噬嗑Shihe · Biting Through
In one sentence
Something is stuck in the middle, and you have to bite through it.
Like a hard object in the mouth that keeps the teeth from meeting: things are jammed by some obstacle, some person or some problem. Deal with it head-on and clear the obstacle decisively. Be clear about right and wrong; what should go by the rules, handle by the rules. No vagueness, no stalling.
Asking about work, love or money
- Work
- Things are stuck because something specific is lodged in the middle: a person, a problem, a rule nobody enforces. There is no way around it; you can only bite through it head-on. Lay out right and wrong plainly, handle by the rules what should be handled by the rules, deal with the people who need dealing with, and do not be vague or drag it out.
- Love
- Something is lodged between the two of you, and until it is said out loud you cannot come together: a concealment, a third person, a sore spot nobody mentions. Now it has to be laid open and talked through; right is right and wrong is wrong, so do not smooth it over. Biting down will hurt, but unless you bite through, the relationship stays stuck right there.
- Money
- There is a money matter that is stuck: an unpaid debt, a dispute, an account nobody can explain. Stop letting it drag on for the sake of personal feelings; deal with it head-on by the contract and by the rules, through formal channels if necessary. Settle it with right and wrong made clear, and only then will things flow again. The share that is yours to bear, bear it promptly too.
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. Something is stuck in the mouth, and the jaws can close only once it is bitten through; it is favorable to judge right and wrong clearly and deal with matters by law.
The Tuan commentary
頤中有物，曰噬嗑，噬嗑而亨。剛柔分，動而明，雷電合而章。柔得中而上行，雖不當位，利用獄也。
There is something between the jaws: this is called Shihe. Bite through, and there is "success". The firm and the yielding are divided. Movement and brightness; thunder and lightning join and show clearly. The yielding holds the center and moves upward. Though it is not in its proper place, "it is favorable to apply the law".
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
雷電噬嗑。先王以明罰敕法。
Thunder and lightning: Shihe (Biting Through). The ancient kings made the penalties clear and proclaimed the laws.
The lines
Nine at the beginning
Text屨校滅趾，无咎。Feet locked in the stocks, the toes covered. No blame.In plain wordsShackles on the feet, covering the toes. The fault is still small; take a small punishment, stop right here and go no further wrong, and there is no blame. More on this line →
Six in the second place
Text噬膚滅鼻，无咎。Biting into soft flesh until the nose is buried. No blame.In plain wordsBiting into a piece of tender meat so deep that even your nose sinks in. The matter is easy to handle; you just come down a bit hard and get slightly hurt yourself. In the end, no blame. More on this line →
Six in the third place
Text噬臘肉，遇毒。小吝，无咎。Biting cured meat and meeting poison. Slight humiliation, no blame.In plain wordsBiting into a piece of dried cured meat with bone in it, and getting poisoned too. You go to deal with someone, they won't accept it, and you hit a wall. A bit embarrassing, but this had to be done; no blame. More on this line →
Nine in the fourth place
Text噬乾胏，得金矢。利艱貞，吉。Biting dried meat on the bone, finding a metal arrowhead. It is favorable to stay true through hardship. Good fortune.In plain wordsGnawing dried meat on the bone and finding a bronze arrowhead. The opponent is tough, but you handle it with the right balance of firmness and gentleness. Treat it as a hard task and keep to the right course, and there is good fortune. More on this line →
Six in the fifth place
Text噬乾肉，得黃金。貞厲，无咎。Biting dried meat, finding yellow gold. Persisting is dangerous. No blame.In plain wordsChewing dried meat and finding gold. It is not the hardest of matters, you handle it fairly, and everyone accepts it. But you must still stay true and keep a sense of caution, and only then is there no blame. More on this line →
Nine at the top
Text何校滅耳，凶。Shouldering a wooden collar that covers the ears. Misfortune.In plain wordsA heavy wooden collar on the shoulders, covering even the ears. Misfortune. The wrongdoing has gone all the way, and no warning gets through. More on this line →
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, Shihe belongs to the third pentad of Start of Winter, “Pheasants enter the sea and turn into giant clams” (November 17 to November 21, 2026).