Hexagram 3, line 4
六四Line 4 of Sprouting
Six in the fourth place · 屯 zhūn
爻辭 The line text
乘馬班如，求婚媾，往吉，无不利。The fourth line, divided, shows (its subject as a lady), the horses of whose chariot appear in retreat. She seeks, however, (the help of) him who seeks her to be his wife. Advance will be fortunate; all will turn out advantageously.
求而往，明也。'Going forward after such a search (for a helper)' shows intelligence.
In plain words
The horses turn back again, but this time the rider goes to seek the marriage, and 'going brings good fortune, nothing is not favourable.' Line four is yin in a yin place, correct, at the bottom of the upper trigram Kan, and it corresponds to the strong first line — the hexagram's ruler, the one who gathers the people. Weak and near the fifth line but not matched to it, line four does well to turn down and seek the partner it is actually suited to. The small Image calls this seeking and going 'clear-sighted' (明也). Where line two was pressed by an unsuitable neighbour, line four looks past its neighbour to its true correspondent, and the difficulty resolves.
If this line is changing
Go toward the person or the plan you are actually matched with, even if it means turning back from something nearer and grander; this is the move that gets through.
Where the line stands
- A broken line, yin — written 六 (six), the number of an old yin 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 upper trigram 坎 Kan (the Abysmal) (water).
- It corresponds (應) with line 1: one yin and one yang, the two lines answer each other across the hexagram.
之卦 When this line moves
屯 Sprouting becomes ䷐ 17 隨 Following Along
Thunder resting in the lake: following the time, taking rest in the evening. Supreme success in following what is right — and in being worth following.
What it becomes17 · 隨 Following AlongsuíThe six lines of 屯 Sprouting
- 初九Nine at the beginninghesitating · staying put · winning the people
- 六二Six in the second placehorses turning back · not a robber · ten years
- 六三Six in the third placehunting without a guide · lost in the forest · better to give up
- 六四Six in the fourth placehorses turning back · seeking union · going is good
- 九五Nine in the fifth placeblocked generosity · small is fine · great is dangerous
- 上六Six at the tophorses turning back · weeping blood · cannot last
Read 屯 Sprouting for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Six in the fourth place of hexagram 3, Sprouting, mean?
- The horses turn back again, but this time the rider goes to seek the marriage, and 'going brings good fortune, nothing is not favourable.' Line four is yin in a yin place, correct, at the bottom of the upper trigram Kan, and it corresponds to the strong first line — the hexagram's ruler, the one who gathers the people. Weak and near the fifth line but not matched to it, line four does well to turn down and seek the partner it is actually suited to. The small Image calls this seeking and going 'clear-sighted' (明也). Where line two was pressed by an unsuitable neighbour, line four looks past its neighbour to its true correspondent, and the difficulty resolves.
- What does hexagram 3 become when line 4 changes?
- Sprouting becomes hexagram 17, 隨 Following Along: Thunder resting in the lake: following the time, taking rest in the evening. Supreme success in following what is right — and in being worth following.
- Is line 4 of Sprouting 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).