Hexagram 57: 巽 (xùn)
Judgment
小亨。利有攸往。利見大人。
Sun intimates that (under the conditions which it denotes) there will be some little attainment and progress. There will be advantage in movement onward in whatever direction. It will be advantageous (also) to see the great man.
Commentary on the judgment (彖傳)
重巽以申命，剛巽乎中正而志行。柔皆順乎剛，是以小亨，利有攸往，利見大人。
The image (大象)
隨風，巽；君子以申命行事。
The six lines
| Line | Chinese | Legge | Changes to |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 — | 巽在牀下，喪其資斧，貞凶。 | The sixth line, undivided, shows the representative of penetration beneath a couch, and having lost the axe with which he executed his decisions. However firm and correct he may (try to) be, there will be evil. | 48 |
| 5 — | 貞吉悔亡，无不利。无初有終，先庚三日，後庚三日，吉。 | The fifth line, undivided, shows that with firm correctness there will be good fortune (to its subject). All occasion for repentance will disappear, and all his movements will be advantageous. There may have been no (good) beginning, but there will be a (good) end. Three days before making any changes, (let him give notice of them); and three days after, (let him reconsider them). There will (thus) be good fortune. | 18 |
| 4 – – | 悔亡，田獲三品。 | The fourth line, divided, shows all occasion for repentance (in its subject) passed away. He takes game for its threefold use in his hunting. | 44 |
| 3 — | 頻巽，吝。 | The third line, undivided, shows its subject penetrating (only) by violent and repeated efforts. There will be occasion for regret. | 59 |
| 2 — | 巽在牀下，用史巫紛若，吉无咎。 | The second line, undivided, shows the representative of Sun beneath a couch, and employing diviners and exorcists in a way bordering on confusion. There will be good fortune and no error. | 53 |
| 1 – – | 進退，利武人之貞。 | The first line, divided, shows its subject (now) advancing, (now) receding. It would be advantageous for him to have the firm correctness of a brave soldier. | 9 |
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 58
- Opposite (every line changed): hexagram 51 · reading
- Nuclear (lines 2–4 and 3–5): hexagram 38
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
- 小xiǎosmall, tiny, insignificant
- 亨hēngprospering, going smoothly
- 利lìgains, advantage, profit, merit
- 有yǒuto have, to own, to possess; to exist
- 攸yōudistant, far; adverbial prefix
- 往wǎngto go, to depart; past, former
- 見jiànto see, to observe, to meet, to appear
- 大dàbig, great, vast, high, deep
- 人rénman, person; people
- 進jìnto advance, to make progress; to come in
- 退tuìto retreat, to step back, to withdraw
- 武wǔmilitary; martial, warlike
- 之zhīmarks preceding phrase as modifier of fo
- 貞zhēnvirtuous, chaste, pure; loyal
- 巽xùnmild, modest, obedient; southeast; 5th o
- 在zàiat, in, on; to exist; used to indicate t
- 牀chuángbed, couch; bench; chassis
- 下xiàbelow, underneath; inferior; to bring do
- 用yòngto use, to employ, to apply; use
- 史shǐhistory, chronicle, annals
- 巫wūwizard, sorcerer, witch, shaman
- 紛fēntangled, scattered; numerous, confused
- 若ruòif, supposing, assuming; similar
- 吉jílucky, propitious, good
- 无wúno, not; lacking, -less
- 咎jiùfault, defect; error, mistake
- 頻pínfrequency; repeatedly, again and again
- 吝lìnstingy, miserly; parsimonious
- 悔huǐto regret, to repent, to show remorse
- 亡wángdeath, destruction; to lose; to perish
- 田tiánfield, farm, arable land; cultivated
- 獲huòto get, to obtain, to receive, to sieze
- 三sānthree
- 品pǐnarticle, good, product; commodity; quali
- 不bùno, not, un-; negative prefix
- 初chūbeginning, initial, primary
- 終zhōngend; finally, in the end
- 先xiānfirst, former, previous
- 庚gēngage; 7th heavenly stem
- 日rìsun; day; daytime
- 後hòuafter; behind, rear; descendants
- 喪sàngmourning; mourn; funeral
- 其qíhis, her, its, their; that
- 資zīwealth, property, capital
- 斧fǔaxe, hatchet; to chop, to hew
- 凶xiōngculprit; murder; bad, sad
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.