Hexagram 6, line 1
初六Line 1 of Dispute
Six at the beginning · 訟 sòng
爻辭 The line text
不永所事，小有言，終吉。The first line, divided, shows its subject not perpetuating the matter about which (the contention is). He will suffer the small (injury) of being spoken against, but the end will be fortunate.
不永所事，訟不可長也。雖小有言，其辯明也。'He does not perpetuate the matter about which (the contention is):'—contention should not be prolonged. Although 'he may suffer the small (injury) of being spoken against,' his argument is clear.
In plain words
'Do not prolong the matter: there is a little talk, but in the end good fortune.' Line one is yin at the bottom of Kan, weak and at the very start of a quarrel. It corresponds to the strong fourth line, so there is a dispute with someone stronger, and the text's advice is to drop it early. Some criticism follows — the small words of people who think one has backed down — but the small Image says the quarrel 'cannot be prolonged' (訟不可長也) and that, though there is talk, 'the argument is clear' (其辯明也): the person who stops early keeps the right to say they were right. Cheng Yi: the weak party at the beginning of a conflict wins by not continuing it.
If this line is changing
Let the disagreement go while it is still small; you may hear that you gave in, but what you were right about will stay clear, and the thing ends well.
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 belongs to the lower trigram 坎 Kan (the Abysmal) (water).
- It corresponds (應) with line 4: one yin and one yang, the two lines answer each other across the hexagram.
之卦 When this line moves
訟 Dispute becomes ䷉ 10 履 Stepping
Heaven above the lake: treading on the tiger's tail without being bitten. Correct conduct and courtesy carry one through danger; know your place and walk carefully.
What it becomes10 · 履 SteppinglǚThe six lines of 訟 Dispute
- 初六Six at the beginningnot prolonging · a little talk · clear in the end
- 九二Nine in the second placecannot win · going home · the town is spared
- 六三Six in the third placeliving on old merit · steadfast but perilous · no credit
- 九四Nine in the fourth placecannot win · turning back · changing one's mind
- 九五Nine in the fifth placethe judge · supreme good fortune · central and correct
- 上九Nine at the topthe belt of honour · stripped three times · won by litigation
Read 訟 Dispute for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Six at the beginning of hexagram 6, Dispute, mean?
- 'Do not prolong the matter: there is a little talk, but in the end good fortune.' Line one is yin at the bottom of Kan, weak and at the very start of a quarrel. It corresponds to the strong fourth line, so there is a dispute with someone stronger, and the text's advice is to drop it early. Some criticism follows — the small words of people who think one has backed down — but the small Image says the quarrel 'cannot be prolonged' (訟不可長也) and that, though there is talk, 'the argument is clear' (其辯明也): the person who stops early keeps the right to say they were right. Cheng Yi: the weak party at the beginning of a conflict wins by not continuing it.
- What does hexagram 6 become when line 1 changes?
- Dispute becomes hexagram 10, 履 Stepping: Heaven above the lake: treading on the tiger's tail without being bitten. Correct conduct and courtesy carry one through danger; know your place and walk carefully.
- Is line 1 of Dispute 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).