What this change means
Wind following wind replaces the dry lake as the third, fourth and top lines move. Both judgments share the weight. 47 Overwhelmed describes a time of being hemmed in and unheard, with only your inner light as support while you accept and wait. The resulting hexagram, 57 Gentleness, says you'll gain and succeed through softness, not through pressure or force. Choose a path, stay on it steadily, and trust that small actions add up, even when progress is hard to see. Seek the support of those above you. The thread between them is persistence without hardness. After being pushed around, you may want to push back; this change suggests the opposite. Like wind, keep coming back gently to the same point. Repeat your intention, carry out the work, and let the accumulation of small efforts open what force alone would only close.
What to read, in order
Marked ● is what Zhu Xi's tradition puts at the center for this number of moving lines.
- The judgment of 47 Overwhelmed
Things are very much against you: the wrong people surround you, no one believes what you say, and obstacles hem you in. All you can do is accept it and wait for better conditions to come. Your only resource is the inner light that lives in you; turn to that strength to hold you up right now.
Success. For the great person, constancy brings good fortune. No fault. They speak and are not believed.
- The judgment of 57 Gentleness
It's a time when you'll gain and succeed through gentleness. This isn't the time for big actions, or for using pressure or force. It's a time to choose a path and stay on it steadily. Even if you don't see much progress, success will show itself through the build-up of small actions and through seeking the support of those above you.
Small success. It is favorable to have somewhere to go. It is favorable to see the great person.
- Line 3 of 47 Overwhelmed
Facing obstacles with weakness and complaints won't move you forward; on the contrary, it will sink you deeper.
Hard pressed by stone, leaning on thorns. Enters the house and does not see the wife. Misfortune.
- Line 4 of 47 Overwhelmed
Helping others in times of hardship matters, but that help has to be quick to do its job.
Comes slowly, slowly, hard pressed in a metal carriage. Distress, but there is an end.
- Line 6 of 47 Overwhelmed
The pressure is nearing its end, and the obstacles will be easy to overcome. If your inner strength is with you as well, success will come much more easily.
Hard pressed among creeping vines, on what totters. It is said: moving brings regret. If there is regret, setting out brings good fortune.
The trigrams
The way back
57 Gentleness → 47 Overwhelmedlines 3, 4, and 6
Other transformations of Overwhelmed
- 49Renewallines 1, 2, and 3
- 3Initial Obstacleslines 1, 2, and 4
- 5Inactionlines 1, 3, and 4
- 39Held Backlines 2, 3, and 4
- 51Shocklines 1, 2, and 5
- 34Great Manifestationlines 1, 3, and 5
- 62Success in Small Matterslines 2, 3, and 5
- 19Fleeting Successlines 1, 4, and 5
- 2Passivitylines 2, 4, and 5
- 46Going Uplines 3, 4, and 5
- 25Innocencelines 1, 2, and 6
- 1Activitylines 1, 3, and 6
- 33Leaving Behindlines 2, 3, and 6
- 61Inner Integritylines 1, 4, and 6
- 20Observinglines 2, 4, and 6
- 38Oppositeslines 1, 5, and 6
- 35Advancelines 2, 5, and 6
- 50The Vessel of Nourishmentlines 3, 5, and 6
- 4Immaturitylines 4, 5, and 6
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.