Hexagram 46, line 1
初六Line 1 of Ascending
Six at the beginning · 升 shēng
爻辭 The line text
允升，大吉。The first line, divided, shows its subject advancing upwards with the welcome (of those above him). There will be great good fortune.
允升大吉，上合志也。'He is welcomed in his advance upwards, and there will be great good fortune:'—(the subjects of) the upper (trigram) are of the same mind with him.
In plain words
The first line 'ascends with approval — great good fortune' (允升，大吉). Yin at the bottom of Xun, the wood that will grow up through the earth, it is the root of the whole ascent. It has no correlate (line four is also yin), but it does not need one: it follows the two strong lines directly above it, and the small Image says the upper lines share its will (上合志也). Yun (允) means trusted, allowed, consented to — this is not a climb forced from below but a rise that those above want. Of all six lines it is the only one with 'great good fortune', because at the root the growth is wholly natural.
If this line is changing
Begin the climb now while those above you are glad to see it; a rise that is welcomed at the start grows straight, so move with their support rather than around it.
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 belongs to the lower trigram 巽 Xun (the Gentle) (wind).
- It has no correspondence (無應) with line 4: both lines are yin, so this line must find its support in its neighbours or in itself.
之卦 When this line moves
升 Ascending becomes ䷊ 11 泰 Prosperity
Earth above and heaven below, their energies meeting and mingling. The small departs, the great arrives: open communication, prosperity, a flourishing time.
What it becomes11 · 泰 ProsperitytàiThe six lines of 升 Ascending
- 初六Six at the beginningwelcomed ascent · trusted rise · same mind above
- 九二Nine in the second placesincerity · the small offering · joy
- 九三Nine in the third placethe empty city · unopposed · no hesitation
- 六四Six in the fourth placeoffering on Mount Qi · service that fits · the king's trust
- 六五Six in the fifth placeascending the steps · steadiness · great success
- 上六Six at the topclimbing in the dark · ceaseless steadiness · wealth that wanes
Read 升 Ascending for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Six at the beginning of hexagram 46, Ascending, mean?
- The first line 'ascends with approval — great good fortune' (允升，大吉). Yin at the bottom of Xun, the wood that will grow up through the earth, it is the root of the whole ascent. It has no correlate (line four is also yin), but it does not need one: it follows the two strong lines directly above it, and the small Image says the upper lines share its will (上合志也). Yun (允) means trusted, allowed, consented to — this is not a climb forced from below but a rise that those above want. Of all six lines it is the only one with 'great good fortune', because at the root the growth is wholly natural.
- What does hexagram 46 become when line 1 changes?
- Ascending becomes hexagram 11, 泰 Prosperity: Earth above and heaven below, their energies meeting and mingling. The small departs, the great arrives: open communication, prosperity, a flourishing time.
- Is line 1 of Ascending 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.
Chinese text: the received Zhouyi (Wuyingdian lineage). English: James Legge, The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East XVI, 1882 (public domain).