The querent wanted to file a case against a specific person and asked whether the case could be formally accepted. The hexagram obtained was Jing to Xu.
Judgment:
The core of this reading was whether the querent could form effective restraint against the target person. After analysis, the hexagram showed a structure of weak restraint and obstruction in filing the case.
1. The corresponding line was prosperous and supportive: the other side still had strength
When asking whether a case could be filed against a certain person, the corresponding line represented the target person.
In this hexagram, the corresponding line was M water. Although M water was drained in the D month and did not receive support from the month, it was strongly generated by the daily branch on the II K day, because metal generates water.
Receiving support from the daily branch showed that the corresponding line M water was still relatively prosperous and supportive. This meant that the other side was not someone who could be easily taken down.
2. The first line was active but lacked strength: the restraining force was frustrated
The first-line B earth was active. In the Five Elements, earth overcomes water. Therefore, when B earth became active, it originally meant that it would directly overcome and restrain the corresponding line M water.
If we looked only at this movement, there seemed to be hope that the querent could “handle” the other side and successfully file the case.
However, this active B earth was extremely weak in the D month, where wood overcomes earth, and on the K day, where earth was drained. Objectively, this showed that the line had no real ability to restrain the opponent.
3. Movement met compatible entanglement: the core reason for failure
This was the most decisive reason why the filing failed.
After the first-line B earth became active, it transformed into A water. Among the Twelve Branches, A and B are compatible. This formed the classic pattern of movement meeting compatible entanglement.
Once an active line is bound by compatible entanglement, it loses the freedom to function. In hexagram logic, it can be treated almost as if it had not truly moved.
Therefore, although B earth seemed to move to restrain M water, the movement was immediately tied up by A-B compatible entanglement. It could no longer effectively restrain the corresponding line.
4. The image of a water trine union: the structure supported the other side instead
In addition, the corresponding line M water, the transformed line A water, and the first-line B earth gathered together, creating the tendency of an M-A-B trine union water structure.
Although the water structure was not fully completed in the strictest sense, this gathering of water force made the already weak earth even less able to create any substantial restraint against water, which represented the target person.
Moreover, the water structure itself also supported the other side.
Conclusion:
The filing would not succeed.
The corresponding line representing the target person was still supported by the day and had strength. The first-line B earth, which was supposed to restrain the target, was extremely weak. More importantly, once it moved, it transformed into A water and became bound by compatible entanglement. The M-A-B trine union water structure further strengthened the water force and supported the other side.
Therefore, the restraining force could not become effective, and the case filing was obstructed.
Feedback:
The actual result matched the hexagram. The case was ultimately not successfully filed.
If there are certain themes you would like to see in future case studies, welcome to leave a comment and share what kinds of divination cases interest you most.
For readers who want to study Six Lines divination more seriously through classical sources, the I Ching Stream Classical Text Package brings together major classical works and collections for Na Jia, Wen Wang Gua, and traditional Chinese I Ching divination.
It helps readers compare methods, study classical cases, understand chart structure, and gradually build a complete view of the Six Lines tradition.
For readers who are just beginning and want a simple first step, we recommend:
👉 Your First Book：“I Ching Divination: A Practical Study Roadmap: A Simplified Guide to the Na Jia Method (Wen Wang Gua), Based on I Ching Divination: Complete and Restored (Zengshan Buyi 增删卜易)”
A practice-first roadmap for setting up charts, learning the core workflow, and building timing-aware judgment with a simplified, beginner-friendly structure.
Disclaimer: This article is intended solely for academic discussion and methodological analysis of Yi principles and divination interpretation. We encourage rational judgment and respect for modern science. In any real emergency, missing-person case, medical crisis, rescue situation, or life-threatening event, always contact professional emergency services, rescue teams, medical personnel, law enforcement, or other qualified authorities immediately.
🎉😄A quick note before today’s case: our charting feature can now provide simple case analysis to help users interpret hexagrams. It is not a replacement for systematic study, but it can assist beginners in identifying basic structures, line relationships, movement, transformation, void, and other key points in a reading.
The querent had an older maternal half-sister, meaning they shared the same mother but had different fathers. Due to family circumstances, their relationship had always been distant. They rarely met, and some misunderstandings from their younger years had never been clearly explained. Recently, the two were going to meet again. The querent subjectively hoped that the relationship could soften, so she cast a hexagram to ask whether their interaction would improve.
Hexagram obtained: Kan to Jing.
Judgment: Looking at the whole hexagram, this was a typical image of blocked interpersonal interaction and difficulty in emotional integration.
1. The broad image: the main hexagram was Six Clashes, showing dispersion and conflict
The main hexagram was Kan, a Six Clashes hexagram. In readings about emotional bonds and interpersonal relationships, Six Clashes is usually unfavorable. Clash represents conflict, rejection, separation, and dispersion.
The broad image had already set the tone: this meeting was unlikely to achieve the querent’s expectation of softening the relationship or bringing the two people closer.
2. Host and corresponding lines clashed: water and fire could not blend
In the hexagram, the sixth-line siblings A water held the host line, representing the querent herself. The third-line wife and wealth G fire was on the corresponding line, representing her older half-sister.
