What this change means
Light sinks into the earth as the second and fifth lines move, Fire replacing Heaven below and Earth replacing Water above. Leading is the fifth, with a calm instruction. Hold on to your goal, but rest and watch instead of acting; there's good fortune in staying constant. From the second comes a smaller warning: there may be talk against you, and composure tends to see you through.
The resulting hexagram, 36 Darkness, names the setting more bluntly. It's a dark time, and you may have to live alongside the wrong people. Protect yourself, keep your integrity and avoid showing your light openly until better times return. This combination asks for a quiet, inward patience. Don't answer gossip, don't advertise your plans. Watch for the urge to prove yourself to people who aren't ready to see it.
What to read, in order
Marked ● is what Zhu Xi's tradition puts at the center for this number of moving lines.
- 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 2 of 5 Inaction
Stay calm even if gossip comes up.
Waiting on the sand. A few words against; in the end, good fortune.
- 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.
- The judgment of 36 Darkness
It's a dark time: circumstances force you to live alongside the wrong people. If you know how to protect yourself, hold on to your integrity, and go unnoticed, without openly showing your light and your talents, you'll stay safe until better times come. However hard they seem, hard times pass too.
Constancy in hardship is favorable.
The trigrams
The way back
36 Darkness → 5 Inactionlines 2 and 5
Other transformations of Inaction
- 39Held Backlines 1 and 2
- 29Waterlines 1 and 3
- 3Initial Obstacleslines 2 and 3
- 28Excesseslines 1 and 4
- 49Renewallines 2 and 4
- 58Inner Peacelines 3 and 4
- 46Going Uplines 1 and 5
- 19Fleeting Successlines 3 and 5
- 34Great Manifestationlines 4 and 5
- 57Gentlenesslines 1 and 6
- 37The Tribelines 2 and 6
- 61Inner Integritylines 3 and 6
- 1Activitylines 4 and 6
- 26Great Achievementslines 5 and 6
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.