Hexagram 61: 中孚 (zhōng fú)
Judgment
豚魚吉，利涉大川，利貞。
Kung Fû (moves even) pigs and fish, and leads to good fortune. There will be advantage in crossing the great stream. There will be advantage in being firm and correct.
Commentary on the judgment (彖傳)
中孚，柔在內而剛得中。說而巽，孚，乃化邦也。豚魚吉，信及豚魚也。利涉大川，乘木舟虛也。中孚以利貞，乃應乎天也。
The image (大象)
澤上有風，中孚；君子以議獄緩死。
The six lines
| Line | Chinese | Legge | Changes to |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 — | 翰音登于天，貞凶。 | The topmost line, undivided, shows its subject in chanticleer (trying to) mount to heaven. Even with firm correctness there will be evil. | 60 |
| 5 — | 有孚攣如，无咎。 | The fifth line, undivided, shows its subject perfectly sincere, and linking (others) to him in closest union. There will be no error. | 41 |
| 4 – – | 月既望，馬匹亡，无咎。 | The fourth line, divided, shows its subject (like) the moon nearly full, and (like) a horse (in a chariot) whose fellow disappears. There will be no error. | 10 |
| 3 – – | 得敵，或鼓或罷，或泣或歌。 | The third line, divided, shows its subject having met with his mate. Now he beats his drum, and now he leaves off. Now he weeps, and now he sings. | 9 |
| 2 — | 鳴鶴在陰，其子和之，我有好爵，吾與爾靡之。 | The second line, undivided, shows its subject (like) the crane crying out in her hidden retirement, and her young ones responding to her. (It is as if it were said), 'I have a cup of good spirits' (and the response were), 'I will partake of it with you' | 42 |
| 1 — | 虞吉，有它不燕。 | The first line, undivided, shows its subject resting (in himself). There will be good fortune. If he sought to any other, he would not find rest. | 59 |
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
- Opposite (every line changed): hexagram 62 · reading
- Nuclear (lines 2–4 and 3–5): hexagram 27
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
- 豚túnsuckling pig; to suckle
- 魚yúfish
- 吉jílucky, propitious, good
- 利lìgains, advantage, profit, merit
- 涉shèsconcerned, involved; to experience; to
- 大dàbig, great, vast, high, deep
- 川chuānstream, river
- 貞zhēnvirtuous, chaste, pure; loyal
- 虞yúanxious, concerned, worried
- 有yǒuto have, to own, to possess; to exist
- 它tāit; other
- 不bùno, not, un-; negative prefix
- 燕yànlovebird, swallow
- 鳴mínga bird call or animal cry; to make a sou
- 鶴hècrane; Grus species (various)
- 在zàiat, in, on; to exist; used to indicate t
- 陰yīnthe female principle; dark, shaded; hidd
- 其qíhis, her, its, their; that
- 子zison, child; seed, egg; fruit; small thin
- 和héharmony, peace; calm, peaceful
- 之zhīmarks preceding phrase as modifier of fo
- 我wǒI, me, my; our, us
- 好hǎogood, excellent, fine; proper, suitable;
- 爵juénoble; a feudal rank or title
- 吾wúI, my, our; to resist, to impede
- 與yǔand; with; to; for; to give, to grant
- 爾ěryou; that, those; final particle
- 靡míto scatter, to disperse; to divide
- 得déto obtain, to get, to acquire; suitable,
- 敵díenemy, foe, rival; to match; to resist
- 或huòor, either, else; maybe, perhaps, possib
- 鼓gǔdrum; to beat, to strike; to rouse
- 罷bàto cease, to finish, to stop, to quit
- 泣qìto cry, to sob, to weep
- 歌gēsong, lyrics; to sing, to chant
- 月yuèmoon; month
- 既jìalready, since, then; both; de facto
- 望wàngto expect, to hope, to look forward to
- 馬mǎhorse; surname
- 匹pǐbolt of cloth; mate, one of a pair; meas
- 亡wángdeath, destruction; to lose; to perish
- 无wúno, not; lacking, -less
- 咎jiùfault, defect; error, mistake
- 孚fúto brood over eggs; to have confidence
- 攣luántangled, entwined; crooked
- 如rúas, as if, like, such as, supposing
- 翰hànpen, pencil, writing brush
- 音yīnsound, tone, pitch, pronunciation
- 登dēngto rise, to mount, to board, to climb
- 于yúat, in, on; to, from; alas!
- 天tiānsky, heaven; god, celestial
- 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.