The host and corresponding lines formed an A-G clash. At the same time, A water directly overcame G fire, because water overcomes fire.
The host line A water aligned with both the monthly branch and the daily branch, so its force was extremely strong. This objectively reflected that the two people’s energies were naturally opposed. Although the querent subjectively wanted to soften the relationship, her own presence and intention may have created a strong invisible pressure on the other side.
3. The other side was in very poor condition: heavily overcome, active, and transforming into void
The corresponding line, wife and wealth G fire, represented the older half-sister. In the A month and A day, it was heavily clashed and overcome, showing an extremely weakened state.
In addition, this line aligned with Soaring Snake and was active. Soaring Snake often indicates worry, fear, unease, entanglement, and emotional disturbance. The transformed line was parents K metal, which fell into void in the cycle, since J and K were void.
The corresponding line was already weak and unsettled, and then moved into void. This accurately described the other person’s inner state: highly closed off, withdrawn, avoidant, and lacking any real willingness to communicate.
Conclusion: The relationship was unlikely to improve at this meeting.
The main hexagram was Six Clashes, showing dispersion and difficulty in closeness. The host and corresponding lines directly clashed, and the host line was too strong, creating pressure on the corresponding line. The corresponding line itself was weak, disturbed by Soaring Snake, active, and transformed into void. These signs all pointed to a relationship that was difficult to soften in the short term.
Feedback: The actual result matched the hexagram. As shown by the Six Clashes structure, water overcoming fire, and the corresponding line transforming into void, the relationship did not improve. The querent reported that the other person seemed even more introverted and depressed than before, and usually did not respond to or interact with her.
For now, the querent could only let the matter rest and wait for a more suitable opportunity to speak with her in the future.
If there are certain themes you would like to see in future case studies, welcome to leave a comment and share what kinds of divination cases interest you most.
Stem and branch time: VII A year, IV M month, IX L day (void: A and B).
The man and woman had already broken up. The woman was 30 years old, and the man was 35. The woman strongly wanted to reconcile, so she cast a hexagram to ask whether the two of them could get back together. Hexagram obtained: Jie to Kun.
Judgment:
The host line and the significator: the host line was clashed by the day and could not receive the compatibility structure.
In a relationship reading by a woman, the officials and ghosts line is taken as the significator. In this hexagram, the fifth-line corresponding line, officials and ghosts J metal, was active. It was undoubtedly the true significator.
The corresponding line J metal moved and transformed into officials and ghosts K metal. K metal and the host line E earth formed compatibility, because E and K are compatible. According to the facing/backing method or the compatibility method, this was originally an image favorable to reconciliation. However, the necessary condition for this image to become valid was that the host line had to be prosperous and supportive.
Looking back at the host line, which represented the woman herself, it was the wife and wealth E earth. In the M month, it was in rest and constraint. On the L day, it was directly clashed, because E and L clash. This formed a day clash. Because the host line was extremely weakened by this clash, it had no strength to receive the favorable compatibility structure. From the logic of the hexagram, this directly determined that reconciliation could not succeed.
The transformed hexagram: 47.Kun as a Six Compatibles hexagram meant long-term entrapment.
Although the transformed hexagram was 47.Kun, a Six Compatibles hexagram, Six Compatibles did not mean reconciliation here.
Kun means difficulty, hardship, and being unable to escape.
The cause and detailed image: the man already had another woman.
The officials and ghosts J metal, representing the man, moved and transformed into K metal.
It had already entered the hexagram and was present on the upper sixth line. Its position was closer to the fifth-line significator. Thus, it could directly generate the officials and ghosts J metal. This objectively showed that, in reality, there was already another woman beside the man, giving him support and companionship.
Feedback:
More than one year after the divination, in 2021, the woman reported that the two of them had indeed never reconciled. This fully matched the image of 47.Kun as a Six Compatibles hexagram, representing long-term emotional suffering without release, as well as the judgment that the host line was clashed by the day and had no power to turn the situation around.
Note: In relationship readings, 40.Jie is usually unfavorable, because “Jie (解)” in Chinese means to untie, release, dissolve, separate, or break apart a bond. When a relationship is “Jie,” it often means the bond becomes loosened, separated, and difficult to continue.
Similarly, Li is also often related to meanings such as leaving, separation, and parting. For example, in Chinese, words such as “leaving,” “separation,” and “divorce” are all related to li. This does not mean that these everyday words all directly come from a particular hexagram. Rather, it shows that many core words, images, and interpretive methods in the I Ching and related classical texts have deeply influenced Chinese language habits, cultural understanding, and ways of expression. Many Chinese characters are both everyday words and interpretive clues in the context of Yi studies.
I also have two similar cases of my own. One of them had the same hexagram pair as this woman’s case: 40.Jie transforming into 47.Kun. The other was 40.Jie transforming into Yu.
Usually, many people would think that a transformed Six Compatibles hexagram indicates a good result, and from the surface image of the hexagrams, both cases also seemed smooth. But in the end, both relationships came to nothing.
Readers who are interested can preorder it on Amazon.
I will do this together with specific cases and classical texts.
If there are certain themes you would like to see in future case studies, welcome to leave a comment and share what kinds of divination cases interest you most.
