What this change means
Everything seems to go wrong in the third line: the cart is dragged back, the ox is held, the driver is hurt. Yet it ends well, because there's no good beginning, but there is an end. This line moves alone. Even if conditions turn against you and you're attacked, staying true to yourself and to the people you admire leads to success. With the lower Lake turning to Heaven, the figure becomes 14 Wealth, fire above heaven. The resulting hexagram describes a time of abundance, inner and outer, which lasts if you keep your character centered and act generously. So the rough start isn't the whole story. Hold on to your values while things are hard. Don't trade them away to escape the pressure. What you keep intact now is what tends to grow into real prosperity later.
What to read, in order
Marked ● is what Zhu Xi's tradition puts at the center for this number of moving lines.
- Line 3 of 38 Opposites
Even if conditions turn against you and you're even attacked, staying true to yourself and to those you admire will lead you to success.
Sees the cart dragged back, the ox held fast; the driver, branded on the forehead, nose cut off. No beginning, but an end.
- The judgment of 38 Opposites
You're in a situation of opposition: the people around you are different from you, yet you need to share with them. This means that what you can achieve for now is small. Even so, don't give in. It matters that both you and they keep your own nature and contribute from there to a shared project.
In small matters, good fortune.
- The judgment of 14 Wealth
A time of abundance and prosperity, both inner and outer. It's important to keep your character centered and to cultivate good deeds and generosity, so that this wealth lasts and reaches others.
Great success.
The trigrams
The way back
14 Wealth → 38 Oppositesline 3
Other transformations of Opposites
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.