Hexagram 52, line 2
六二Line 2 of Stillness (Mountain)
Six in the second place · 艮 gèn
爻辭 The line text
艮其腓，不拯其隨，其心不快。The second line, divided, shows its subject keeping the calves of his legs at rest. He cannot help (the subject of the line above) whom he follows, and is dissatisfied in his mind.
不拯其隨，未退聽也。'He cannot help him whom he follows:'—(he whom he follows) will not retreat to listen to him.
In plain words
'Keeping the calves still; he cannot rescue the one he follows; his heart is not glad.' The calf follows the thigh, and line two, yin and central, follows the strong line three above it — the hexagram's loins, which have stopped rigidly. Line two sees the harm and cannot help, because three will not step back and listen: the small Image says 未退聽也. So this correct, central line keeps still as it should, and is unhappy, because its stillness means watching someone it is bound to go wrong. The verdict is withheld; the unhappiness is the whole content.
If this line is changing
You are right and the person you are tied to will not hear it; keep your place and your composure, and let your dissatisfaction be a fact you carry rather than a move you make.
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 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 艮 Gen (Keeping Still) (mountain).
- It has no correspondence (無應) with line 5: both lines are yin, so this line must find its support in its neighbours or in itself.
之卦 When this line moves
艮 Stillness (Mountain) becomes ䷑ 18 蠱 Corruption
Wind below the mountain: stagnation that has bred corruption, like a bowl of worms. Great success for the one who steps in to repair what earlier generations spoiled.
What it becomes18 · 蠱 CorruptiongǔThe six lines of 艮 Stillness (Mountain)
- 初六Six at the beginningstill toes · before moving · lasting firmness
- 六二Six in the second placestill calves · cannot rescue · unheard
- 九三Nine in the third placethe loins · rigid stop · scorched heart
- 六四Six in the fourth placethe trunk · self-contained · no blame
- 六五Six in the fifth placethe jaws · ordered speech · regret gone
- 上九Nine at the topgenerous stillness · the summit · a good end
Read 艮 Stillness (Mountain) for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Six in the second place of hexagram 52, Stillness (Mountain), mean?
- 'Keeping the calves still; he cannot rescue the one he follows; his heart is not glad.' The calf follows the thigh, and line two, yin and central, follows the strong line three above it — the hexagram's loins, which have stopped rigidly. Line two sees the harm and cannot help, because three will not step back and listen: the small Image says 未退聽也. So this correct, central line keeps still as it should, and is unhappy, because its stillness means watching someone it is bound to go wrong. The verdict is withheld; the unhappiness is the whole content.
- What does hexagram 52 become when line 2 changes?
- Stillness (Mountain) becomes hexagram 18, 蠱 Corruption: Wind below the mountain: stagnation that has bred corruption, like a bowl of worms. Great success for the one who steps in to repair what earlier generations spoiled.
- Is line 2 of Stillness (Mountain) 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. 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).