What this change means
Clouds rise toward heaven in this change: the third and fifth lines move, and Heaven appears beneath water. The fifth line leads. A stable achievement comes from capable people working with your respect and with room to act on their own. The third line adds a caution: when good times make you comfortable, inertia sets in and loss follows, though an early reaction lets you recover.
The resulting hexagram, 5 Inaction, says it's time to wait, not to act, but waiting isn't standing still. It's preparation for the active period ahead, with a calm, relaxed attitude and an honest look at conditions. That's the difference between waiting and inertia. Let your collaborators work, prepare yourself, and keep alert for the right moment. Watch for confusing patience with complacency; one gets you ready, the other lets the good season pass without making anything of 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 19 Fleeting Success
Surrounding yourself with capable collaborators and respecting what they do, encouraging their autonomy, will bring you a stable achievement.
Drawing near with wisdom: what befits the great ruler. Good fortune.
- Line 3 of 19 Fleeting Success
Relying too much on favorable situations will lead you to inertia and loss. If you react early, you can recover.
Drawing near with sweetness. Nothing is favorable. Once grieved by it, no fault.
- The judgment of 19 Fleeting Success
A period of luck, fortune and well-being is coming. Make the most of it, because it will last only eight months; after that, conditions will change. If you can pay attention, read the signs and take care and precautions before the decline arrives, you won't avoid it, but you will lessen its effects while circumstances change.
Great success. Constancy is favorable. When the eighth month comes, misfortune.
- 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 trigrams
The way back
5 Inaction → 19 Fleeting Successlines 3 and 5
Other transformations of Fleeting Success
- 2Passivitylines 1 and 2
- 46Going Uplines 1 and 3
- 36Darknesslines 2 and 3
- 40Clearing Obstacleslines 1 and 4
- 51Shocklines 2 and 4
- 34Great Manifestationlines 3 and 4
- 29Waterlines 1 and 5
- 3Initial Obstacleslines 2 and 5
- 58Inner Peacelines 4 and 5
- 4Immaturitylines 1 and 6
- 27Nourishmentlines 2 and 6
- 26Great Achievementslines 3 and 6
- 38Oppositeslines 4 and 6
- 61Inner Integritylines 5 and 6
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.