Hexagram 10, line 3
六三Line 3 of Stepping
Six in the third place · 履 lǚ
爻辭 The line text
眇能視，跛能履，履虎尾，咥人，凶。武人為于大君。The third line, divided, shows a one-eyed man (who thinks he) can see; a lame man (who thinks he) can walk well; one who treads on the tail of a tiger and is bitten. (All this indicates) ill fortune. We have a (mere) bravo acting the part of a great ruler.
眇能視；不足以有明也。跛能履；不足以與行也，咥人之凶；位不當也。武人為于大君；志剛也。'A one-eyed man (who thinks that he) can see:'—he is not fit to see clearly. 'A lame man (who thinks that he can) tread well:'—one cannot walk along with him. 'The ill fortune of being bitten' arises from the place not being the proper one for him. 'A (mere) bravo acting the part of a great ruler:'—this is owing to his aims being (too) violent.
In plain words
Line three is the hexagram's one yin line, and it is the foot that actually steps on the tiger: 'the one-eyed thinks he can see, the lame thinks he can walk; he treads on the tiger's tail and is bitten. Misfortune. A soldier plays the great prince.' Weak, in a strong place, not central, at the top of Dui and pressing against the three strong lines of Qian, it overestimates itself on every count. The small Image takes the images one by one — not enough to see clearly, not fit to walk with, bitten because 'the place is not right' (位不當也), and the soldier's usurpation comes from a will that is too hard (志剛也). The judgment's tiger does not bite; this line is the exception, because it treads without the pleasure-and-compliance the Tuan credits to Dui.
If this line is changing
If you are tempted to act as though you had more sight, strength or standing than you do, stop; this is the one place in the hexagram where the tiger bites.
Where the line stands
- A broken line, yin — written 六 (six), the number of an old yin line that moves when cast.
- It is not in its correct place (不當位): a yang line in an even position or a yin line in an odd one, which the tradition reads as a line under some strain — often the reason a text sounds a warning.
- It belongs to the lower trigram 兌 Dui (the Joyous) (lake).
- It corresponds (應) with line 6: one yin and one yang, the two lines answer each other across the hexagram.
之卦 When this line moves
履 Stepping becomes ䷀ 1 乾 Heaven
Pure yang, six unbroken lines: heaven in ceaseless motion. Creative force and leadership, pictured as a dragon rising stage by stage — hidden, in the field, flying, and finally overreaching.
What it becomes1 · 乾 HeavenqiánThe 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 Six in the third place of hexagram 10, Stepping, mean?
- Line three is the hexagram's one yin line, and it is the foot that actually steps on the tiger: 'the one-eyed thinks he can see, the lame thinks he can walk; he treads on the tiger's tail and is bitten. Misfortune. A soldier plays the great prince.' Weak, in a strong place, not central, at the top of Dui and pressing against the three strong lines of Qian, it overestimates itself on every count. The small Image takes the images one by one — not enough to see clearly, not fit to walk with, bitten because 'the place is not right' (位不當也), and the soldier's usurpation comes from a will that is too hard (志剛也). The judgment's tiger does not bite; this line is the exception, because it treads without the pleasure-and-compliance the Tuan credits to Dui.
- What does hexagram 10 become when line 3 changes?
- Stepping becomes hexagram 1, 乾 Heaven: Pure yang, six unbroken lines: heaven in ceaseless motion. Creative force and leadership, pictured as a dragon rising stage by stage — hidden, in the field, flying, and finally overreaching.
- Is line 3 of Stepping in its correct place?
- It is not in its correct place (不當位): a yang line in an even position or a yin line in an odd one, which the tradition reads as a line under some strain — often the reason a text sounds a warning.
Chinese text: the received Zhouyi (Wuyingdian lineage). English: James Legge, The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East XVI, 1882 (public domain).