Hexagram 50, line 5
六五Line 5 of Cauldron
Six in the fifth place · 鼎 dǐng
爻辭 The line text
鼎黃耳，金鉉，利貞。The fifth line, divided, shows the caldron with yellow ears and rings of metal in them. There will be advantage through being firm and correct.
鼎黃耳，中以為實也。'The caldron has yellow ears:'—the central position (of the line) is taken as (a proof of) the solid (virtue of its subject).
In plain words
'The cauldron has yellow ears and a metal carrying bar; favourable to be firm and correct.' Line five is the ruler, yin and central in the upper trigram, the ears of the cauldron: the point from which the whole vessel is lifted and moved. Yellow is the colour of the centre, and the metal bar is the strong line two that corresponds to it — a receptive ruler lifted by a strong minister. The small Image: 中以為實也, centrality is taken as its substance. Being yin, the line is warned to hold to firmness; its strength is in its position and its willingness to be carried by the capable.
If this line is changing
Lead by holding the centre and letting capable people carry the weight; your task is to stay steady enough to be lifted, not to do the lifting yourself.
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 離 Li (the Clinging) (fire).
- It corresponds (應) with line 2: one yin and one yang, the two lines answer each other across the hexagram.
之卦 When this line moves
鼎 Cauldron becomes ䷫ 44 姤 Encounter
Wind under heaven: one yin line arriving beneath five yang. An encounter — the woman is strong; do not marry her. Something small and tempting enters; watch it from the start.
What it becomes44 · 姤 EncountergòuThe six lines of 鼎 Cauldron
- 初六Six at the beginningoverturned · clearing out · humble beginnings
- 九二Nine in the second placesubstance within · envy at a distance · guard your steps
- 九三Nine in the third placehandles changed · blocked · rain at last
- 九四Nine in the fourth placebroken leg · spilled offering · beyond one's strength
- 六五Six in the fifth placeyellow ears · the centre · firmness
- 上九Nine at the topjade bar · tempered strength · great fortune
Read 鼎 Cauldron for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Six in the fifth place of hexagram 50, Cauldron, mean?
- 'The cauldron has yellow ears and a metal carrying bar; favourable to be firm and correct.' Line five is the ruler, yin and central in the upper trigram, the ears of the cauldron: the point from which the whole vessel is lifted and moved. Yellow is the colour of the centre, and the metal bar is the strong line two that corresponds to it — a receptive ruler lifted by a strong minister. The small Image: 中以為實也, centrality is taken as its substance. Being yin, the line is warned to hold to firmness; its strength is in its position and its willingness to be carried by the capable.
- What does hexagram 50 become when line 5 changes?
- Cauldron becomes hexagram 44, 姤 Encounter: Wind under heaven: one yin line arriving beneath five yang. An encounter — the woman is strong; do not marry her. Something small and tempting enters; watch it from the start.
- Is line 5 of Cauldron 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).