For readers who want to study Six Lines divination more seriously through classical sources, the I Ching Stream Classical Text Package brings together major classical works and collections for Na Jia, Wen Wang Gua, and traditional Chinese I Ching divination.
It helps readers compare methods, study classical cases, understand chart structure, and gradually build a complete view of the Six Lines tradition.
For readers who are just beginning and want a simple first step, we recommend:
👉 Your First Book：“I Ching Divination: A Practical Study Roadmap: A Simplified Guide to the Na Jia Method (Wen Wang Gua), Based on I Ching Divination: Complete and Restored (Zengshan Buyi 增删卜易)”
A practice-first roadmap for setting up charts, learning the core workflow, and building timing-aware judgment with a simplified, beginner-friendly structure.
We encourage rational judgment and respect for modern science. In any real emergency, missing-person case, medical crisis, rescue situation, or life-threatening event, always contact professional emergency services, rescue teams, medical personnel, law enforcement, or other qualified authorities immediately.
Disclaimer: This article is intended solely for academic discussion and methodological analysis of Yi principles and divination interpretation. We encourage rational judgment and respect for modern science. In any real emergency, missing-person case, medical crisis, rescue situation, or life-threatening event, always contact professional emergency services, rescue teams, medical personnel, law enforcement, or other qualified authorities immediately.
Yesterday, June 19, was the Dragon Boat Festival in China. Watching the exciting dragon boat races held across different regions reminded me of an old dragon boat divination case that had been discussed online many years ago.
This case is especially interesting because it is not about personal relationships, career, wealth, illness, lawsuits, house purchases, or investment. It is a very typical case of direct competition: Village A and Village B were going to compete in a dragon boat race. Would Village A win?
Many people assume that Six Lines divination is mainly used for personal matters, such as relationships, work, health, legal disputes, property, and money. In fact, as long as the question contains clear opposing sides, a win-or-lose structure, or a competitive relationship, Six Lines divination can also be used to judge matches, competitions, selections, examinations, bidding, and even certain election-like or camp-against-camp situations.
The key in this type of reading is not simply “which side looks stronger.” The core lies in the relationship between the host line and the corresponding line. Generally speaking, the host line represents one’s own side, while the corresponding line represents the opposing side. One must then compare the prosperity and weakness of both sides, their movement and transformation, void, break, tomb and extinction, the force of the Six Spirits, and whether the day of the event generates or overcomes either side.
Very often, neither side is in a perfect state. The real question is which side is more severely damaged, and which side is less able to perform at the critical moment.
The World Cup is also taking place recently, and I will later share more Six Lines cases related to the World Cup, sports matches, and win-or-lose judgments. Sports competition cases are excellent for training the ability to compare the host and corresponding lines, read the shifting strength between two sides, judge the influence of the event day, and weigh the relative severity of movement and transformation. They may look lively and entertaining, but they test very fundamental skills.
The following case was cast on the day before the race.
Time of divination: June 17, 2023.
Stem and branch time: X D year, V G month, III G day (void: C and D).
The question was: Tomorrow, Village A will compete against Village B in a dragon boat race. Will Village A win?
Hexagram obtained: Ji Ji to Yi.
Judgment: After a group discussion among several online participants, the core consensus was that Village A would lose.
1. Host and corresponding line positioning, and the force of the Six Gods
In a competition reading, the host line represents one’s own side, which in this case was Village A. The corresponding line represents the opponent, which was Village B.
In this hexagram, the host line was siblings M water and aligned with Soaring Snake. Soaring Snake can indicate panic, entanglement, abnormality, confusion, and unstable reactions. In a race, this can suggest unstable performance, loss of rhythm, disorder, or a failure to maintain composure.
The corresponding line was siblings A water and aligned with Azure Loong (aka:dragon). Azure Loong indicates joy, smoothness, elevated position, favorable momentum, and victory. In a race, this can be taken as a sign of better morale, smoother performance, and a stronger winning image.
Looking only at the Six Spirits, the opposing side, Village B, already had the upper hand.
2. The core negative image for Village A: returning overcome and movement into the tomb
This was the most decisive sign for judging that Village A would lose.
The host line, siblings M water, was active and transformed into officials and ghosts E earth. In the Five Elements, earth overcomes water. Therefore, the host line transformed into an element that overcame itself, forming returning overcome. In other words, once Village A’s own side became active, it produced a force that turned back to damage itself.
At the same time, E earth is the tomb of water. Therefore, the host line also had the image of moving and entering the tomb. In a race, this structure shows that one’s own side is not only being suppressed, but also likely to have its rhythm locked, trapped, or buried, making it difficult to perform.
This was not merely weak condition. It was self-damage through movement. For a win-or-lose judgment, the host line transforming with returning overcome and moving into the tomb is a very heavy losing image.
3. The event-day timing was also unfavorable to Village A
This hexagram was cast one day before the race, and the question specifically asked about “tomorrow’s” competition. The day of divination was a G day, so the next day was an H day.
The host line was M water, and H earth overcomes M water. Therefore, the H Earth day was an obstacle god that specifically overcame the water host line. This meant that on the actual day of the race, the external timing and objective environment were even more unfavorable to Village A.
