Hexagram 22, line 5
六五Line 5 of Adornment
Six in the fifth place · 賁 bì
爻辭 The line text
賁于丘園，束帛戔戔，吝，終吉。The fifth line, divided, shows its subject adorned by (the occupants of) the heights and gardens. He bears his roll of silk, small and slight. He may appear stingy; but there will be good fortune in the end.
六五之吉，有喜也。'The good fortune falling to the fifth line, divided,' affords occasion for joy.
In plain words
Line five, the ruler of the hexagram, is 'adorned by the hills and gardens' — not by a court but by the plain countryside where the top line lives — and brings only 'a small bundle of silk' as its gift. The text admits that this looks mean (吝) and then promises good fortune in the end. It is a yin line in the central place, with no strong correspondent below, so it attaches itself to the worthy recluse above; 程頤 reads the thin silk as the ruler's modesty in seeking the plain and the substantial over the ornate. The small Image says the good fortune brings joy (有喜也): a court that prefers substance is a cause for celebration.
If this line is changing
Choose the plain and solid over the impressive, even if your offer looks small beside what others bring; what seems stingy now will be recognised as good judgment.
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 is central (中): the middle line of its trigram, the position the commentaries read as balanced and most favourable.
- It belongs to the upper trigram 艮 Gen (Keeping Still) (mountain).
- It has no correspondence (無應) with line 2: both lines are yin, so this line must find its support in its neighbours or in itself.
之卦 When this line moves
賁 Adornment becomes ䷤ 37 家人 Household
Wind coming out of fire: the household. Favourable for steadfastness within the home; when the roles in a family are right, the wider world is set right.
What it becomes37 · 家人 Householdjiā rénThe six lines of 賁 Adornment
- 初九Nine at the beginningadorning the feet · walking not riding · integrity first
- 六二Six in the second placeadorning the beard · moving with the chin · ornament follows
- 九三Nine in the third placeglossy and bedewed · lasting steadiness · never overrun
- 六四Six in the fourth placewhite adornment · the white horse · a suitor not a robber
- 六五Six in the fifth placehills and gardens · a modest bundle of silk · stingy but good
- 上九Nine at the topwhite adornment · plain at the end · aim attained
Read 賁 Adornment for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Six in the fifth place of hexagram 22, Adornment, mean?
- Line five, the ruler of the hexagram, is 'adorned by the hills and gardens' — not by a court but by the plain countryside where the top line lives — and brings only 'a small bundle of silk' as its gift. The text admits that this looks mean (吝) and then promises good fortune in the end. It is a yin line in the central place, with no strong correspondent below, so it attaches itself to the worthy recluse above; 程頤 reads the thin silk as the ruler's modesty in seeking the plain and the substantial over the ornate. The small Image says the good fortune brings joy (有喜也): a court that prefers substance is a cause for celebration.
- What does hexagram 22 become when line 5 changes?
- Adornment becomes hexagram 37, 家人 Household: Wind coming out of fire: the household. Favourable for steadfastness within the home; when the roles in a family are right, the wider world is set right.
- Is line 5 of Adornment 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. It is central (中): the middle line of its trigram, the position the commentaries read as balanced and most favourable.
Chinese text: the received Zhouyi (Wuyingdian lineage). English: James Legge, The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East XVI, 1882 (public domain).