Hexagram 8, line 6
上六Line 6 of Alliance
Six at the top · 比 bǐ
爻辭 The line text
比之无首，凶。In the topmost line, divided, we see one seeking union and attachment without having taken the first step (to such an end). There will be evil.
比之无首，无所終也。'He seeks union and attachment without taking the first (step to such an end):'—there is no possibility of a (good) issue.
In plain words
'Holding together without a head: misfortune.' Line six is yin at the top of Kan, above the ruler, past the centre, with no yang to correspond to (line three is also yin). The alliance has been formed below it and it is not in it; it is the 'latecomer' of the judgment, the one who 'comes after' and meets misfortune. 'No head' can mean two things that come to the same: no leader to gather around, or no beginning — a bond entered at the end without the sincerity the first line brought at the start. The small Image says simply that such holding together 'has nowhere to end' (無所終也). Cheng Yi: the one who hesitated until the gathering was complete has no place in it and nothing to join.
If this line is changing
If you have held back until the group has formed without you, do not now attach yourself from the top as if you led it; there is nothing here for you to join, and the time to join was earlier.
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 belongs to the upper trigram 坎 Kan (the Abysmal) (water).
- It has no correspondence (無應) with line 3: both lines are yin, so this line must find its support in its neighbours or in itself.
之卦 When this line moves
比 Alliance becomes ䷓ 20 觀 Observation
Wind over the earth: a tower from which all is seen, and which all can see. Observe deeply before acting, and remember that you are watched — sincerity even before the offering is made.
What it becomes20 · 觀 ObservationguānThe six lines of 比 Alliance
- 初六Six at the beginningsincerity · a full jar · unexpected good
- 六二Six in the second placefrom within · steadfast · not losing oneself
- 六三Six in the third placethe wrong people · misplaced loyalty · harm
- 六四Six in the fourth placefrom without · following the worthy · upward
- 九五Nine in the fifth placeopen alliance · three-sided hunt · letting the game go
- 上六Six at the topno head · too late · nowhere to end
Read 比 Alliance for a question about
Questions about this line
- What does Six at the top of hexagram 8, Alliance, mean?
- 'Holding together without a head: misfortune.' Line six is yin at the top of Kan, above the ruler, past the centre, with no yang to correspond to (line three is also yin). The alliance has been formed below it and it is not in it; it is the 'latecomer' of the judgment, the one who 'comes after' and meets misfortune. 'No head' can mean two things that come to the same: no leader to gather around, or no beginning — a bond entered at the end without the sincerity the first line brought at the start. The small Image says simply that such holding together 'has nowhere to end' (無所終也). Cheng Yi: the one who hesitated until the gathering was complete has no place in it and nothing to join.
- What does hexagram 8 become when line 6 changes?
- Alliance becomes hexagram 20, 觀 Observation: Wind over the earth: a tower from which all is seen, and which all can see. Observe deeply before acting, and remember that you are watched — sincerity even before the offering is made.
- Is line 6 of Alliance 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.
Chinese text: the received Zhouyi (Wuyingdian lineage). English: James Legge, The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East XVI, 1882 (public domain).