Thus, the host line was not only structurally damaged within the hexagram. The day of the race itself further strengthened the pressure against Village A.
4. Both sides were weak, but Village A was more severely damaged
The interesting point in this hexagram is that the opponent’s corresponding line was also in poor condition.
The corresponding line A water was in monthly break and daily break under the G month and G day. It was already damaged. In addition, it was active and transformed into D wood, and D wood was void in the cycle. This showed that the opponent was also not strong or flawless. Village B may also have had weakness, mistakes, or unstable performance.
However, in a win-or-lose reading, one cannot judge only by whether one side has problems. One must compare the severity of damage on both sides.
Although the corresponding line suffered monthly break, daily break, and transformed into void, the host line suffered returning overcome and moved into the tomb. By comparison, the damage to the host line was more direct and more fatal. Both sides may have performed poorly, but Village A’s own damage was heavier, so it was still difficult for Village A to win.
Conclusion: Village A would lose.
The key to this hexagram was not a simple statement that “the corresponding line was good and the host line was bad.” Rather, the key was the comparison of damage between the two sides. The corresponding line was indeed seriously damaged by break and void, but the host line was active with returning overcome, entered the tomb, and was further overcome by the H day on the day of the race. Village A was more severely damaged, so it was unlikely to win this race.
Feedback: The final result confirmed the judgment. Village A lost the dragon boat race.
The value of this case is that it shows an important principle in Six Lines competition readings: victory is not determined by which side is completely undamaged, but by which side can better withstand the timing, which side is less damaged, and which side can still perform at the critical moment.
In sports matches, bidding competitions, exam rankings, selection processes, elimination rounds, and even certain election-like or camp-against-camp situations, this method of host-corresponding comparison and relative damage assessment is extremely important.
Note: Dragon Boat Festival, Qu Yuan, and Traditional Customs
The Dragon Boat Festival is one of the major traditional festivals in China. It is not a festival with only one single origin. Rather, it is a composite festival formed through several thousand years of cultural development. It includes midsummer customs for avoiding illness and harmful influences, protection against the Five Poisons, beliefs connected with dragon and water spirits, water rituals, southern dragon boat traditions, and later commemorations of historical figures.
However, in later Chinese culture, Qu Yuan became the most representative symbolic figure of the Dragon Boat Festival. Today, when many people mention the Dragon Boat Festival, the first things that come to mind are Qu Yuan, dragon boat racing, and zongzi.
Qu Yuan, approximately 340–278 BCE, was a poet and political figure of the State of Chu during the Warring States period. He was loyal to Chu but was repeatedly pushed out of politics, and his political ideals could not be realized. In 278 BCE, Qin forces captured Ying, the capital of Chu, and the State of Chu suffered a major blow. According to tradition, Qu Yuan, devastated by the danger facing his country and the collapse of his ideals, drowned himself in the Miluo River on the fifth day of the fifth lunar month.
According to legend, when the local people heard that Qu Yuan had thrown himself into the river, they rowed out in boats to search for him, hoping to rescue him. This later became one of the most familiar explanations for the origin of dragon boat racing. People also threw rice dumplings into the river, hoping that fish and shrimp would not eat Qu Yuan’s body. This became one of the folk explanations for the custom of eating zongzi.
Qu Yuan came to be remembered not only as a major poet, but also as a cultural symbol of loyalty, moral integrity, and principled responsibility. In later Chinese historical memory, he became one of the most representative figures associated with this ideal personality.
Of course, Dragon Boat Festival customs go far beyond the story of Qu Yuan. In traditional Chinese thought, the fifth lunar month was associated with increasing heat, dampness, insects, and harmful seasonal influences. Therefore, the Dragon Boat Festival also includes customs such as avoiding the Five Poisons, hanging mugwort and calamus, wearing fragrant sachets, drinking realgar wine, and bathing with herbal water. These customs were used to pray for safety and to ward off illness and harmful influences.
The Five Poisons usually refer to poisonous or harmful creatures such as the snake, scorpion, centipede, toad, and gecko. Around the Dragon Boat Festival, the weather becomes warmer, and insects and reptiles become more active. Ancient people therefore developed many seasonal customs for protection and purification. Behind these customs are both folk beliefs and practical observations about season, illness, and environmental change.
Eating zongzi is one of the best-known Dragon Boat Festival customs. There are major regional differences between northern and southern China. Northern zongzi are often sweet, such as red date zongzi or red bean paste zongzi. Southern zongzi are often savory, such as pork zongzi, salted egg yolk zongzi, and braised pork zongzi. Different regions also developed their own festival food traditions based on local ingredients and taste.
On the Chinese internet, people often jokingly argue over whether sweet zongzi or savory zongzi are better. I am from northern China, a region where sweet zongzi are more common, so I originally belonged to the sweet-zongzi side. But after I grew up and tasted savory zongzi with salted egg yolk and braised pork, I converted to the savory-zongzi camp.
For readers who are curious, you can try both sweet and savory zongzi and see which side you belong to. You can also try making them yourself. Wrapping zongzi with friends and then eating them together is one of those small but very happy festival experiences.
