Hexagram 37 as yes or no
Hexagram 37 Household as a yes-or-no answer
Jia Ren answers a 'should I' question by asking where the matter sits in your household — literal or figurative. Its yes is for anything that keeps the inner order sound: establishing clear arrangements, doing the central work, keeping words and actions consistent. Its no is for anything that would pull you outside your proper place, which is the force of line two's 'nothing to be pursued on one's own'. The hexagram's confidence comes from structure: when the inner and outer rulers answer each other, says the commentary, the whole world is settled.
The changing line sharpens it. In the lower trigram the answer concerns the inside: line one says yes, set the rule now; two says yes if it is the sustaining work, no if it is a separate venture; three says choose the firmer course even at the cost of some discomfort. In the upper trigram the answer concerns leadership and its results: four is a plain yes, the quiet work pays; five is yes, and stop worrying; six says lead by your own example and let the matter take the time it needs.
The hexagram in brief
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.
Keep order and warmth at home — clear roles, consistent words, affection with structure.
The judgment
家人：利女貞。For (the realisation of what is taught in) Kiâ Zăn, (or for the regulation of the family), what is most advantageous is that the wife be firm and correct.
Which line changed?
A changing line sharpens the answer. Each line of 家人 Household has its own page:
- 初九Nine at the beginningsetting boundaries · at the outset · before wills change
- 六二Six in the second placethe inner place · nourishing · gentle correctness
- 九三Nine in the third placesternness · laughter and chatter · losing measure
- 六四Six in the fourth placeenriching the household · compliance in place · great good fortune
- 九五Nine in the fifth placethe king comes home · mutual love · no anxiety
- 上九Nine at the topsincerity and dignity · turning inward · good fortune in the end
The same hexagram for
Questions
- Does hexagram 37, Household, mean yes or no?
- Jia Ren answers a 'should I' question by asking where the matter sits in your household — literal or figurative. Its yes is for anything that keeps the inner order sound: establishing clear arrangements, doing the central work, keeping words and actions consistent. Its no is for anything that would pull you outside your proper place, which is the force of line two's 'nothing to be pursued on one's own'. The hexagram's confidence comes from structure: when the inner and outer rulers answer each other, says the commentary, the whole world is settled.
- What does Hexagram 37, 家人 Household, mean?
- 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.
Chinese text: the received Zhouyi (Wuyingdian lineage). English: James Legge, The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East XVI, 1882 (public domain).