Hexagram 54, line 2
九二Line 2 of Marrying the Younger Sister
Nine in the second place · 歸妹 guī mèi
爻辭 The line text
眇能視，利幽人之貞。The second line, undivided, shows her blind of one eye, and yet able to see. There will be advantage in her maintaining the firm correctness of a solitary widow.
利幽人之貞，未變常也。'There will be advantage in maintaining the firm correctness of a solitary widow:'—(the subject of the line) has not changed from the constancy (proper to a wife).
In plain words
'One-eyed, yet able to see; favourable to hold the firmness of a secluded person.' Line two is yang and central in the lower trigram, a worthy line, and it corresponds to the ruler at five — but five is yin, and the match is weak. Where line one was lame, line two is half-blind: it sees what is wrong with its situation and cannot change it. The text's prescription is 幽人之貞, the constancy of someone who withdraws and keeps faith regardless. The small Image: 未變常也, it has not altered its constant way. Cheng Yi reads it as the wife whose husband does not match her, who remains correct without expecting it to be rewarded.
If this line is changing
You see the situation clearly and it will not be put right by you; keep your own conduct constant, in the manner of someone who has stepped back, and do not let what you see change what you are.
Where the line stands
- A solid line, yang — written 九 (nine), the number of an old yang 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 lower trigram 兌 Dui (the Joyous) (lake).
- It corresponds (應) with line 5: one yin and one yang, the two lines answer each other across the hexagram.
之卦 When this line moves
歸妹 Marrying the Younger Sister becomes ䷲ 51 震 Shock (Thunder)
Thunder upon thunder: shock. It arrives with alarm and is followed by laughter; the shock shakes a hundred miles, yet the sacrificial spoon is not dropped.
What it becomes51 · 震 Shock (Thunder)zhènThe 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 in the second place of hexagram 54, Marrying the Younger Sister, mean?
- 'One-eyed, yet able to see; favourable to hold the firmness of a secluded person.' Line two is yang and central in the lower trigram, a worthy line, and it corresponds to the ruler at five — but five is yin, and the match is weak. Where line one was lame, line two is half-blind: it sees what is wrong with its situation and cannot change it. The text's prescription is 幽人之貞, the constancy of someone who withdraws and keeps faith regardless. The small Image: 未變常也, it has not altered its constant way. Cheng Yi reads it as the wife whose husband does not match her, who remains correct without expecting it to be rewarded.
- What does hexagram 54 become when line 2 changes?
- Marrying the Younger Sister becomes hexagram 51, 震 Shock (Thunder): Thunder upon thunder: shock. It arrives with alarm and is followed by laughter; the shock shakes a hundred miles, yet the sacrificial spoon is not dropped.
- Is line 2 of Marrying the Younger Sister 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).