Gen, six in the second placeHexagram 52, line 2 · Gen (Stillness) · changing to 18
The line
In plain wordsYou have stopped your own calves, but you cannot save the one above you who insists on moving and whom you have to follow. You are doing the right thing, but you cannot keep him from his mistake, and you are unhappy about it.
The Image commentary on this line
不拯其隨，未退聽也。
"One cannot rescue the person one follows": that one has not drawn back to listen.
The small Image commentary is the earliest explanation of the line texts. It usually explains a line from its position: where it stands, whether it holds the center, and which line answers it.
Verdict
慎Proceed with care. The text gives no verdict, but the picture holds an obstacle and a warning. Slow down and watch the point it warns about.
How to read good fortune, misfortune, regret, humiliation and no blame →
Asking about work, love or money
- Work
- You can see that your boss or your team is heading the wrong way. You can stop yourself, but you can't stop them, and you have to go along, which leaves you frustrated. Once you have said your piece, that is enough; keep your own part right, and don't drag yourself down over it.
- Love
- You want the relationship to pause and slow down, but the other person keeps charging ahead and won't listen, and you can't hold them back; it leaves you unhappy. Say clearly what you think, but don't drag them back by force. Take care of your own step, and don't go wrong along with them.
- Money
- Family or partners insist on spending and taking risks; you can't talk them out of it and can only watch, which makes you angry. You can still protect your own share: say what needs saying, and don't stake your part of the money along with theirs.
This is how to read it when this is the only changing line. With several changing lines, first see which text governs; for the hexagram as a whole, see Gen.
Line position
A yin line in a yin place: it is in its proper place; it holds the center of its trigram. Its partner is the fifth line, which is also yin, so there is no answer from it.
Second place: the center of the lower trigram, a place of praise. Stay centered and yielding.
When you get this line
If this is the only changing line in your cast (three inscribed sides, old yin), this line is your answer. The primary hexagram is Gen (Stillness); when this line changes it becomes Gu (Repairing Decay): hexagram 52 changing to 18.
Which text to read with several changing lines →
Resulting hexagram · Gu (Repairing Decay)
Old problems that have piled up have reached the point where they must be dealt with.