Transformation · lines 1, 2, and 5

Great Achievements becomes Gradual Progress

Starting hexagram
Resulting hexagram

What this change means

On the mountain grows a tree: lines one, two and five move, and Great Achievements becomes 53 Gradual Progress. With three in motion, the two judgments are weighed together. Great Achievements speaks of stored strength and the favor of crossing great waters, of doing more than you think you can. The resulting hexagram adds the pace: progress will come step by step, through stages that make it stable, and trying to speed it up brings delays. The combination is ambition with patience. Your aims can be large, but the path to them is a ladder, not a leap. Take the next rung, let it settle, then take the next. Keep learning as you go, the way the noble person stores up wisdom from the past. Steady growth is what makes a great achievement last.

What to read, in order

Marked ● is what Zhu Xi's tradition puts at the center for this number of moving lines.

  1. The judgment of 26 Great Achievements

    It's a good moment to leave your comfort zone and take on new actions, beyond what you think you can do. Heaven favors unusual actions that will lead you to success, because you have the qualities needed.

    Constancy is favorable. Not eating at home brings good fortune. It is favorable to cross the great river.

  2. The judgment of 53 Gradual Progress

    You'll make progress, and it will come step by step, gradually, through stages that make it lasting and stable. Trying to speed things up will bring delays and obstacles. Keep at it, one rung at a time.

    The woman goes to be married: good fortune. Constancy is favorable.

  3. Line 1 of 26 Great Achievements

    Wait before acting for now; acting hastily won't turn out well.

    There is danger. It is favorable to stop.

  4. Line 2 of 26 Great Achievements

    Wait until conditions are right to act, because outside circumstances are holding you back.

    The axle strap slips from the cart.

  5. Line 5 of 26 Great Achievements

    Facing the situations and people trying to stop you, not head-on but cleverly, ensures your success.

    The tusks of a gelded boar. Good fortune.

The trigrams

Below Heaven Mountain
Above Mountain Wind

The way back

53 Gradual Progress → 26 Great Achievements
lines 1, 2, and 5

Other transformations of Great Achievements

Make your own cast

The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.

Toss the coins