Line 1 Yang
Footsteps cross in confusion; begin amid complexity with attentive care.
← The 64 hexagrams
HEXAGRAM 30 · Lí
Clarity and Dependence
Clarity needs a sound attachment if it is to endure.
☲ Above: Li · Fire☲ Below: Li · Fire
Meaning
Fire needs fuel, as sun and moon belong to heaven. Clarity depends on what sustains it; the gentleness pictured by a cow nurtures light rather than exhausting it.
FOR REFLECTION
What sustains your clarity, and what merely makes you flare up?
The six lines
Read from line 1 at the bottom to line 6 at the top. These are paraphrases, not verbatim translations.
Line 2 Yin
A balanced yellow radiance: clarity benefits from keeping away from extremes.
Line 3 Yang
As daylight declines, beat the earthen pot and sing rather than only lament age.
Line 4 Yang
A sudden arrival burns, dies, and is cast aside; a flare is not lasting light.
Line 5 Yin
Tears flow with grief and concern; feeling the burden can deepen responsible awareness.
Line 6 Yang
The king campaigns against the ringleader without indiscriminate capture; distinguish responsibility.
References
Classical Zhouyi · 離James Legge, The Yî King (1882), Sacred Books of the East XVI, hexagram 30
Editorial policy & bibliography →For reference and reflection. This commentary makes no certain claim about the future.