Hexagram 55, line 4
九四Line 4 of Plenty
Nine in the fourth place · 豐 fēng
爻辭 The line text
豐其蔀，日中見斗，遇其夷主，吉。The fourth line, undivided, shows its subject in a tent so large and thick that at midday he can see from it the constellation of the Bushel. But he meets with the subject of the (first) line, undivided like himself. There will be good fortune.
豐其蔀，位不當也。日中見斗，幽不明也。遇其夷主，吉；行也。'He is surrounded by a screen large and thick:'—the position of the line is inappropriate. 'At midday he sees the constellation of the Bushel:'—there is darkness and no light. 'He meets with the subject of the line, undivided like himself. There will be good fortune:'—action may be taken.
In plain words
'The screen is made abundant; at noon one sees the Dipper; he meets his equal lord; auspicious.' Line four repeats line two's darkness — it is yang in a yin place, the first line of Zhen, next to the yin ruler whose light is screened, and the small Image is blunt about it: 位不當也, 幽不明也. But where two was alone with the dark ruler, four has a partner: 夷主, the equal lord, line one, the same pairing that line one called 配主. Movement finds its clarity. The small Image's last word on it is 行也: action can be taken. This line is good not because its position is good but because of who it meets.
If this line is changing
Your position is dark and awkward, and the way through is the equal partner who has clarity where you have movement; join with them and act, rather than waiting for the position itself to improve.
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 belongs to the upper trigram 震 Zhen (the Arousing) (thunder).
- It has no correspondence (無應) with line 1: both lines are yang, so this line must find its support in its neighbours or in itself.
之卦 When this line moves
豐 Plenty becomes ䷣ 36 明夷 Brightness Hidden
The sun sunk under the earth: the light wounded. In dark times it is favourable to persevere — hide your brilliance, as the ancient sage did under a tyrant.
What it becomes36 · 明夷 Brightness Hiddenmíng yíThe six lines of 豐 Plenty
- 初九Nine at the beginningmeeting one's match · equals · ten days
- 六二Six in the second placescreened · stars at noon · sincerity moves
- 九三Nine in the third placebanner-dark · broken arm · not for great things
- 九四Nine in the fourth placescreened again · meeting one's equal · act now
- 六五Six in the fifth placebrilliance comes · blessing and praise · the receptive ruler
- 上六Six at the tophouse too large · no one at the door · three years unseen
Read 豐 Plenty for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Nine in the fourth place of hexagram 55, Plenty, mean?
- 'The screen is made abundant; at noon one sees the Dipper; he meets his equal lord; auspicious.' Line four repeats line two's darkness — it is yang in a yin place, the first line of Zhen, next to the yin ruler whose light is screened, and the small Image is blunt about it: 位不當也, 幽不明也. But where two was alone with the dark ruler, four has a partner: 夷主, the equal lord, line one, the same pairing that line one called 配主. Movement finds its clarity. The small Image's last word on it is 行也: action can be taken. This line is good not because its position is good but because of who it meets.
- What does hexagram 55 become when line 4 changes?
- Plenty becomes hexagram 36, 明夷 Brightness Hidden: The sun sunk under the earth: the light wounded. In dark times it is favourable to persevere — hide your brilliance, as the ancient sage did under a tyrant.
- Is line 4 of Plenty 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.
Chinese text: the received Zhouyi (Wuyingdian lineage). English: James Legge, The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East XVI, 1882 (public domain).