Hexagram 54, line 1
初九Line 1 of Marrying the Younger Sister
Nine at the beginning · 歸妹 guī mèi
爻辭 The line text
歸妹以娣，跛能履，征吉。The first line, undivided, shows the younger sister married off in a position ancillary to the real wife. (It suggests the idea of) a person lame on one leg who yet manages to tramp along. Going forward will be fortunate.
歸妹以娣，以恆也。跛能履吉，相承也。'The younger sister is married off in a position ancillary to that of the real wife:'—it is the constant practice (for such a case). 'Lame on one leg, she is able to tramp along:'—she can render helpful service.
In plain words
'The maiden marries as a secondary wife; the lame can still walk; to go forward is auspicious.' In the old custom a bride was accompanied by a younger sister or cousin, the 娣, who entered the household in a lesser position. Line one is yang at the bottom of Dui, strong and worthy but in the lowest place with no corresponding line above (four is also yang): able, and subordinate. The lame person who manages to walk is the picture of real capacity in a limited role. The small Image accepts the arrangement — 以恆也, it is the constant practice — and praises the line for 相承, supporting from below. This is the one line in Gui Mei that says 'go forward'.
If this line is changing
Your role is secondary and your ability is not; accept the position as it is and do it so well that the limitation stops being the main thing about you.
Where the line stands
- A solid line, yang — written 九 (nine), the number of an old yang 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 belongs to the lower trigram 兌 Dui (the Joyous) (lake).
- It has no correspondence (無應) with line 4: both lines are yang, so this line must find its support in its neighbours or in itself.
之卦 When this line moves
歸妹 Marrying the Younger Sister becomes ䷧ 40 解 Release
Thunder and rain: the storm breaks and tension dissolves. Favourable to the southwest; if there is nowhere to go, returning brings good fortune; if there is, act early.
What it becomes40 · 解 ReleasexièThe six lines of 歸妹 Marrying the Younger Sister
- 初九Nine at the beginningsecondary wife · lame but walking · service
- 九二Nine in the second placeone-eyed sight · the recluse · unchanged constancy
- 六三Six in the third placewaiting to be taken · the wrong footing · settling for less
- 九四Nine in the fourth placemissing the date · deliberate delay · the right time
- 六五Six in the fifth placeDi Yi's sister · plainer sleeves · moon nearly full
- 上六Six at the topempty basket · bloodless sheep · form without substance
Read 歸妹 Marrying the Younger Sister for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Nine at the beginning of hexagram 54, Marrying the Younger Sister, mean?
- 'The maiden marries as a secondary wife; the lame can still walk; to go forward is auspicious.' In the old custom a bride was accompanied by a younger sister or cousin, the 娣, who entered the household in a lesser position. Line one is yang at the bottom of Dui, strong and worthy but in the lowest place with no corresponding line above (four is also yang): able, and subordinate. The lame person who manages to walk is the picture of real capacity in a limited role. The small Image accepts the arrangement — 以恆也, it is the constant practice — and praises the line for 相承, supporting from below. This is the one line in Gui Mei that says 'go forward'.
- What does hexagram 54 become when line 1 changes?
- Marrying the Younger Sister becomes hexagram 40, 解 Release: Thunder and rain: the storm breaks and tension dissolves. Favourable to the southwest; if there is nowhere to go, returning brings good fortune; if there is, act early.
- Is line 1 of Marrying the Younger Sister 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.
Chinese text: the received Zhouyi (Wuyingdian lineage). English: James Legge, The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East XVI, 1882 (public domain).