What this change means
Thunder upon thunder: the fifth and top lines move, Heaven above becomes Thunder, and Innocence turns into 51 Shock. The top line weighs more: advancing by force now goes nowhere good. The fifth adds that trouble you didn't cause needs no anxious remedy; it tends to straighten out over time. The resulting hexagram describes unexpected events that would frighten others, and says that keeping control and acting calmly brings results where others fail. The combination asks for composure. Something sudden may shake you, and the instinct will be to react, fix or push. Resist it. Don't take drastic measures against what will settle on its own, and don't press forward while things are still trembling. Stay calm, look inward, and let the shock pass. Your steadiness is what turns a jolt into an advantage.
What to read, in order
Marked ● is what Zhu Xi's tradition puts at the center for this number of moving lines.
- Line 6 of 25 Innocence
If you try to force things without waiting for the right conditions, you'll go astray and delay getting what you want.
Without falseness. Moving on brings calamity. Nothing is favorable.
- Line 5 of 25 Innocence
If adverse things happen to you that aren't caused by your own negligence, don't worry: little by little things will straighten out until they're back on course.
An undeserved illness. Take no medicine: there will be joy.
- The judgment of 25 Innocence
If you act with a pure heart, free of hidden motives and without straying from what is right, true to original human nature, you'll let the blessings of heaven reach you. Otherwise you'll meet obstacles and your affairs will become difficult.
Great success. Constancy is favorable. If it is not upright, there is calamity. It is not favorable to have somewhere to go.
- The judgment of 51 Shock
When unexpected situations come along that would frighten others, keep control and act calmly, without losing your composure. This attitude will get you results in what you want and let you succeed where others fail.
Success. Thunder comes, and there is dread; then laughter and easy talk. The thunder alarms a hundred leagues around, yet neither the ladle nor the sacrificial wine is let fall.
The trigrams
The way back
51 Shock → 25 Innocencelines 5 and 6
Other transformations of Innocence
- 6Conflictlines 1 and 2
- 33Leaving Behindlines 1 and 3
- 1Activitylines 2 and 3
- 20Observinglines 1 and 4
- 61Inner Integritylines 2 and 4
- 37The Tribelines 3 and 4
- 35Advancelines 1 and 5
- 38Oppositeslines 2 and 5
- 30The Flamelines 3 and 5
- 27Nourishmentlines 4 and 5
- 45Meetinglines 1 and 6
- 58Inner Peacelines 2 and 6
- 49Renewallines 3 and 6
- 3Initial Obstacleslines 4 and 6
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.