Dragon boat racing has an especially strong collective and competitive character. It can be explained as a commemorative reenactment of the effort to rescue Qu Yuan, but it may also be traced to older water rituals, dragon totem beliefs, and customs of exorcism and blessing.
If there are competition, sports, or win-or-lose case topics that interest you, welcome to leave a comment and let me know.
Disclaimer: This article is intended solely for academic discussion and methodological analysis of Yi principles and divination interpretation. We encourage rational judgment and respect for modern science. In any real emergency, missing-person case, medical crisis, rescue situation, or life-threatening event, always contact professional emergency services, rescue teams, medical personnel, law enforcement, or other qualified authorities immediately.
Recently, a reader asked an important question: if Chinese practitioners today use the Great Expansion (Dayan or yarrow stalk) method less often, is it simply because the yarrow-stalk casting procedure is too complicated?
The issue is not only the casting method.
A casting method is only the way to obtain a hexagram. What truly determines the quality of a divination is the interpretive system that follows. Many readers easily confuse “how to cast a hexagram” with “how to interpret a hexagram.” The Great Expansion method has not been completely preserved as a full historical system. What has mostly survived is the yarrow-stalk procedure for obtaining a hexagram. In actual interpretation, the textual path based on the hexagram statements and line statements is relatively clear, but the other, more important half of the Great Expansion tradition — its image-number interpretive method — gradually divided, dispersed, and was partly absorbed into later traditions such as Plum Blossom Divination, image-based interpretation, and other branches of Yi divination.
If a divination method preserves only the casting procedure but lacks a complete corresponding interpretive system, it is difficult to call it a fully preserved tradition. The effectiveness of divination does not depend only on “how a hexagram is obtained.” It also depends on whether one can systematically interpret the images, texts, positions, transformations, timing, and real-world matter shown in the hexagram. Without image-based interpretation and structural judgment, the analysis naturally becomes incomplete.
Of course, no matter which method one studies, the key is not to mechanically apply a few isolated rules. The key is to understand the entire structure of the system, grasp its underlying principles, and apply them flexibly according to the actual hexagram and the real situation. True divination ability comes from the integration of system, principle, and practice.
For this reason, if one wants to study a relatively complete, operable, and trainable system of I Ching divination today, Na Jia Six Lines and Plum Blossom Divination remain two of the more systematically preserved branches in Chinese tradition. Na Jia Six Lines, in particular, is supported by many classical works, including I Ching Divination: Complete and Restored (Zengshan Buyi, 《增删卜易》), The Orthodox Method of I Ching Divination (Bushi Zhengzong, 《卜筮正宗》), Encompassing I Ching Divination (Yi Mao, 《易冒》), and Supplement to the I Ching Forest (Yi Lin Bu Yi, 《易林补遗》). It also has a large number of cases that can be repeatedly studied, verified, and reviewed.
For those interested in ancient Great Expansion divination, ancient divination cases, and image-based interpretation, Studies on Ancient I Ching Divination Cases (Zhouyi Gushi Kao, 《周易古筮考》) is also worth studying. Its author, Shang Binghe, made an important contribution to organizing ancient divination cases and restoring image-based interpretive reasoning. We will also publish related academic research on this subject in the future, further discussing the relationship between ancient image-based divination and later Yi divination traditions. However, Shang Binghe’s work is better understood as an important attempt at recovery and reconstruction. It does not mean that the full ancient interpretive system of Great Expansion divination has already been completely restored.
Today’s house-purchase case happens to show how three approaches can work together:
Hexagram text sets the broad situation.
Image-based interpretation reads the details.
Na Jia analyzes funding and timing.
The main hexagram, Da You, sets a generally favorable overall trend. The transformed hexagram, Bi, shows the image of decoration, furnishing, and later beautification of the property. Multiple parents lines in the hexagram show that there were several property options. Meanwhile, the funding gap, the likely purchase years, and the final timing needed to be judged through the Six Relationships, void and break, movement and transformation, and returning generate within Na Jia.
Therefore, the value of this case is not only whether the house purchase would succeed.
Time of divination: October 18, 2025.
Stem and branch time: II F year, III L month, VII J day (void: A and B).
Hexagram obtained: Da You to Bi.
Judgment:The broad image of the hexagram was favorable. The main hexagram was Da You, which carries the image of abundance, possession, and things being broadly available. This showed that the overall trend of the house-purchase matter was not poor.
The property situation was also shown clearly through the parents lines. In Six Lines divination, the parents line represents houses, property, contracts, documents, and real estate paperwork. In this hexagram, the four parents lines E, L, B, and H were all present. This showed that there were multiple property options or house-related possibilities. The third-line parents E earth held the host line, remained still, and aligned with the auspicious spirit Azure Loong. This indicated that the querent had the opportunity to purchase a relatively suitable property in a stable way.
The funding issue was shown by the wife and wealth line. The second-line wife and wealth C wood represented money and available funds. This showed that the current funding for the house purchase had not yet been fully resolved. Therefore, the key timing for the funds becoming available could be seen in the B year or H year.
