What this change means
Thunder stirs inside a lake as the first and fourth lines move, and the gathering becomes a question of whom to follow. The fourth line leads: be loyal to your allies and let that loyalty show. The first line adds a promise from below. The right help is coming, and trust that's genuine tends to fill up and bring more with time.
The resulting hexagram, 17 Adapting, says this is a time both to lead and to follow. If you see the place life is offering you right now and act sincerely from it, your leadership and support both grow. So this reading asks for fidelity and flexibility at once. Keep faith with the people you've joined, and accept that sometimes your role is to follow. Watch for treating loyalty as stubbornness. Being true to your allies and to your real place tends to draw more support.
What to read, in order
Marked ● is what Zhu Xi's tradition puts at the center for this number of moving lines.
- Line 4 of 8 Union
Staying loyal to the people you ally with, and showing that alliance openly, helps you right now.
Joining outwardly. Constancy brings good fortune.
- Line 1 of 8 Union
The right help will come.
There is sincere trust: join with them. No fault. Sincere trust fills the earthen jar; in the end something more arrives. Good fortune.
- The judgment of 8 Union
Right now success lies in joining with people who are aligned with your project and who are a support for you. But it's important that you, too, have the qualities needed to carry it out; that's why you can toss the coins once more to find out whether you have those qualities.
Good fortune. Consult the oracle again: great and lasting constancy. No fault. The restless come from every side. The one who comes late: misfortune.
- The judgment of 17 Adapting
It's a time both to lead and to follow. If you can see the place life is asking you to take right now, and act genuinely from wherever you belong, you'll gain more leadership and more support for what you do.
Great success. Constancy is favorable. No fault.
The trigrams
The way back
17 Adapting → 8 Unionlines 1 and 4
Other transformations of Union
- 60Thriftlines 1 and 2
- 63After the Endlines 1 and 3
- 48Right Actionlines 2 and 3
- 47Overwhelmedlines 2 and 4
- 31Attractionlines 3 and 4
- 24Coming Backlines 1 and 5
- 7The Armylines 2 and 5
- 15Simplicitylines 3 and 5
- 16Passionlines 4 and 5
- 42Increaselines 1 and 6
- 59Release from Obstacleslines 2 and 6
- 53Gradual Progresslines 3 and 6
- 12Declinelines 4 and 6
- 23The Falllines 5 and 6
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.