Hexagram 17
Following
隨
Upper
Lake · 兌
the joyous, open
Lower
Thunder · 震
the arousing, movement
Contemporary judgment
Following. To be followed, one must first learn to follow. Adapt yourself to what the moment genuinely asks of you, rather than to what you wish it would ask. Influence here comes not from insistence but from responsiveness: from the ability to meet reality as it actually is.
Image
Thunder within the lake. Movement sinking into stillness. The superior person, at nightfall, turns inward and rests.
Counsel
Listen before you speak. Attune yourself to the people and conditions you are working with; understand the grain of what is here before trying to shape it. Those who serve the real situation well are the ones who eventually lead it. Resistance now accomplishes nothing.
The six lines
Numbered from the bottom upward; displayed here from first to sixth.
Line 1
A nine at the beginning means: The measure changes. Perseverance brings good fortune. To go out the door in intercourse creates works.
Line 2
A six in the second place means: If one clings to the small boy, one loses the strong man.
Line 3
A six in the third place means: If one clings to the strong man, one loses the small boy. Through following one finds what one seeks. It is favorable to remain persevering.
Line 4
A nine in the fourth place means: Following creates success. Perseverance brings misfortune. To walk on the way in truthfulness brings clarity. How could this be a blame?
Line 5
A nine in the fifth place means: Truthful in the good. Good fortune!
Line 6
A six at the top means: He finds firm attachment and is even bound to it. The king introduces him to the Western Mountain.
Contemporary sections are original app interpretations. Line text comes from the CC0 translation in jesshewitt/i-ching.