The purchase timing was shown through movement and returning generate. The fourth-line siblings K metal was active, showing that the querent was already actively planning, comparing options, and pushing the matter forward. K metal moved and transformed into parents L earth, forming returning generate. Since the parents line represents houses, property, and contracts, and the transformed L earth was also the Planning Star[1] of the day, this further showed that the house purchase already had a clear plan and direction. According to the rules of prosperity, movement, and transformation, the theoretical timing for the formal purchase could be seen in the K year or L year.
Conclusion: The house-purchase matter was ultimately likely to succeed.
Feedback: Awaiting further verification.
The key point of this case is not the isolated use of one method. It is the integrated judgment. The hexagram text first sets the general trend of auspiciousness or difficulty. Image-based interpretation then adds details about the property condition and later decoration. Na Jia Six Lines further refines the funding situation, progress of action, and timing. Only when these three are considered together can the reading form a more complete interpretive loop.
Note: [1] The Planning Star is determined by the earthly branch of the day. A common method is as follows: for J, A, and E days, the Planning Star is in L; for F, K, and B days, the Planning Star is in H; for C, G, and L days, the Planning Star is in E; for M, D, and H days, the Planning Star is in B.
The Planning Star governs planning, arrangements, preparation, and strategic intention.
In this hexagram, the day was VII J. The earthly branch was J, and J belongs to the J-A-E structure, so the Planning Star was in L. The fourth-line K metal moved and transformed into parents L earth, exactly producing the Planning Star. Therefore, it could be taken as an image of an existing house-purchase plan and a clear direction of action.
If there are certain themes you would like to see in future case studies, welcome to leave a comment and share what kinds of divination cases interest you most.
Disclaimer: This article is intended solely for academic discussion and methodological analysis of Yi principles and divination interpretation. We encourage rational judgment and respect for modern science. In any real emergency, missing-person case, medical crisis, rescue situation, or life-threatening event, always contact professional emergency services, rescue teams, medical personnel, law enforcement, or other qualified authorities immediately.
Time of divination: March 16, 2026, at 7:00 PM.
Stem and branch time: III G year, VIII D month, VI B day (void: G and H).
The querent was the boss of a local branch of a private company. The parent company had previously allocated a special employee subsidy fund that was supposed to be distributed to staff, but the querent’s local branch withheld the funds instead of paying them out. Later, this was discovered during an audit by the parent company. Because headquarters was conducting a broad inspection involving many branches, the querent became extremely worried that he would be severely punished. Hexagram obtained: Jia Ren.
Judgment: In this legal and disciplinary dispute, the host line and the inner trigram represented the querent and his own branch. The host line was the second-line wife and wealth B earth. It was strongly overcome by the monthly branch D wood, showing that the branch did have a problem and was under pressure from the audit. However, B earth also coincided with the daily branch B earth and received support from the day. Therefore, although the matter was unfavorable, the host line was not broken or completely damaged. This showed that, within the overall inspection, the querent’s branch had a problem, but the severity was relatively limited.
The other branches could be compared through another line of the same type. The fourth-line wife and wealth H earth, located in the outer trigram, was the same Six Relationship as the host line and could be used to represent other branches involved in the same inspection. This H earth was overcome by the D month and was also clashed by the B day, because B and H clash. This formed the image of being overcome by the month and clashed by the day. Compared with the host line B earth, the fourth-line H earth was in a much more damaged condition. This showed that the problems in other branches were far more serious.
The attitude of the parent company and inspection side was shown by the corresponding line. The fifth-line corresponding line was descendants F fire, representing the inspection side or headquarters. This corresponding line did not overcome the host line. Instead, F fire generated B earth, forming the image of the corresponding line generating the host line. In practical terms, this showed that the parent company did not view the querent’s branch as the worst case. The inspection side still had some room for leniency toward his branch.
Therefore, the judgment was not a severe removal or the harshest disciplinary punishment. The branch had mishandled money, so financial loss or a penalty was difficult to avoid. But the host line was still supported by the day, the corresponding line generated the host line, and the worse damage appeared on the same-type wealth line representing other branches. The likely outcome was financial loss to avoid disaster.
Conclusion: The querent would not be heavily punished. His branch would likely receive a financial penalty, but the hexagram did not show removal from position or the most serious disciplinary outcome. Other branches were in far worse condition and would face much harsher consequences.
Feedback:The actual result matched the judgment. The querent recently reported that the judgment had been verified. Because other branches had acted far more seriously, their leaders were severely dealt with. By comparison, the querent’s own branch appeared less severe, and the final result was only a financial penalty. He was not heavily punished.
If there are certain themes you would like to see in future case studies, welcome to leave a comment and share what kinds of divination cases interest you most.
All personal information in this case study has been anonymized or omitted. This case study is provided for learning and reference only. It is not intended as medical, veterinary, legal, financial, investment, or other professional advice.
III. Arranging the Six Lines Chart
Part 3.2. Installing the Hexagram Components
Part 3.2.3. Installing the Host and Corresponding Lines
After identifying the hexagram name, palace, and generation position, the next step is to install the host line. Next, you install the corresponding line.
In Six Lines divination, the host line is one of the most important positions in the chart. It often represents the querent, the main side of the matter, or the central position.
