King's Kung-Fu& Tai Chi

Hexagram 5 需 changing to hexagram 18 蠱

xū
→
gǔ

Changing lines (counted from the bottom): 1, 5, 6.

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 5 需

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.

Judgment of hexagram 18 蠱

元亨。利涉大川。先甲三日,後甲三日。

Kû indicates great progress and success (to him who deals properly with the condition represented by it). There will be advantage in (efforts like that of) crossing the great stream. (He should weigh well, however, the events of) three days before the turning point, and those (to be done) three days after it.

The two hexagrams

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.

Hexagram 18 蠱 — judgment

元亨。利涉大川。先甲三日,後甲三日。

Kû indicates great progress and success (to him who deals properly with the condition represented by it). There will be advantage in (efforts like that of) crossing the great stream. (He should weigh well, however, the events of) three days before the turning point, and those (to be done) three days after it.

The changing lines of hexagram 5

LineChineseLegge
1需于郊,利用恆,无咎。The first line, undivided, shows its subject waiting in the distant border. It will be well for him constantly to maintain (the purpose thus shown), in which case there will be no error.
5需于酒食,貞吉。The fifth line, undivided, shows its subject waiting amidst the appliances of a feast. Through his firmness and correctness there will be good fortune.
6入于穴,有不速之客三人來,敬之終吉。The topmost line, divided, shows its subject entered into the cavern. (But) there are three guests coming, without being urged, (to his help). If he receive them respectfully, there will be good fortune in the end.

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.

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