Hexagram 62, line 2
六二Line 2 of Small Excess
Six in the second place · 小過 xiǎo guò
爻辭 The line text
過其祖,遇其妣;不及其君,遇其臣;无咎。The second line, divided, shows its subject passing by his grandfather, and meeting with his grandmother; not attempting anything against his ruler, but meeting him as his minister. There will be no error.
不及其君,臣不可過也。'He does not attempt to reach his ruler:'—a minister should not overpass the distance (between his ruler and himself).
In plain words
Line two is yin in the central and correct place of the lower trigram, the one line in the lower half that the Tuan praises — 'the weak lines are in the centre, so small affairs are auspicious'. The text is a small story of ranks: it 'passes the grandfather and meets the grandmother', going beyond the two strong lines above to join its own kind at five, and it 'does not reach the ruler but meets the minister', stopping at the deference proper to its station. Exceeding in the small — going a step past one's elders to find the right partner — is allowed; exceeding toward the ruler is not. The small Image says it plainly: 'a minister must not overpass' (臣不可過也).
If this line is changing
Go a little past the usual channels to reach the right person, but stop short of presuming on the one in charge; the line between those two is where this situation is safe.
Where the line stands
- A broken line, yin — written 六 (six), the number of an old yin 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 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 艮 Gen (Keeping Still) (mountain).
- It has no correspondence (無應) with line 5: both lines are yin, so this line must find its support in its neighbours or in itself.
之卦 When this line moves
小過 Small Excess becomes ䷟ 32 恆 Constancy
Thunder and wind moving together without end: the lasting. Success and no blame for persevering in the right way; constancy is not standing still but moving reliably.
What it becomes32 · 恆 ConstancyhéngThe six lines of 小過 Small Excess
- 初六Six at the beginningflying too soon · the bird rises · nothing to be done
- 六二Six in the second placepassing the grandfather · meeting the minister · keeping distance
- 九三Nine in the third placeno extra guard · attacked from behind · evil
- 九四Nine in the fourth placemeeting without exceeding · going on is dangerous · do not fix forever
- 六五Six in the fifth placeclouds without rain · too high · the bird in the hole
- 上六Six at the topovershooting · the bird flies off · self-made calamity
Read 小過 Small Excess for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Six in the second place of hexagram 62, Small Excess, mean?
- Line two is yin in the central and correct place of the lower trigram, the one line in the lower half that the Tuan praises — 'the weak lines are in the centre, so small affairs are auspicious'. The text is a small story of ranks: it 'passes the grandfather and meets the grandmother', going beyond the two strong lines above to join its own kind at five, and it 'does not reach the ruler but meets the minister', stopping at the deference proper to its station. Exceeding in the small — going a step past one's elders to find the right partner — is allowed; exceeding toward the ruler is not. The small Image says it plainly: 'a minister must not overpass' (臣不可過也).
- What does hexagram 62 become when line 2 changes?
- Small Excess becomes hexagram 32, 恆 Constancy: Thunder and wind moving together without end: the lasting. Success and no blame for persevering in the right way; constancy is not standing still but moving reliably.
- Is line 2 of Small Excess 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. 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).