Qiān · Modesty
Upper trigram: ☷ Earth · lower trigram: ☶ Mountain
The mountain beneath the earth: greatness that lowers itself. The accomplished one completes the work and takes no pride in it.
The primitive graph shows a mouth uttering measured and just words, joined to the beam of a balance that levels its trays by distributing loads equitably. It symbolises the attitude of voluntary restraint, of measure and of active modesty. It is the image of a person of high worth who deliberately chooses to stand back and make room for others, thereby avoiding the differences of level that generate conflict.
Managing success through discretion
This hexagram corresponds to a phase in which the consultant has acquired real merits or occupies an eminent position, which inevitably attracts the attention, even the jealousy, of those around. It is the archetypal situation in which putting one's own successes forward would provoke an immediate reaction of rejection. The energetic configuration requires voluntarily reducing one's own visibility in order to stabilise one's gains durably and harmonise one's relationships.
Modesty in action and the rebalancing of situations
The advised strategy is one of voluntary simplicity and equity. The Accomplished Being must "diminish what is in excess and augment what is lacking" around them. Draw no vainglory from your competences; act with discretion, efface yourself before the work to be done and show authentic courtesy. By making yourself small, you defuse rivalries and create an inviolable space of safety. Modesty is not timid passivity, but a quiet and sovereign strength that carries all undertakings to their completion without arousing opposition.
In its structure, this figure places the trigram of the Mountain (Gen, stabilisation, inner cohesion) below, beneath the trigram of Earth (Kun, availability, spreading) above. The Mountain, a colossal and lofty mass, chooses to bury itself deep within the Earth, hiding its greatness beneath the flat surface of the ground. It is the very image of majestic reserve. The challenge is not to mistake this attitude for weakness, understanding that self-mastery and the setting of clear limits to one's own ego are the most powerful tools for unifying one's life and lasting through time.
Each line is read only if it is changing in your cast. A changing line transforms the figure: the link under each text shows which hexagram it leads to.
Three-coin or yarrow-stalk cast, changing lines, outlook figure — computed on your device, no account.