未濟Weiji · Before Completion
In one sentence
Not done yet. One last step remains, and this is the step where mistakes come most easily.
The little fox has nearly finished crossing the river, but its tail is wet. The matter is not complete and things are not yet in their places; but precisely because it is not complete, there is still possibility. The closer to the end, the more careful you must be; act within your strength. Put each thing where it belongs, and sort out what is important and what is urgent.
Asking about work, love or money
- Work
- One last step remains, and this is the step where mistakes come most easily, like the little fox that has nearly crossed the river and then wets its tail. The closer to the finish, the more careful you need to be; weigh whether your strength is enough, and don't sprint for the line. Sort matters by weight and urgency, and put each thing back where it belongs. Not finished means still possible.
- Love
- The relationship isn't in place yet, and things around it aren't in order yet either. One step short of done is still not done, so don't treat it as settled ahead of time. The nearer the crucial moment, the less you should rush or grow careless. First get clear on where each of you stands, and what comes first and what comes after. Precisely because it isn't settled, it is still possible.
- Money
- The money isn't in your pocket yet, so don't spend it as if it were already in hand. The last step is where things most easily overturn: until the payment has arrived and the contract is signed, nothing before counts. Act within your strength, and don't push rashly at the finish. Put your own accounts in order, what to repay first and what to handle later, each in its place.
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. The little fox has almost made it across the river, but it gets its tail wet, and nothing is gained. If the last step is missing, the thing is still not done.
The Tuan commentary
未濟，亨；柔得中也。小狐汔濟，未出中也。濡其尾，无攸利；不續終也。雖不當位，剛柔應也。
Weiji, "success": the yielding holds the center. "The little fox has nearly crossed": it has not yet come out of the middle. It "wets its tail. Nothing is favorable": it does not carry on to the end. Though they are not in their proper places, the firm and the yielding answer each other.
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
火在水上，未濟。君子以慎辨物居方。
Fire over water: Weiji (Before Completion). The noble one carefully distinguishes things and sets each in its place.
The lines
Six at the beginning
Text濡其尾，吝。The tail gets wet. Humiliation.In plain wordsThe fox crossing the river gets its tail wet. Humiliating. If your strength is not yet enough, do not force your way forward. More on this line →
Nine in the second place
Text曳其輪，貞吉。Dragging back the wheels. Staying true brings good fortune.In plain wordsHold the cartwheels back and do not go forward. You can restrain yourself from rushing ahead and keep to your proper place below. Stay true: good fortune. More on this line →
Six in the third place
Text未濟，征凶，利涉大川。Not yet across. To set forth brings misfortune. It is favorable to cross the great river.In plain wordsThe thing is not yet done and your own strength is weak; forcing your way forward brings misfortune. But you can cross the river by riding the current: borrowing the strength of others is favorable. More on this line →
Nine in the fourth place
Text貞吉悔亡。震用伐鬼方，三年有賞于大國。Staying true brings good fortune; regret vanishes. With thunderous force one attacks the Demon Land. In three years there are rewards from the great state.In plain wordsStaying true brings good fortune, and regret vanishes. You must summon all your firm strength and exert yourself for three years, as in the campaign against the Demon Land, and then you will receive the rewards of the great state. It is not easy, but it is worth it. More on this line →
Six in the fifth place
Text貞吉无悔。君子之光，有孚，吉。Staying true brings good fortune; no regret. The light of the noble one. There is sincerity. Good fortune.In plain wordsStay true: good fortune, no regret. This is the radiance of the noble one: humbly seeking help, sincere and without pretense. Good fortune on top of good fortune. More on this line →
Nine at the top
Text有孚于飲酒，无咎。濡其首，有孚失是。There is confidence in drinking wine. No blame. The head gets wet: with all that confidence, one loses what is right.In plain wordsFull of confidence, you drink your wine at ease, looking after yourself while you wait for the right time. No blame. But if you drink so freely that your head gets soaked, then the self-confidence has gone too far and you have lost your sense of measure. 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, Weiji belongs to the third pentad of Minor Snow, “All is closed, and winter sets in” (December 2 to December 6, 2026) and the first pentad of Major Snow, “The cold-crying bird falls silent” (December 7 to December 11, 2026).