Transformation · lines 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6
Release from Obstacles becomes Darkness
What this change means
Five lines move, and light sinks into the earth: release becomes 36 Darkness. Only the fourth line holds still, and the reading rests on it. It promises a clear view of what's behind the hardships you face, and that view lets you move quickly and withdraw to safe ground before adversity takes over. That's the gift in a dark turn: clarity about what's really going on. The scattering may have left you among the wrong people, in circumstances you can't change right now. Protect yourself. Hold on to your integrity, and don't display your light or talents where they'll draw attention. Use what you understand to step back in time. Hard times pass, however long they seem, and the one who stays safe and whole can make good use of the better ones.
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 36 Darkness, which stays still
You'll be allowed to see the causes of the hard situations you're facing. This will help you act quickly and withdraw to safe ground before adversity takes complete control.
It enters the left side of the belly; it reaches the heart of the wounded light and goes out through the courtyard gate.
- The judgment of 59 Release from Obstacles
You can free yourself from the obstacles that hold you back if you're able to act sincerely and bring opposites together around shared goals. The tension has arisen because selfishness rules. To move forward, be humble and let the current carry you rather than going against it.
Success. The king goes to his temple. It is favorable to cross the great river. Constancy is favorable.
- Line 1 of 59 Release from Obstacles
Before the separation begins, you can use your resources to prevent it by joining forces.
Rescue comes with a strong horse. Good fortune.
- Line 2 of 59 Release from Obstacles
Recognizing that you've isolated yourself and pulled away from shared purposes will help you get past the obstacles.
In the scattering, it runs to its support. Regret vanishes.
- Line 3 of 59 Release from Obstacles
If you're clear about your goals and purposes, you'll be able to give ground so as to find unity and get past the obstacles.
Scatters its own self. No regret.
- Line 5 of 59 Release from Obstacles
In times of deep division and widespread selfishness, make unity your aim, even if it means yielding more than you think you should.
Scatters its great proclamation like sweat. Scatters the dwelling of the king. No fault.
- Line 6 of 59 Release from Obstacles
Get away in time from whatever puts you and your people in danger. Withdrawing now isn't running away: it's dissolving the risk before it reaches you, and there's no mistake in that.
Scatters its blood; goes away, departs far off. No fault.
- 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 → 59 Release from Obstacleslines 1, 2, 3, 5, and 6
Other transformations of Release from Obstacles
Make your own cast
The answer changes with the question. Toss the coins and see which lines move for you.