What this change means
A mountain settles inside the Earth as the third line moves. This line holds its brightness within. Work you keep at steadily, without putting yourself on display, tends to be noticed and valued. It may mean serving someone else's project, without credit for yourself, and still reaching a good end. That's the heart of the reading. The resulting hexagram, 15 Simplicity, says the same from another angle: this isn't the time to boast or display yourself. Keep things simple, act fairly, and let your qualities show on their own. They will. So do the work well and let it speak. Don't chase the title or the spotlight. Give fairly to everyone involved, and weigh what's yours against what's shared. Recognition earned quietly tends to be the kind that lasts, and it rarely comes to those who grab for it.
What to read, in order
Marked ● is what Zhu Xi's tradition puts at the center for this number of moving lines.
- Line 3 of 2 Passivity
What you do with perseverance and without showing off will be appreciated and recognized.
Holding its brightness within; it can stay constant. If it serves in the king's affairs, no achievement of its own, but a good end.
- The judgment of 2 Passivity
This is not the time to take the initiative to achieve things. It's better to let others guide you and to keep at your projects with patience.
Great success. The constancy of a mare is favorable. The noble person has somewhere to go: going ahead, they lose the way; following behind, they find someone to guide them. It is favorable to find friends in the southwest and to lose them in the northeast. Calm constancy brings good fortune.
- The judgment of 15 Simplicity
This isn't the time to boast or show off. It's time to keep things simple and to make sure you act fairly; your qualities and talents will show on their own and be recognized.
Success. The noble person reaches the end.
The trigrams
The way back
15 Simplicity → 2 Passivityline 3
Other transformations of Passivity
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.