The corresponding line represents the opposite side, the other party, the object being asked about, or the external side of the matter.
Why is it called the corresponding line? The word “corresponding” means that the line responds to, faces, or matches another line in the opposite trigram. The first, second, and third lines of the lower trigram correspond respectively to the fourth, fifth, and sixth lines. These are the lines of the upper trigram.
In other words:
The first line corresponds to the fourth line.
The second line corresponds to the fifth line.
The third line corresponds to the sixth line.
The first line is the first position of the lower trigram, while the fourth line is the first position of the upper trigram. The second line is the middle position of the lower trigram. Meanwhile, the fifth line is the middle position of the upper trigram. The third line is the upper position of the lower trigram. Similarly, the sixth line is the upper position of the upper trigram.
The intermediary lines stand between the host line and the corresponding line. In practical judgment, they often represent people, matters, conditions, obstructions, procedures, or mediating factors. They may also represent intermediate links standing between the two sides.
For example, in a relationship reading, the intermediary lines may sometimes represent a matchmaker or a third party. In a transaction reading, they may represent an intermediary, a contract, or the movement of funds. They can also represent other intermediate links between the buyer and the seller. In readings about documents, lawsuits, or applications, they may also represent procedures, administrative institutions, or approval processes. In addition, they may represent intermediate obstructions.
Therefore, the host line, corresponding line, and intermediary lines form a basic relational framework within the Six Lines chart.
The host line represents the self-side, the querent, or the main position.
The intermediary lines represent the intermediate factors standing between the host and corresponding positions.
As explained in the previous section, each palace contains eight hexagrams:
Once we know which position the hexagram occupies in its palace, we can determine where the host line is located.
The rule is as follows:
An Eight Pure Hexagram is also called a sixth-generation hexagram. As the name implies, its host line is on the sixth line, that is, the top line.
A 1st Generation (Host) Hexagram has the host line on the first line.
A 2nd Generation (Host) Hexagram has the host line on the second line.
A 3rd Generation (Host) Hexagram has the host line on the third line.
A 4th Generation (Host) Hexagram has the host line on the fourth line.
A 5th Generation (Host) Hexagram has the host line on the fifth line.
A Wandering Soul Hexagram has the host line on the fourth line.
A Returning Soul Hexagram has the host line on the third line.
Therefore, the palace position tells us where to place the host line.
The corresponding line is then determined by line pairing:
If the host line is on the first line, the corresponding line is on the fourth line, and the second and third lines are the intermediary lines.
If the host line is on the second line, the corresponding line is on the fifth line, and the third and fourth lines are the intermediary lines.
If the host line is on the third line, the corresponding line is on the sixth line, and the fourth and fifth lines are the intermediary lines.
If the host line is on the fourth line, the corresponding line is on the first line, and the second and third lines are the intermediary lines.
If the host line is on the fifth line, the corresponding line is on the second line, and the third and fourth lines are the intermediary lines.
If the host line is on the sixth line, the corresponding line is on the third line, and the fourth and fifth lines are the intermediary lines.
Installing the host and corresponding lines is not a minor charting step. It establishes the basic relational structure of the entire chart.
These include installing the Six Relationships, identifying the significator line, and judging generation, overcoming, clash, compatibility, void, break, tomb, movement, and transformation.
With this release, another major classical work of Six Lines Divination, Wen Wang Gua, and the Na Jia Method is now available to English-language readers.
For readers who have followed the previous posts in this series, Yi Mao is not only another old divination book. It is a text with a very special position in the classical Six Lines system.
It is neither a brief manual that only presents formulas, nor a simple collection of divination cases. Rather, it begins from the foundations and explains how the method is established, how its reasoning unfolds, and how it should be applied in actual judgment.
This is exactly where Yi Mao stands out.
In many classical Six Lines texts, the steps of reasoning are often omitted for the sake of brevity.
Yi Mao helps fill that gap.
It clarifies the key links, explains the basis of judgment, and uses examples to help the reader follow the logic.
A Classical Text with Recognized Authority
Yi Mao circulated in multiple engraved editions during the Qing dynasty, including editions from the Qianlong period and the Guangxu period. It was also preserved in the Wenyuan Pavilion copy of The Complete Library of the Four Treasuries (Siku Quanshu, 《四库全书》), the monumental imperial collection compiled under the Qing court to gather, classify, edit, and preserve the major works of Chinese textual tradition.
Its inclusion in this official collection reflects the recognized authority of Yi Mao and its importance as a base text for later research, compilation, and transmission.
For serious students of Six Lines Divination, Wen Wang Gua, and the Na Jia Method, the difficulty is often not only terminology. The deeper challenge is understanding the judgment logic behind the terms.
Yi Mao is valuable because it repeatedly explains that logic.
Cheng Liangyu and the Transmission Behind Yi Mao
The author of Yi Mao was Cheng Liangyu (程良玉), courtesy name Yuanru (元如), from Xin’an.
According to his own preface, Cheng Liangyu lost his sight due to illness in childhood and remained blind for the rest of his life. His family once encouraged him to study medicine, but he soon realized that medicine depends heavily on observation, discernment, and clinical judgment, all of which were extremely difficult for a blind person.
