Hexagram 13, line 1
初九Line 1 of People United
Nine at the beginning · 同人 tóng rén
爻辭 The line text
同人于門，无咎。The first line, undivided, (shows the representative of) the union of men just issuing from his gate. There will be no error.
出門同人，又誰咎也。'(The representative of) the union of men is just issuing from his gate:'—who will blame him?
In plain words
The first line is 'fellowship at the gate; no blame.' At the bottom of the hexagram one has just stepped out of the house: no clan, no faction, no one yet to be partial to. A strong line in a strong place with no correspondent above (four is also yang), it has no private tie pulling it anywhere and is free to join with whoever comes. The small Image asks rhetorically 'going out the gate to unite with people — who could blame it?' (又誰咎也). This is fellowship in its purest form, before it has had a chance to narrow.
If this line is changing
Go out and meet people on open ground, before any loyalty has formed; the first contact that owes nothing to anyone is the one no one can fault.
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 離 Li (the Clinging) (fire).
- 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
同人 People United becomes ䷠ 33 遯 Withdrawal
Heaven withdrawing from the mountain: retreat in good time. Yin grows, and the wise step back with dignity — success through retreat, small advantage in persevering.
What it becomes33 · 遯 WithdrawaldùnThe six lines of 同人 People United
- 初九Nine at the beginningat the gate · open fellowship · no partiality
- 六二Six in the second placefellowship with kin · clannishness · regret
- 九三Nine in the third placearms hidden in the grass · spying from the hill · three years
- 九四Nine in the fourth placeon the wall · does not attack · returns to the rule
- 九五Nine in the fifth placeweeping then laughing · the great army · they meet
- 上九Nine at the topin the outskirts · no regret · aim unfulfilled
Read 同人 People United for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Nine at the beginning of hexagram 13, People United, mean?
- The first line is 'fellowship at the gate; no blame.' At the bottom of the hexagram one has just stepped out of the house: no clan, no faction, no one yet to be partial to. A strong line in a strong place with no correspondent above (four is also yang), it has no private tie pulling it anywhere and is free to join with whoever comes. The small Image asks rhetorically 'going out the gate to unite with people — who could blame it?' (又誰咎也). This is fellowship in its purest form, before it has had a chance to narrow.
- What does hexagram 13 become when line 1 changes?
- People United becomes hexagram 33, 遯 Withdrawal: Heaven withdrawing from the mountain: retreat in good time. Yin grows, and the wise step back with dignity — success through retreat, small advantage in persevering.
- Is line 1 of People United 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).