What this change means
Both mountains settle into the earth when the third and top lines move, and every height flattens into open ground. The top line leads: a deep, settled calm, strong enough to handle whatever comes from outside. The third line shows the shadow of that calm, stillness forced by clenching, which strains the body and smothers the heart; real rest comes from slow breath and a quiet heart. The resulting hexagram, 2 Passivity, says this isn't a time to take the initiative. Let others guide you and keep at your projects patiently. So don't fight to stay still, and don't fight to lead. Yield, breathe, support, and let your patience carry the weight. Supporting well is its own kind of strength, and it needs no clenching.
What to read, in order
Marked ● is what Zhu Xi's tradition puts at the center for this number of moving lines.
- Line 6 of 52 Abiding
There's perfect stillness, an inner calm that lets you master what's outside. Success.
Deep stillness. Good fortune.
- Line 3 of 52 Abiding
The stillness you need now can't be forced. It has to come from a calm heart and unhurried breathing.
Still the waist; the flesh along the spine is torn. Danger: the heart is smothered.
- The judgment of 52 Abiding
It's a time of stillness, of staying centered and steady: that's the best way forward in your present situation. Sometimes you need to stop, calm and confident, and wait for outer conditions to show you it's time to act. Don't go beyond what's happening now. There's no action, only a harmonious stillness, and staying that way brings success.
Still at the back; the body is not reached. Walking in the courtyard; its people are not seen. No fault.
- The judgment of 2 Passivity
This is not the time to take the initiative to achieve things. It's better to let others guide you and to keep at your projects with patience.
Great success. The constancy of a mare is favorable. The noble person has somewhere to go: going ahead, they lose the way; following behind, they find someone to guide them. It is favorable to find friends in the southwest and to lose them in the northeast. Calm constancy brings good fortune.
The trigrams
The way back
2 Passivity → 52 Abidinglines 3 and 6
Other transformations of Abiding
- 26Great Achievementslines 1 and 2
- 27Nourishmentlines 1 and 3
- 4Immaturitylines 2 and 3
- 30The Flamelines 1 and 4
- 50The Vessel of Nourishmentlines 2 and 4
- 35Advancelines 3 and 4
- 37The Tribelines 1 and 5
- 57Gentlenesslines 2 and 5
- 20Observinglines 3 and 5
- 33Leaving Behindlines 4 and 5
- 36Darknesslines 1 and 6
- 46Going Uplines 2 and 6
- 62Success in Small Matterslines 4 and 6
- 39Held Backlines 5 and 6
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.