Hexagram 10, line 1
初九Line 1 of Stepping
Nine at the beginning · 履 lǚ
爻辭 The line text
素履，往无咎。The first line, undivided, shows its subject treading his accustomed path. If he go forward, there will be no error.
素履之往，獨行愿也。'He treads his accustomed path and goes forward:'—singly and exclusively he carries out his (long-cherished) wishes.
In plain words
The first line 'treads plainly; going forward, no blame.' 素 is undyed silk: at the bottom of the hexagram one walks in one's own plain colours, without office, ornament or ambition to borrow. A strong line in a strong place, it has no correspondent above (four is also yang), so it owes nothing to anyone and can simply set out. The small Image says this plain going is 'carrying out one's wish alone' (獨行願也) — the honesty of a beginning that has not yet been complicated by position.
If this line is changing
Start in your own plain colours, without posturing or borrowed status; a simple first step taken alone is the one that carries no blame.
Where the line stands
- A solid line, yang — written 九 (nine), the number of an old yang line that moves when cast.
- It is in its correct place (當位): a yang line in an odd position or a yin line in an even one, which the tradition reads as a line at ease where it stands.
- It belongs to the lower trigram 兌 Dui (the Joyous) (lake).
- It has no correspondence (無應) with line 4: both lines are yang, so this line must find its support in its neighbours or in itself.
之卦 When this line moves
履 Stepping becomes ䷅ 6 訟 Dispute
Heaven above and water below, moving apart: contention. Sincerity is obstructed; a dispute may be won partway but ends badly if pushed to the finish.
What it becomes6 · 訟 DisputesòngThe six lines of 履 Stepping
- 初九Nine at the beginningplain treading · simplicity · going alone
- 九二Nine in the second placelevel road · the recluse · inner calm
- 六三Six in the third placeone-eyed, lame · bitten by the tiger · overreach
- 九四Nine in the fourth placetiger's tail · trembling caution · good end
- 九五Nine in the fifth placeresolute tread · peril in correctness · the ruler
- 上九Nine at the topreview the path · signs examined · great blessing
Read 履 Stepping for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Nine at the beginning of hexagram 10, Stepping, mean?
- The first line 'treads plainly; going forward, no blame.' 素 is undyed silk: at the bottom of the hexagram one walks in one's own plain colours, without office, ornament or ambition to borrow. A strong line in a strong place, it has no correspondent above (four is also yang), so it owes nothing to anyone and can simply set out. The small Image says this plain going is 'carrying out one's wish alone' (獨行願也) — the honesty of a beginning that has not yet been complicated by position.
- What does hexagram 10 become when line 1 changes?
- Stepping becomes hexagram 6, 訟 Dispute: Heaven above and water below, moving apart: contention. Sincerity is obstructed; a dispute may be won partway but ends badly if pushed to the finish.
- Is line 1 of Stepping in its correct place?
- It is in its correct place (當位): a yang line in an odd position or a yin line in an even one, which the tradition reads as a line at ease where it stands.
Chinese text: the received Zhouyi (Wuyingdian lineage). English: James Legge, The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East XVI, 1882 (public domain).