He therefore turned his attention fully to the study of the I Ching.
Cheng Liangyu studied under the well-known diviner Zhang Xingyuan (张星元). Zhang Xingyuan was also traditionally associated with Supplement to the I Ching Forest (Yi Lin Bu Yi, 《易林补遗》), another important classical text of I Ching divination that I Ching Stream also plans to publish.
This matters because Yi Mao did not emerge in isolation.
It belongs to a chain of learning: teachers, earlier texts, hidden transmitters, practical verification, and later correction. Cheng Liangyu also encountered the Kupao Elder (枯匏老人), received further instruction, and expanded his work into a more complete system combining principle, image, number, and divination in judgment and application.
He argued that the sages established methods in order to open the ignorance of later generations. If one receives the teaching and then hides it again, what benefit is there in obtaining it alone?
This reveals the deeper spirit behind Yi Mao.
Why Yi Mao Is Important
The value of Yi Mao lies especially in three areas.
First, it explains the foundations in detail.
Second, Yi Mao gives extensive attention to subtle distinctions. In actual Six Lines Divination, the most common difficulty is often not that the practitioner knows no rules at all, but that the relative weight, truth or falsity, sequence, and conditions of application among those rules are unclear. For example, among void in the cycle, monthly break, transformation into extinction, clash scatter, flying gods, hidden gods, mutual hexagrams, and transformed hexagrams, which conditions are genuine, which are partial, and which should be weighed lightly?
Yi Mao repeatedly addresses these questions.
Third, Yi Mao treats time factors in a concrete way. Cheng Liangyu emphasizes prosperity and decline, seasonal timing, the time of divination, and the time when the matter occurs. This is especially helpful for learners who only know how to apply the monthly command and daily branch mechanically.
In addition, Yi Mao includes a large number of divination topics and more than 110 verified cases. It is not only a theoretical work, but also a text with strong practical value.
Its angle of explanation differs from Golden Strategy (Huangjin Ce, 《黄金策》), I Ching Divination: Complete and Restored (Zengshan Buyi, 《增删卜易》), The Orthodox Method of I Ching Divination (Bushi Zhengzong, 《卜筮正宗》), and other classics. These works supplement one another.
The value of the classics lies in reading them together, comparing their methods, and testing their principles through practice.
Principle, Number, and the Missing Technical Dimension of the I Ching
In Lu Jin’s preface, Cheng Yuanru explains that the sages exhausted principle and number, using number to make principle manifest and using principle to guide number. He also points out that people today do not understand image and number, yet recklessly speak of the principles of the Yi.
This point is especially important for modern readers.
These dimensions are valuable, but they do not exhaust the living divinatory tradition of the I Ching.
This dimension has often remained incomplete or inaccessible in English.
That has created a long-standing gap.
It does not replace philosophical understanding.
In this sense, Yi Mao is not merely another old divination book.
It is a bridge between principle and technique, between the visible and the hidden, and between classical Chinese learning and readers who have long lacked access to this complete system in English.
How to Read Yi Mao within the I Ching Stream Series
From the perspective of a learning path, I recommend reading the major Six Lines texts in a connected order.
First, read I Ching Divination: Complete and Restored (Zengshan Buyi, 《增删卜易》) to establish the basic framework of Six Lines judgment.
Then read Yi Mao to supplement many concepts, reasons for distinction, and layers of detail.
Finally, read The Orthodox Method of I Ching Divination (Bushi Zhengzong, 《卜筮正宗》) to consolidate, deepen, and correct many common problems beginners encounter in actual judgment.
After these main works, readers will find it easier to integrate Fire Pearl Forest (Huo Zhu Lin, 《火珠林》), Undersea Eye (Haidi Yan, 《海底眼》), The Complete Book of Divination (Bushi Quanshu, 《卜筮全书》), Supplement to the I Ching Forest (Yi Lin Bu Yi, 《易林补遗》), and other texts.
Why This Translation Matters Now
One reason is that it is not a quick-start book. Its real value lies in its reasoning process, its detailed distinctions, and its explanations of concepts.
Through Yi Mao, readers can more clearly understand the principles behind many basic concepts, rather than merely memorize surface-level rules.
Today, across languages and cultures, this concern still has meaning.
If the classical technical tradition remains locked within difficult Chinese texts, many sincere students around the world can only approach the I Ching from the outside.
Yi Mao Is Now Live
The full English edition of Encompassing I Ching Divination (Yi Mao, 《易冒》) is now available here:
With this release, the I Ching Stream classical library adds another major layer to the English reconstruction of Six Lines Divination, Wen Wang Gua, and the Na Jia Method.
This is not only the release of one book.
It is another step toward making the classical technical tradition of I Ching divination available as a connected system for English-language readers.
Final Bundle Reminder
Because Yi Mao is now live and will be added to the I Ching Stream Bundle, this is the final opportunity to lock in the current bundle price.
The current Bundle price is still:
$699.99 before applicable taxes
Once Yi Mao is added to the Bundle, it will expand from 7 to 8 major classical works and collections, and the price will increase to:
$849.99 before applicable taxes
If you have been considering the Bundle, this is the last window to purchase at the current lower price.Bundle link:
