Hexagram 17: Suí (Following)
泽雷随 · 第 17 卦 · Lake over Thunder · 中文版
The Judgment
Sui indicates that (under its conditions) there will be great progress and success. But it will be advantageous to be firm and correct. There will (then) be no error.
随：元亨利贞，无咎。
Commentary on the Judgment (Tuan)
In Sui we see the strong (trigram) come and place itself under the weak; we see (in the two) the attributes of movement and pleasure: - this gives (the idea of) Sui. 'There will be great progress and success; and through firm correctness no error:' - all under heaven will be found following at such a time. Great indeed are the time and significance indicated in Sui.
彖曰：随，刚来而下柔，动而说，随。大亨贞，无咎，而天下随时。随时之义大矣哉！
The Great Image
(The trigram for the waters of) a marsh and (that for) thunder (hidden) in the midst of it form Sui. The superior man in accordance with this, when it is getting towards dark, enters (his house) and rests.
象曰：泽中有雷，随；君子以向晦入宴息。
The six lines
Line 1 (first): The first NINE, undivided, shows us one changing the object of his pursuit; but if he be firm and correct, there will he good fortune. Going beyond (his own) gate to find associates, he will achieve merit.
'He is changing the object of his pursuit:' - but if he follow what is correct, there will be good fortune. 'He goes beyond (his own) gate to find associates:' - he will not fail (in the method he pursues).
In plain words: What one holds to changes; steadfastness brings good fortune. Going out of the gate to mix with others brings achievement. What one holds to may also be read as one's office. The first line is the ruler of the lower trigram and can change with the times, but the change must stay correct. The Small Image says following what is right brings good fortune, and going out to mix brings achievement without loss.
初九：官有渝，贞吉。出门交有功。 象曰：官有渝，从正吉也。出门交有功，不失也。
Line 2 (second): The second SIX, divided, shows us one who cleaves to the little boy, and lets go the man of age and experience.
'He cleaves to the little boy:' - he cannot be with the two at the same time.
In plain words: Clinging to the little boy, one loses the grown man. The little boy is the nearby first line, the grown man the fifth line, its proper partner. The second line is weak, follows what is close and loses what it should follow. The Small Image says one cannot have both.
六二：系小子，失丈夫。 象曰：系小子，弗兼与也。
Line 3 (third): The third SIX, divided, shows us one who cleaves to the man of age and experience, and lets go. the little boy. Such following will get what it seeks; but it will be advantageous to adhere to what is firm and correct.
'He cleaves to the man of age and experience:' - by the decision of his will, he abandons (the youth) below.
In plain words: Clinging to the grown man, one loses the little boy. Following, one seeks and finds; it is favourable to stay settled and steadfast. The grown man is the fourth line above, the little boy the first line below. The third line leaves the lower for the higher, a good choice. The Small Image says its aim is to let go of what is below.
六三：系丈夫，失小子。随有求得，利居贞。 象曰：系丈夫，志舍下也。
Line 4 (fourth): The fourth NINE, undivided, shows us one followed and obtaining (adherents). Though he be firm and correct, there will be evil. If he be sincere (however) in his course, and make that evident, into what error will he fall?
'He is followed and obtains adherents:' - according to the idea (of the hexagram), this is evil. 'He is sincere in his course:' - showing his intelligence, and leading to achievement.
In plain words: Being followed brings gains, but holding to this is dangerous; with good faith, on the right way and with clear understanding, what fault could there be? The fourth line is close to the ruler in the fifth place, yet has everyone following it, and risks overshadowing its lord. The Small Image says gains from being followed are dangerous in principle, and good faith on the right way is the effect of clear sight.
九四：随有获，贞凶。有孚在道，以明，何咎。 象曰：随有获，其义凶也。有孚在道，明功也。
Line 5 (fifth): The fifth NINE, undivided, shows us (the ruler) sincere in (fostering all) that is excellent. There will be good fortune.
'He is sincere in fostering what is excellent:' - his position is correct and in the centre.
In plain words: Good faith in what is excellent: good fortune. The fifth line is central and correct and corresponds to the second, following what is good with sincerity. The Small Image says this is because its position is central and correct.
九五：孚于嘉，吉。 象曰：孚于嘉，吉，位正中也。
Line 6 (sixth (top)): The topmost SIX, divided, shows us (that sincerity) firmly held and clung to, yea, and bound fast. (We see) the king with it presenting his offerings on the western mountain.
'The sincerity is firmly held and clung to, as shown in the topmost line:' - (the idea of the hexagram) has reached its extreme development.
In plain words: Held fast and bound, then tied firmly; the king makes offerings on the Western Mountain. The top line is at the height of following, bound so firmly it cannot be undone; tradition takes this as King Wen of Zhou sacrificing on Mount Qi, with the people following him steadfastly. The Small Image says it is at the top, with nowhere further to go.
上六：拘系之，乃从维之。王用亨于西山。 象曰：拘系之，上穷也。
Line positions
4 of the six lines stand in their proper place (strong lines in odd places, weak lines in even places).
The second and fifth lines hold the central places of the lower and upper trigrams; being one strong and one weak, they correspond, and both are also in their proper places.
Of the three pairs of corresponding places (first and fourth, second and fifth, third and top), 1 pair is made of one strong and one weak line.
| Line | Proper place | Central | Corresponds with |
|---|---|---|---|
| top (weak) | yes | — | 3rd line: no |
| 5th (strong) | yes | yes | 2nd line: yes |
| 4th (strong) | — | — | 1st line: no |
| 3rd (weak) | — | — | top line: no |
| 2nd (weak) | yes | yes | 5th line: yes |
| 1st (strong) | yes | — | 4th line: no |
Strong lines belong in odd places and weak lines in even places; the second and fifth are the central places; first and fourth, second and fifth, third and top correspond, and they "respond" when one is strong and the other weak.
These are structural conventions, not scores of good or bad fortune. Commentators differ: Wang Bi treats the first and top places as beginning and end without fixed yin or yang positions. Read each line with its Small Image and the whole hexagram.
Place in Jing Fang's eight palaces
Jing Fang grouped the 64 hexagrams into eight "palaces" of eight, each headed by a doubled trigram. Changing the lines of the head hexagram one by one from the bottom gives the next five; the last two are the "wandering soul" and "returning soul" hexagrams. The Zhen palace runs: Zhèn (head), Yù (1st change), Xiè (2nd change), Héng (3rd change), Shēng (4th change), Jǐng (5th change), Dà Guò (wandering soul), Suí (returning soul).
A recorded case from Takashima
Sui to Dui: whether to marry a daughter to a widowed gentleman: A widowed gentleman sent a go-between to ask for the hand of Judge Bitō's eighteen-year-old daughter. The second line of Sui, "holding to the young man, losing the grown man", led Takashima to guess the suitor was old and the daughter might not want him; the judge declined the match.
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English text: James Legge, The Yi King (Sacred Books of the East, vol. 16, 1882), public domain, as transcribed by the Chinese Text Project. Chinese: the received text. Offered for study and reflection, not as prediction.