Hexagram 58: Dui

Lake over Lake · 兑为泽 · Tendency: Auspicious

Structure

• Number: 58 (King Wen sequence)
• Symbol: ䷹
• Upper trigram: Dui (Lake)
• Lower trigram: Dui (Lake)
• Lines: yang yang yin yang yang yin (bottom to top)

The statement

亨。利贞。

——《周易》

What this hexagram indicates

This hexagram indicates that communication, cooperation, and harmonious relationships are becoming important. Suitable for negotiations, exchanges, and mending relationships. Also good for seeking support through gentle means. Be careful not to only focus on a pleasant atmosphere while ignoring principles. Making promises too lightly or speaking too absolutely can easily lead to disputes later.

A Buddhist reading

On joy Zhixu is exact: entering leads to self possession, self possession leads to joy, and what one has gained others gain in turn. Joy must be upright, and pleasure bought by bending the way to court popular praise is not joy at all. Firmness within leaves no bias of desire, gentleness without leaves no harshness, and this is the true substance of delight. Two lakes joined do not dry up, and friends who discuss and practise together are not left narrow, since discussion without practice is empty and practice without discussion is precarious. The third line, borrowing an outward manner to please others with nothing inside, damages what is right.

After Ouyi Zhixu (1599-1655), whose Chan commentary on the Changes reads each hexagram as a stage of practice.

The statement is quoted from the Book of Changes, which is in the public domain. The English reading on this page was prepared for this library.

Related hexagrams

• Previous / Inverted: Hexagram 57: Xunthe whole figure turned upside down
• Next: Hexagram 59: Huan
• Opposite: Hexagram 52: Genevery line changed to its opposite
• Nuclear: Hexagram 37: Jia Renlines two to four below, three to five above

Related

• Liu Yao Divination ChartLiu Yao casts a hexagram about one specific matter and reads its structure. Unlike BaZi or Zi Wei, which describe a person, Liu Yao describes how a situation stands at a particular moment. This page walks through the full process from casting to attribution.
• Mei Hua Yi Shu CalculatorMei Hua Yi Shu is traditionally attributed to Shao Yong. What sets it apart is how freely it casts: a time, a spoken number, a direction or something noticed in passing will all serve. It attaches no stems and no relatives, reading the trigrams directly. This page covers casting through to the subject and object.