Hexagram 7, line 1
初六Line 1 of Troops
Six at the beginning · 師 shī
爻辭 The line text
師出以律，否臧凶。The first line, divided, shows the host going forth according to the rules (for such a movement). If these be not good, there will be evil.
師出以律，失律凶也。'The host goes forth according to the rules (for) such a movement:'—if those rules be not observed, there will be evil.
In plain words
'The army sets out according to rule; if order is lost, misfortune.' Line one is yin at the bottom of Kan, the first step of a campaign, and the text says nothing about the enemy or the cause — only about discipline. An army that leaves the gate in disorder has already lost, whatever happens later. Yin, weak, not in its correct place, the line has no strength of its own and so depends entirely on the structure around it. The small Image states the converse flatly: losing the rule is misfortune (失律凶也). Cheng Yi: the beginning of any collective effort is the moment to fix the rules, because they cannot be imposed on a crowd already moving.
If this line is changing
Before the first step, agree the rules of the undertaking and who answers to whom; a group that sets out without them cannot be put in order later.
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 has no correspondence (無應) with line 4: both lines are yin, so this line must find its support in its neighbours or in itself.
之卦 When this line moves
師 Troops becomes ䷒ 19 臨 Overseeing
Earth over the lake: looking down from the shore. Yang grows and influence approaches — supreme success now, with a warning that the eighth month brings a turn.
What it becomes19 · 臨 OverseeinglínThe six lines of 師 Troops
- 初六Six at the beginningmarching by rule · discipline · disorder is misfortune
- 九二Nine in the second placein the midst of the army · the king's favour · the commander
- 六三Six in the third placecarting corpses · misfortune · no achievement
- 六四Six in the fourth placecamping on the left · retreat · no loss
- 六五Six in the fifth placegame in the field · the eldest son commands · the wrong appointment
- 上六Six at the topthe great ruler's command · founding states · do not use small people
Read 師 Troops for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Six at the beginning of hexagram 7, Troops, mean?
- 'The army sets out according to rule; if order is lost, misfortune.' Line one is yin at the bottom of Kan, the first step of a campaign, and the text says nothing about the enemy or the cause — only about discipline. An army that leaves the gate in disorder has already lost, whatever happens later. Yin, weak, not in its correct place, the line has no strength of its own and so depends entirely on the structure around it. The small Image states the converse flatly: losing the rule is misfortune (失律凶也). Cheng Yi: the beginning of any collective effort is the moment to fix the rules, because they cannot be imposed on a crowd already moving.
- What does hexagram 7 become when line 1 changes?
- Troops becomes hexagram 19, 臨 Overseeing: Earth over the lake: looking down from the shore. Yang grows and influence approaches — supreme success now, with a warning that the eighth month brings a turn.
- Is line 1 of Troops 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).