What this change means
Wind moves over the earth as the first and fifth lines change, and the moment calls for looking before eating. The fifth line leads: knowing your limits in helping others, and asking advice on how to help, brings moderate but genuine results; stay steady and don't attempt the great crossing. The first line warns against the opposite reflex, envy, that makes you drop your own sacred tortoise to stare at someone else's meal. The resulting hexagram, 20 Observing, asks you to observe before acting. You inspire others right now, and you also need to watch the people who inspire you. That's the healthy kind of looking: learning, not coveting. Study those you admire, ask them how they do it, and accept modest steps for now. Things tend to unfold at the right moment when you stop comparing and start paying attention.
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 27 Nourishment
Being aware of your limits in helping others and asking advice on how to do it will bring you moderate achievements, not extraordinary ones, but it's something.
Against the norm. Abiding in constancy brings good fortune. The great river cannot be crossed.
- Line 1 of 27 Nourishment
Being ungrateful for what you have and busying yourself envying what others have will hold back your achievements.
You let go of your sacred tortoise and watch my jaw working. Misfortune.
- The judgment of 27 Nourishment
Right now you need to take care of your physical and spiritual nourishment, so you have the resources you need in each area, and at the same time help others grow through what you do. Success lies in giving and receiving: take in what is good for you and share it with those around you.
Constancy brings good fortune. Watching the jaws; seeking for oneself what fills the mouth.
- The judgment of 20 Observing
Observe before you act. Right now you're a source of inspiration for others, and at the same time you need to observe those who inspire you. This will let things unfold at the right moment, and perfectly.
Hands washed, the offering not yet made. There is sincere trust, solemn and grave.
The trigrams
The way back
20 Observing → 27 Nourishmentlines 1 and 5
Other transformations of Nourishment
- 4Immaturitylines 1 and 2
- 52Abidinglines 1 and 3
- 26Great Achievementslines 2 and 3
- 35Advancelines 1 and 4
- 38Oppositeslines 2 and 4
- 30The Flamelines 3 and 4
- 61Inner Integritylines 2 and 5
- 37The Tribelines 3 and 5
- 25Innocencelines 4 and 5
- 2Passivitylines 1 and 6
- 19Fleeting Successlines 2 and 6
- 36Darknesslines 3 and 6
- 51Shocklines 4 and 6
- 3Initial Obstacleslines 5 and 6
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.