Hexagram 52, line 5
六五Line 5 of Stillness (Mountain)
Six in the fifth place · 艮 gèn
爻辭 The line text
艮其輔，言有序，悔亡。The fifth line, divided, shows its subject keeping his jawbones at rest, so that his words are (all) orderly. Occasion for repentance will disappear.
艮其輔，以中正也。'He keeps his cheek bones at rest:'—in harmony with his central position he acts correctly.
In plain words
'Keeping the jaws still; words have order; regret disappears.' Line five is the ruler, yin in the central place of the upper trigram, and in the body it is the cheeks and jaw: the ruler's stillness is in speech. Not silence — 言有序, words in sequence, said when they should be and not otherwise. The small Image gives the reason: 以中正也, by being central and correct. The regret that disappears is the regret that careless talk from a high place would cause. Where line six of Xian found only talk left, line five of Gen finds that stilled talk is the ruler's proper discipline.
If this line is changing
Your influence now is in what you say and when; speak in order, leave out what is only reaction, and the regret you fear will not arise.
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 艮 Gen (Keeping Still) (mountain).
- It has no correspondence (無應) with line 2: 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 ䷴ 53 漸 Gradual Advance
A tree on the mountain: gradual growth. The wild goose advances stage by stage — shore, rock, dry land, tree, hill, the heights — good fortune for a marriage, success through correctness.
What it becomes53 · 漸 Gradual AdvancejiànThe 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 fifth place of hexagram 52, Stillness (Mountain), mean?
- 'Keeping the jaws still; words have order; regret disappears.' Line five is the ruler, yin in the central place of the upper trigram, and in the body it is the cheeks and jaw: the ruler's stillness is in speech. Not silence — 言有序, words in sequence, said when they should be and not otherwise. The small Image gives the reason: 以中正也, by being central and correct. The regret that disappears is the regret that careless talk from a high place would cause. Where line six of Xian found only talk left, line five of Gen finds that stilled talk is the ruler's proper discipline.
- What does hexagram 52 become when line 5 changes?
- Stillness (Mountain) becomes hexagram 53, 漸 Gradual Advance: A tree on the mountain: gradual growth. The wild goose advances stage by stage — shore, rock, dry land, tree, hill, the heights — good fortune for a marriage, success through correctness.
- Is line 5 of Stillness (Mountain) 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).