What this change means
Water on the mountain: with the second and fourth lines moving, the strained beam now stands on a steep, hard road. The fourth line leads. Help from those beneath you can lift the ridgepole, but only if the exchange stays fair; exploit it, and the support disappears. The second line adds hope: green shoots can sprout from a dead tree, and a modest, unconventional act may change more than you'd expect. The resulting hexagram, 39 Held Back, describes a path where every advance meets a block, so you have to stop, step back, and seek out like-minded people who'll lend their strength. The message is to lean on others, honestly. You won't get through this alone, and you won't keep help you don't respect. Take one obstacle at a time, try the modest creative fix, and treat your allies well.
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 28 Excesses
You can receive help from those under you now, but if you take advantage of it and there's no balance between giving and receiving, they'll withdraw their support and there will be loss.
The ridgepole rises. Good fortune. If there is something else, distress.
- Line 2 of 28 Excesses
It's an exceptional time, so the measures must be exceptional too. Your actions should rest on unusual acts that seem small but bring extraordinary results.
The withered poplar puts out shoots. An old man takes a young wife. Nothing that is not favorable.
- The judgment of 28 Excesses
You're in a situation that calls for extraordinary measures to keep what you've achieved from collapsing. Check and strengthen the foundations that hold up your projects, take innovative action and step out of your comfort zone. That way your success is assured; otherwise, loss can't be avoided.
The ridgepole sags. It is favorable to have somewhere to go. Success.
- The judgment of 39 Held Back
Every time you advance, something blocks you, forcing you to stop, step back, and look for help from like-minded people who give you their support. That way you'll get past the obstacles one by one until the final victory.
The southwest is favorable; the northeast is not. It is favorable to see the great person. Constancy brings good fortune.
The trigrams
The way back
39 Held Back → 28 Excesseslines 2 and 4
Other transformations of Excesses
- 49Renewallines 1 and 2
- 58Inner Peacelines 1 and 3
- 45Meetinglines 2 and 3
- 5Inactionlines 1 and 4
- 29Waterlines 3 and 4
- 34Great Manifestationlines 1 and 5
- 62Success in Small Matterslines 2 and 5
- 40Clearing Obstacleslines 3 and 5
- 46Going Uplines 4 and 5
- 1Activitylines 1 and 6
- 33Leaving Behindlines 2 and 6
- 6Conflictlines 3 and 6
- 57Gentlenesslines 4 and 6
- 50The Vessel of Nourishmentlines 5 and 6
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.