Hexagram 29
The Abysmal
坎
Upper
Water · 坎
the abysmal, danger
Lower
Water · 坎
the abysmal, danger
Contemporary judgment
Danger. The abysmal, repeated. You are passing through a genuinely difficult stretch. The way out is not cleverness or force but consistency: the water's ability to flow through the darkest places without losing its nature. Hold to your truth, and keep moving.
Image
Water flowing on, ceaseless. The superior person walks in enduring virtue and pursues the work of teaching.
Counsel
Do not panic, and do not pretend the situation is less serious than it is. Move carefully, honor your commitments, keep your word. What saves you here is not a single heroic act but the accumulated trust that comes from behaving well over time. The narrow passage will open again.
The six lines
Numbered from the bottom upward; displayed here from first to sixth.
Line 1
A six at the beginning means: Repetition of the Abysmal. In the abyss one falls into a pit. Misfortune.
Line 2
A nine in the second place means: The abyss has danger. One should strive to attain only small things.
Line 3
A six in the third place means: Forward and backward, abyss on abyss. In such danger, pause at first; otherwise you will fall into a pit in the abyss. Do not act so.
Line 4
A six in the fourth place means: A jug of wine, a dish of rice as an addition, earthenware, simply handed in through the window. That is in no way a blame.
Line 5
A nine in the fifth place means: The abyss is not overflowing; it is only filled up to the rim. No blame.
Line 6
A six at the top means: Bound with cords and ropes, shut in between thorny prison walls; for three years one does not find one's way. Misfortune!
Contemporary sections are original app interpretations. Line text comes from the CC0 translation in jesshewitt/i-ching.