乾Qian · Heaven
In one sentence
The momentum is just right. It is a good time to go all in, but don't overshoot.
This is the strongest, most vigorous of the sixty-four hexagrams: the conditions are in place, the strength is there, and things are on the rise. Push forward on your own initiative and keep up the effort. At the same time, see clearly which stage you have reached: at the start, build up strength first; when you gain the upper hand, don't get arrogant; when you reach the top, know when to pull back.
Asking about work, love or money
- Work
- The momentum is on your side. It is a good time to go after things, take on responsibility, and get what you want to do moving. But see clearly which step you are on: if you are just starting, build your skills first; if you already have the upper hand, do not press down on others; if you have reached the top, know when to pull back. What counts is steady effort, not one hard charge.
- Love
- You have plenty of drive right now, so it suits you to speak up and take a step forward. But between two people it cannot be only you who decides. If you are too strong, too hurried, and everything has to go your way, the other person will get tired. Let your care be lasting, and soften your stance a little.
- Money
- This is a time when you can earn and can grow things, so go ahead and work at it; the money comes back through diligence and persistence. But when things go well it is easiest to overshoot. Do not keep raising the stakes just because the road has been smooth. When you are high up, know when to pull back, and leave yourself some room.
This is the hexagram as a whole. If your cast has changing lines, the line text governs; each line's page has its own reading for work, love and money.
The judgment
In plain wordsThings go through in a big way. It is favorable to stay true and seeing it through to the end.
The Tuan commentary
大哉乾元，萬物資始，乃統天。雲行雨施，品物流形，大明終始，六位時成。時乘六龍以御天，乾道變化，各正性命，保合大和，乃利貞。首出庶物，萬國咸寧。
Great indeed is the origin that is Qian! All things owe their beginning to it, and so it governs heaven. Clouds move and rain is given; the kinds of things flow into their forms. The great light shines from end to beginning, and the six places are each completed in their time. In its time one rides the six dragons to drive across heaven. The way of Qian changes and transforms; each thing is made correct in its nature and its destiny. The great harmony is preserved and held together: this is "favorable to stay true". It rises at the head of the many things, and the ten thousand states are all at peace.
The Tuan (“judgment”) commentary is one of the Ten Wings. It explains the hexagram name and the judgment from the two trigrams and the positions of the lines.
The image
天行健，君子以自強不息。
Heaven moves with vigor. The noble one grows ever stronger through unceasing effort.
The lines
Nine at the beginning
Text潛龍勿用。Hidden dragon. Do not act.In plain wordsThe dragon is still hidden at the bottom of the water. The time has not come. Don't make your move yet; build up your skills first. More on this line →
Nine in the second place
Text見龍在田，利見大人。A dragon appears in the field. It is favorable to see the great person.In plain wordsThe dragon appears in the open field. People are starting to see what you can do. This is the time to go and meet someone who can lift you up; it is favorable. More on this line →
Nine in the third place
Text君子終日乾乾，夕惕若，厲无咎。The noble one is hard at work all day long, and at evening still on guard. Danger. No blame.In plain wordsBy day you don't slacken for a moment, and at night you still stay alert. Your position is neither high nor low, and there is risk in it; but as long as you keep taking this much care, you will not go wrong. More on this line →
Nine in the fourth place
Text或躍在淵，无咎。Perhaps leaping, still in the deep. No blame.In plain wordsThe dragon is at the edge of the abyss, wanting to leap yet not leaping. Whether to advance or retreat is not yet settled. Pick your moment before you move, and you will not go wrong. More on this line →
Nine in the fifth place
Text飛龍在天，利見大人。A dragon flying in the sky. It is favorable to see the great person.In plain wordsThe dragon has flown up into the sky. This is the time to show everything you can do; both the position and the timing are right. Go and meet the great person who matters; it is favorable. More on this line →
Nine at the top
Text亢龍有悔。A dragon that has flown too high. There will be regret.In plain wordsThe dragon has flown too high and cannot come down; there will be regret. You have reached the top and still only know how to go up. Any move now causes trouble — it is time to pull back. More on this line →
All nines
Text見群龍无首，吉。A host of dragons appears, and none pushes to the head. Good fortune.In plain wordsA whole host of dragons has appeared, yet none of them fights to be the leader. Strength has reached its extreme and knows how to soften. Good fortune. More on this text →
Lines are counted from the bottom. “Nine” is a yang (solid) line, “six” a yin (broken) line. A line applies to your reading only when it is a changing line.
Related hexagrams
Primary, resulting, nuclear, opposite and inverted hexagrams explained →
In the hexagram calendar
In the Tang monk Yixing’s Dayan calendar, Qian belongs to the second pentad of Grain Fills, “Fine grasses wither” (May 26 to May 30, 2027). It is also one of the twelve sovereign hexagrams, standing for the fourth month of the traditional calendar: all six lines yang, yang at its height.
The twelve sovereign hexagrams → The 24 solar terms, 72 pentads and their hexagrams →