What this change means
Fire slips beneath Earth as the third and fourth lines move, and the light of this situation goes underground. The fourth line leads: thunder stuck in mud, effort that can't find its target because you can't see what's holding you back. Its counsel is to wait until conditions change. The third line adds an inward look: much of what's hitting you starts in you, and once you admit it, you can change course. The resulting hexagram, 36 Darkness, describes a hard stretch, where you may have to live alongside the wrong people. Protect yourself and keep your integrity, and don't show off your talents while things are like this. Go unnoticed, fix what is yours to fix in private, and wait. Hard times pass too, and the quieter you are now, the safer you'll be when they do.
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 51 Shock
You can't see clearly what's holding you back, so the things you do don't settle matters. It's a time to wait until conditions change.
Thunder sinks into the mud.
- Line 3 of 51 Shock
The blows you're taking right now aren't caused by fate. They come more from within, and that makes things harder. Once you realize this, you'll make the corrections and resolve the situation.
Thunder that stuns and stuns. If thunder sets one going, no disaster.
- The judgment of 51 Shock
When unexpected situations come along that would frighten others, keep control and act calmly, without losing your composure. This attitude will get you results in what you want and let you succeed where others fail.
Success. Thunder comes, and there is dread; then laughter and easy talk. The thunder alarms a hundred leagues around, yet neither the ladle nor the sacrificial wine is let fall.
- The judgment of 36 Darkness
It's a dark time: circumstances force you to live alongside the wrong people. If you know how to protect yourself, hold on to your integrity, and go unnoticed, without openly showing your light and your talents, you'll stay safe until better times come. However hard they seem, hard times pass too.
Constancy in hardship is favorable.
The trigrams
The way back
36 Darkness → 51 Shocklines 3 and 4
Other transformations of Shock
- 40Clearing Obstacleslines 1 and 2
- 62Success in Small Matterslines 1 and 3
- 34Great Manifestationlines 2 and 3
- 2Passivitylines 1 and 4
- 19Fleeting Successlines 2 and 4
- 45Meetinglines 1 and 5
- 58Inner Peacelines 2 and 5
- 49Renewallines 3 and 5
- 3Initial Obstacleslines 4 and 5
- 35Advancelines 1 and 6
- 38Oppositeslines 2 and 6
- 30The Flamelines 3 and 6
- 27Nourishmentlines 4 and 6
- 25Innocencelines 5 and 6
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.