Transformation · lines 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6
Inaction becomes The Traveler
What this change means
Fire on the mountain: five lines move, all but the third, and the reading rests on that single still line of 56 The Traveler. It warns that if you lose your kindness now and turn irritable or aggressive, you'll bring trouble on yourself.
After the long patience of 5 Inaction, this change may put you somewhere unfamiliar, among new people or circumstances that ask you to adapt. That's exactly when frustration tends to surface. Keep a light, flexible attitude and stay gracious as you make new connections. Small achievements are what this time offers, and they're enough. Watch for impatience turning into rudeness, and for treating strangers as obstacles. Kindness is your passport here; losing it closes doors that would otherwise open easily.
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 56 The Traveler, which stays still
If you lose your kindness now and turn irritable and aggressive, you'll bring on trouble.
The traveler burns down the inn and loses the young servant. Constancy is in danger.
- The judgment of 5 Inaction
It's time to wait, not to act. Waiting doesn't mean standing still, though: it's a good time to prepare for the active period that's coming. A calm, relaxed attitude will lead you to success: look at the conditions without lying to yourself, and stay alert so you know when it's time to act. Destiny follows its own course.
There is sincere trust. Shining success. Constancy brings good fortune. It is favorable to cross the great river.
- Line 1 of 5 Inaction
You still have control over the situation. It's time to act in a relaxed way, while keeping an eye on what's happening.
Waiting on the outskirts. It is favorable to hold steady. No fault.
- Line 2 of 5 Inaction
Stay calm even if gossip comes up.
Waiting on the sand. A few words against; in the end, good fortune.
- Line 4 of 5 Inaction
Any kind of action will only make things worse.
Waiting in blood. Coming out of the pit.
- Line 5 of 5 Inaction
It's important to keep your goal, but relax, rest and watch without acting.
Waiting with wine and food. Constancy brings good fortune.
- Line 6 of 5 Inaction
At a moment when everything seems to be against you, help appears that will resolve the situation.
Into the pit. Three guests come without being called; receiving them with respect brings good fortune at last.
- The judgment of 56 The Traveler
It's a time of small achievements. Keep a light, flexible attitude. You may be facing a period of change, new places or situations that ask you to adapt while they settle: let go of attachments and be gracious as you make new connections and your situation takes hold.
Small success. For the traveler, constancy brings good fortune.
The trigrams
The way back
56 The Traveler → 5 Inactionlines 1, 2, 4, 5, and 6
Other transformations of Inaction
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.