Cuì · Gathering Together
Upper trigram: ☱ Lake · lower trigram: ☷ Earth
Gather beings around a sacred center; the king appears at the temple. Stay ready for the unforeseen amid the crowd.
The archaic ideogram shows a dense crowd of the faithful gathered within the precincts of a great sacred temple, around ritual vessels overflowing with offerings, in the presence of a legitimate sovereign. It symbolises the great gathering, social and spiritual cohesion, and the necessity of reinforcing the group's protective dykes against the risks of overflow.
The gathering of forces around a sacred ideal
This hexagram describes a phase of major collective convergence (founding an enterprise, a family reunion, a political rallying). Energies unite fluidly and enthusiastically around a project or a leader worthy of respect. It is a moment of great relational power, but one that demands a solid infrastructure if it is not to turn to chaos.
Foresee crises by reinforcing one's defensive structures
The strategy consists in using this collective strength to build lasting protections. The text counsels the Accomplished Being to "renew their weapons to guard against the unforeseen". The great gathering arouses natural tensions; you must therefore set clear rules, maintain a respected hierarchy, and make great offerings (invest yourself fully) to cement the union.
From a structural point of view, the figure places the trigram of Earth (Kun, welcome, the people) below, beneath the trigram of the Marsh (Dui, the liquid mass, joy) above. Water accumulates upon the earth to form a great lake, symbol of reserve and common wealth. The challenge is to see that the dykes of the structure are solid enough to contain this flow without overflowing.
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.