Hexagram 29, line 2
九二Line 2 of The Pit (Water)
Nine in the second place · 坎 kǎn
爻辭 The line text
坎有險，求小得。The second line, undivided, shows its subject in all the peril of the defile. He will, however, get a little (of the deliverance) that he seeks.
求小得，未出中也。'He will get a little (of the deliverance) that he seeks:'—he will not yet escape from his environed position.
In plain words
'In the pit there is danger; seeking, one gets a little.' Line two is the strong line at the centre of the lower Kan — the 剛中 that the Tuan commentary credits with keeping the heart clear through the danger. It cannot leave; it has no correspondent above (line five is yang) and water on every side. But because it is firm and central it can make modest progress where the weak first line only sank: a little is obtained. The small Image keeps the measure honest: 'it has not yet come out of the middle' (未出中也). Zhu Xi reads the line as the right conduct in a trap — not a rescue, but the small, steady gains that keep one from being swallowed.
If this line is changing
You are not getting out yet, and aiming at a full escape will fail; take the small, concrete gains that are available and let them accumulate.
Where the line stands
- A solid line, yang — written 九 (nine), the number of an old yang 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 lower trigram 坎 Kan (the Abysmal) (water).
- It has no correspondence (無應) with line 5: both lines are yang, so this line must find its support in its neighbours or in itself.
之卦 When this line moves
坎 The Pit (Water) becomes ䷇ 8 比 Alliance
Water on the earth, flowing together: alliance and mutual support. Favourable to unite around a worthy centre; latecomers who hesitate lose their chance.
What it becomes8 · 比 AlliancebǐThe six lines of 坎 The Pit (Water)
- 初六Six at the beginningpit within the pit · lost the way · sinking deeper
- 九二Nine in the second placesmall gains · still inside · strong at the centre
- 六三Six in the third placepits before and behind · unrest · do not act
- 六四Six in the fourth placeplain offering · through the window · sincerity reaches
- 九五Nine in the fifth placewater not overflowing · level reached · not yet great
- 上六Six at the topbound with cords · thorn thicket · three years
Read 坎 The Pit (Water) for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Nine in the second place of hexagram 29, The Pit (Water), mean?
- 'In the pit there is danger; seeking, one gets a little.' Line two is the strong line at the centre of the lower Kan — the 剛中 that the Tuan commentary credits with keeping the heart clear through the danger. It cannot leave; it has no correspondent above (line five is yang) and water on every side. But because it is firm and central it can make modest progress where the weak first line only sank: a little is obtained. The small Image keeps the measure honest: 'it has not yet come out of the middle' (未出中也). Zhu Xi reads the line as the right conduct in a trap — not a rescue, but the small, steady gains that keep one from being swallowed.
- What does hexagram 29 become when line 2 changes?
- The Pit (Water) becomes hexagram 8, 比 Alliance: Water on the earth, flowing together: alliance and mutual support. Favourable to unite around a worthy centre; latecomers who hesitate lose their chance.
- Is line 2 of The Pit (Water) 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).