Hexagram 31: Xián (Influence)
泽山咸 · 第 31 卦 · Lake over Mountain · 中文版
The Judgment
Xian indicates that, (on the fulfilment of the conditions implied in it), there will be free course and success. Its advantageousness will depend on the being firm and correct, (as) in marrying a young lady. There will be good fortune.
咸：亨，利贞，取女吉。
Commentary on the Judgment (Tuan)
Xian is here used in the sense of Kan, meaning (mutually) influencing. The weak (trigram) above, and the strong one below; their two influences moving and responding to each other, and thereby forming a union; the repression (of the one) and the satisfaction (of the other); (with their relative position), where the male is placed below the female: - all these things convey the notion of 'a free and successful course (on the fulfilment of the conditions), while the advantage will depend on being firm and correct, as in marrying a young lady, and there will be good fortune.' Heaven and earth exert their influences, and there ensue the transformation and production of all things. The sages influence the minds of men, and the result is harmony and peace all under the sky. If we look at (the method and issues) of those influences, the true character of heaven and earth and of all things can be seen.
彖曰：咸，感也。柔上而刚下，二气感应以相与，止而说，男下女，是以亨利贞，取女吉也。天地感而万物化生，圣人感人心而天下和平；观其所感，而天地万物之情可见矣！
The Great Image
(The trigram representing) a mountain and above it that for (the waters of) a marsh form Xian. The superior man, in accordance with this, keeps his mind free from pre-occupation, and open to receive (the influences of) others.
象曰：山上有泽，咸；君子以虚受人。
The six lines
Line 1 (first): The first six, divided, shows one moving his great toes.
'He moves his great toe:' - his mind is set on what is beyond (himself).
In plain words: Feeling in the big toe. This hexagram uses the body to show feeling moving from shallow to deep; the first line is at the bottom, where feeling is faint, only a wish to move. The Small Image says its aim is outward.
初六：咸其拇。 象曰：咸其拇，志在外也。
Line 2 (second): The second SIX, divided, shows one moving the calves of his leg. There will be evil. If he abide (quiet in his place), there will be good fortune.
Though 'there would be evil; yet, if he abide (quiet) in his place, there will be good fortune:' - through compliance (with the circumstances of his condition and place) there will be no injury.
In plain words: Feeling in the calf: acting rashly brings misfortune, staying put brings good fortune. The calf moves first when one walks. The second line is stirred and restless and cannot hold still. The Small Image says that though there is misfortune, staying put is fortunate: going along with what is right brings no harm.
六二：咸其腓，凶，居吉。 象曰：虽凶居吉，顺不害也。
Line 3 (third): The third NINE, undivided, shows one moving his thighs, and keeping close hold of those whom he follows. Going forward (in this way) will cause regret.
'He moves his thighs:' - he still does not (want to) rest in his place. His will is set on 'following others:' - what he holds in his grasp is low.
In plain words: Feeling in the thighs, holding on to following others; going on brings regret. The thigh moves with the foot and cannot act on its own. The third line is strong but not central and moves with the yin lines below. The Small Image says it cannot stay still either; its aim is to follow others, and what it holds to is low.
九三：咸其股，执其随，往吝。 象曰：咸其股，亦不处也。志在随人，所执下也。
Line 4 (fourth): The fourth NINE, undivided, shows that firm correctness which will lead to good fortune, and prevent all occasion for repentance. If its subject be unsettled in his movements, (only) his friends will follow his purpose.
'Firm correctness will lead to good fortune, and prevent all occasion for repentance:' - there has not yet been any harm from (a selfish wish to) influence. 'He is unsettled in his movements:'(his power to influence) is not yet either brilliant or great.
In plain words: Steadfastness brings good fortune and regret vanishes. Restlessly coming and going, only friends follow your thoughts. The fourth line sits among three yang lines, in the place of the heart; feeling should be upright and selfless, and if it is deliberately managed, its reach is narrow. The Great Commentary builds on this line: what need has the world of thought and worry? The Small Image says steadfastness keeps feeling from doing harm, while restless coming and going is not yet broad or bright.
九四：贞吉悔亡，憧憧往来，朋从尔思。 象曰：贞吉悔亡，未感害也。憧憧往来，未光大也。
Line 5 (fifth): The fifth NINE, undivided, shows one moving the flesh along the spine above the heart. There will be no occasion for repentance.
'He (tries to) move the flesh along the spine above the heart:' - his aim is trivial.
In plain words: Feeling in the back: no regret. The back is behind the heart and not easily moved. The fifth line holds the place of honour; its feeling is shallow but free of self-interest, so there is no regret, but it does not move others deeply. The Small Image says its aim is only on the surface.
九五：咸其脢，无悔。 象曰：咸其脢，志末也。
Line 6 (sixth (top)): The sixth six, divided, shows one moving his jaws and tongue.
'He moves his jaws and tongue:' - he (only) talks with loquacious mouth.
In plain words: Feeling in the jaws, cheeks and tongue. The top line is at the far end of the hexagram, and the upper trigram stands for the mouth: it tries to move people with words alone. The Small Image says it merely opens its mouth to talk.
上六：咸其辅，颊，舌。 象曰：咸其辅颊舌，滕口说也。
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), 3 pairs are made of one strong and one weak line.
| Line | Proper place | Central | Corresponds with |
|---|---|---|---|
| top (weak) | yes | — | 3rd line: yes |
| 5th (strong) | yes | yes | 2nd line: yes |
| 4th (strong) | — | — | 1st line: yes |
| 3rd (strong) | yes | — | top line: yes |
| 2nd (weak) | yes | yes | 5th line: yes |
| 1st (weak) | — | — | 4th line: yes |
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 Dui palace runs: Duì (head), Kùn (1st change), Cuì (2nd change), Xián (3rd change), Jiǎn (4th change), Qiān (5th change), Xiǎo Guò (wandering soul), Guī Mèi (returning soul).
A recorded case from Takashima
Xian to Da Guo: money lent to an inventor: A peer had lent money to a friend whose new invention had just been patented, and asked whether it would catch on and whether the loan would pay off. The second line of Xian, "feeling in the calf; misfortune; staying put is good", led Takashima to say the money would move with the goods; a new product would sell slowly at first, so hold stock and wait, bad at first and good in the end.
Previous: Hexagram 30 Lí · Next: Hexagram 32 Héng
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.