Hexagram 6 訟 changing to hexagram 23 剝
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 6 訟
有孚，窒，惕，中吉，終凶。利見大人，不利涉大川。
Sung intimates how, though there is sincerity in one's contention, he will yet meet with opposition and obstruction; but if he cherish an apprehensive caution, there will be good fortune, while, if he must prosecute the contention to the (bitter) end, there will be evil. It will be advantageous to see the great man; it will not be advantageous to cross the great stream.
Judgment of hexagram 23 剝
不利。有攸往。
Po indicates that (in the state which it symbolises) it will not be advantageous to make a movement in any direction whatever.
The two hexagrams
Hexagram 6 訟 — judgment
有孚，窒，惕，中吉，終凶。利見大人，不利涉大川。
Sung intimates how, though there is sincerity in one's contention, he will yet meet with opposition and obstruction; but if he cherish an apprehensive caution, there will be good fortune, while, if he must prosecute the contention to the (bitter) end, there will be evil. It will be advantageous to see the great man; it will not be advantageous to cross the great stream.
Hexagram 23 剝 — judgment
不利。有攸往。
Po indicates that (in the state which it symbolises) it will not be advantageous to make a movement in any direction whatever.
The changing lines of hexagram 6
| Line | Chinese | Legge |
|---|---|---|
| 2 | 不克訟，歸而逋，其邑人三百戶无眚。 | The second line, undivided, shows its subject unequal to the contention. If he retire and keep concealed (where) the inhabitants of his city are (only) three hundred families, he will fall into no mistake. |
| 4 | 不克訟，復即命渝，安貞吉。 | The fourth line, undivided, shows its subject unequal to the contention. He returns to (the study of Heaven's) ordinances, changes (his wish to contend), and rests in being firm and correct. There will be good fortune. |
| 5 | 訟，元吉。 | The fifth line, undivided, shows its subject contending;—and with great good fortune. |
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.