the water, the bucket is broken, this is evil.
Hexagram 5 需 — judgment
有孚，光亨。貞吉，利涉大川。
Hsü intimates that, with the sincerity which is declared in it, there will be brilliant success. With firmness there will be good fortune; and it will be advantageous to cross the great stream.
The changing lines of hexagram 48
| Line | Chinese | Legge |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 井泥不食，舊井无禽。 | The first line, divided, shows a well so muddy that men will not drink of it; or an old well to which neither birds (nor other creatures) resort. |
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.