萃Cui · Gathering
In one sentence
People and resources are coming together; this is the time to get things done.
A hexagram of gathering. It can gather because there is a center that everyone identifies with. Set up a shared goal, ask someone with standing to preside, and gather people by proper means. With many people and many things, also guard against the unexpected.
Asking about work, love or money
- Work
- People and resources are gathering in one place; this is a time to get things done. What makes them gather is a goal everyone agrees on, so set that up first, and ask someone with standing to preside. Gather people by proper means, and do not be stingy with what needs to be put in. With many people and many matters, guard against the unexpected ahead of time.
- Love
- A good time to bring people together: meeting the family, meeting friends, holding a formal ceremony. Do it with some solemnity, not carelessly. The two of you need a direction you both agree on for the relationship to hold together. If you are single, go more often to proper occasions where many people gather. Crowds also make slip-ups easy, so stay alert.
- Money
- Money and resources are gathering, and things can be done. Gather them by proper means. Do not skimp on the big expense that is called for; a solemn occasion deserves something generous. The more money gathers, the more you must guard against the unexpected: keep a reserve, manage the accounts well, and do not let what has gathered scatter all at once.
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 wordsThe king comes to the ancestral temple and gathers people's hearts. You should go to see a person of virtue and ability; things go through, and it is favorable to stay true. Use generous offerings: good fortune. It is favorable to act.
The Tuan commentary
萃，聚也；順以說，剛中而應，故聚也。王假有廟，致孝享也。利見大人亨，聚以正也。用大牲吉，利有攸往，順天命也。觀其所聚，而天地萬物之情可見矣。
Cui means gathering. Compliant and joyful; the firm holds the center and is answered; and so there is gathering. "The king comes to his temple": he brings the offerings of filial devotion. "It is favorable to see the great person. Success": the gathering is done by what is correct. "Using great sacrificial animals brings good fortune. It is favorable to have somewhere to go": this follows the mandate of heaven. Observe what they gather around, and the true nature of heaven, earth and all things can be seen.
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
澤上于地，萃。君子以除戎器，戒不虞。
The lake rises above the earth: Cui (Gathering). The noble one puts weapons in order and guards against the unforeseen.
The lines
Six at the beginning
Text有孚不終，乃亂乃萃。若號，一握為笑。勿恤，往无咎。There is sincerity, but not to the end; now disorder, now gathering. If one calls out, the whole group laughs. Do not worry. Going brings no blame.In plain wordsThere is sincerity, but it was not kept up to the end, so your resolve is confused and you bunch together with others at random. If you call out loud to the one you really ought to follow, bystanders may laugh at you. Pay it no mind and go: no blame. More on this line →
Six in the second place
Text引吉，无咎。孚乃利用禴。Being drawn in brings good fortune, no blame. With sincerity, even a simple offering is favorable.In plain wordsYou are drawn along by someone to the gathering: good fortune, no blame. As long as the heart is sincere, even a meager offering can be used for the sacrifice. More on this line →
Six in the third place
Text萃如嗟如，无攸利。往无咎，小吝。Gathering, and sighing. Nothing is favorable. Going brings no blame; slight humiliation.In plain wordsYou want to gather, cannot, and can only sigh. Nothing is favorable. Go farther off and follow the one who is truly right: no blame; only, going at this late point is a bit humiliating. Do not cling to a nearby backer who is not upright. More on this line →
Nine in the fourth place
Text大吉，无咎。Great good fortune; no blame.In plain wordsOnly by achieving great good fortune are you free of blame. You can gather people both above and below you, but your position is not quite right, so you have to do extremely well. More on this line →
Nine in the fifth place
Text萃有位，无咎。匪孚，元永貞，悔亡。Gathering, and holding the position. No blame. Where there is no trust: be great, lasting and true, and regret vanishes.In plain wordsYou gather the many and you hold rank as well; no blame. If some still do not trust you, cultivate the virtues of goodness, constancy and uprightness over the long term, and regret will vanish. More on this line →
Six at the top
Text齎咨涕洟，无咎。Sighing and lamenting, tears and sniveling. No blame.In plain wordsSighing and groaning, tears streaming down your face. You want to gather and have nowhere to gather; at this point, only such anxious fear and self-examination keeps you free of blame. 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, Cui belongs to the second pentad of White Dew, “Swallows depart” (September 13 to September 17, 2027).