One challenges the reality of the facts that others claimed to have experienced. taoscopy.com
Shock51
Sudden change or shock, like thunder, that can jolt you awake. Embrace the disruption as an opportunity for growth, respond calmly, and align your actions with the new reality.
↓ Line 3
The shock may cause confusion, but it can also be a catalyst for positive action. Responding appropriately will prevent negative outcomes.
↓ Line 5
The shock causes chaos and danger, but ultimately nothing is lost. There is still work to be done to restore order.
↓ Line 6
The shock leads to destruction and disarray, both internally and externally. Acting appropriately and in harmony with the situation can prevent blame.
↓ Fellowship13
Unity through shared purpose and community effort.
51 Shock
Other titles: The Arousing, Thunder, The Symbol of Startling Movement, Shake, The Beginning of Movement, Shocking, The Thunderclap, Action, Motion, Sudden Change, Surprise! "The necessity to keep tranquil in the midst of upheaval." -- D.F. Hook
Judgment
Legge:Shock intimates ease and development. When the time of movement which it indicates comes, the subject of the hexagram will be found looking out with apprehension, and yet smiling and talking cheerfully. When the movement like a crash of thunder terrifies all within a hundred miles, he will be like the sincere worshipper who is not startled into dropping his ladle and cup of sacrificial spirits.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Shock brings success. Shock comes --oh, oh! Laughing words -- ha, ha! The shock terrifies for a hundred miles, and he does not let fall the sacrificial spoon and chalice.
Blofeld: Thunder -- success! Thunder comes with a terrible noise, laughing and shouting in awesome glee and frightening people for a hundred miles around. The sacrificial wine is not spilt. [This suggests that the holder of the sacrificial vessel is not easily alarmed or else that he is very wise and able to distinguish between the apparently dangerous and the truly dangerous.]
Liu: Thunder. Success. Thunder comes -- ho ho! Speaking and laughing -- ha ha! It shocks and terrifies for a hundred miles. But one does not drop the spoon or chalice.
Ritsema/Karcher: Shake, Growing. Shake coming: frightening, frightening. Laughing words, shrieking, shrieking. Shake scaring a hundred miles. Not losing the ladle, the libation. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of a disturbing and inspiring shock. It emphasizes that rousing things to new activity, the action of Shake is the adequate way to handle it. To be in accord with the time, you are told to: stir things up!]
Shaughnessy:Thunder: Receipt; thunder comes so renewingly; laughter and talk yaya; thunder alarms one hundred miles; not losing the ladle or goblet.
Cleary (1): Thunder is developmental. When thunder comes, there is alarm, then laughter. Thunder startles for a hundred miles, but one does not lose the spoon and wine.
Cleary (2):Thunder comes through. Etc.
Wu:Motion indicates pervasiveness. When Motioncomes, it frightens people. Later, it makes people talk and laugh. Its majesty reaches one hundred li in all directions. There is no misplacement of the ladle or sacrificial wine.
The Image
Legge: The image of Thunder, being repeated, forms Shock. The superior man, in accordance with this, is fearful and apprehensive, cultivates his virtue, and examines his faults.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Thunder repeated: the image of Shock. Thus in fear and trembling the superior man sets his life in order and examines himself.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes continuous thunder. The Superior Man in fear and trembling seeks to improve himself.
Liu: Thunder doubled symbolizes shock. The superior man contemplates himself with fear and caution.
Ritsema/Karcher: Reiterated thunder. Shake. A chun tzu uses anxious fearing to adjust inspecting.
Cleary (1):Traveling thunder reverberates. Thus superior people cautiously practice introspection.
Cleary (2): Repeated thunder reverberates.Developed people practice introspection with caution.
Wu: One thunderclap after another constitutes hexagram Motion. Thus the jun zi reflects and rectifies for fear of being wrong.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: His feeling of dread leads to happiness because he is thereby made to adopt proper laws for himself. The movement startles the distant and frightens the near, yet he makes the proper sacrifices the same as always.
Legge: Shock consists of the trigram for Thunder doubled. (This trigram also represents Movement and the Eldest Son.) The hexagram therefore symbolizes a crash or peal of thunder, and combined with the idea of movement shows a sudden change taking place in the kingdom. The lesson is the conduct to be pursued in a time of sudden change through an awareness of danger and the proper regulation of oneself.
A successful issue is predicted if the dynamic first line can be superior to the two magnetic lines above him. It is in the idea of the hexagram that he should be moving and advancing. Although sensible of the danger, he is confident and self-possessed -- so much so that he can calmly perform his religious duties during the prevailing chaos. This is proper behavior for the eldest son, who must eventually assume the duties of his father.
Anthony: In the I Chingshock means being subjected to unsettling events. It also means perceiving and reacting to these events … perceiving, in any of these changes, that a new set of limits, or deprivations, has been placed on our life which seems to restrict or even penalize us. This sense of being projected by events into a sort of emotional trap is what this hexagram calls “Fate.” Acknowledgement of this fate, or trap, and the imperative – to find the way out – is one of the purposes of shock. As far as the I Ching is concerned, there is only one way out – to undergo spiritual development.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: During sudden changes, adjust your tempo and move ahead, remembering that while conditions may alter, the goal remains the same.
The Superior Man double-checks his premises, confronts his weak spots and adheres to the rules and ideals of the Work.
The image here is one of a sudden, dramatic release of energy, power and force. To receive this hexagram without changing lines can refer to almost any abrupt, startling or unexpected situation. Sometimes it is the oracle's way of saying: "Surprise!” It can also be a kind of reprimand for asking a dumb or inappropriate question -- the oracle is "shocked” by your temerity, ignorance, etc. In such instances there is often an element of wry humor in the situation -- usually at the ego's expense. On rare occasions, it is possible to receive this hexagram as a warning about an upcoming event which has no bearing on the question posed. Should you receive such an oracle, be extremely vigilant – as always, the advice to the superior man in the Image suggests the proper course.
A true test of devotion to the Work is to maintain one's will under all circumstances. The world may be falling apart around us, but the adept does not ruin the performance of his sacrifice: the ego continues the Work regardless of conditions, and keeps a cool head under all circumstances.
Have no fear of sudden terror
or of assault from wicked men,
since Yahweh will be your guarantor,
He will keep your steps from the snare.
Proverbs 3: 25-26
Both Yahweh and Christ are what Jung calls "god images” which exist in one form or another in every human psyche, whether it is consciously religious or not. The god image is synonymous with the Self, and the implication of the above quotation from Proverbsis that as long as the ego remains devoted to the Work -- in I Chingterms: "maintains the sacrifice” -- it is under the protection of the Self.
The Perfect Man is godlike. Though the great swamps blaze, they cannot burn him; though the great rivers freeze, they cannot chill him; though swift lightning splits the hills and howling gales shake the sea, they cannot frighten him. A man like this rides the clouds and mist, straddles the sun and moon, and wanders beyond the four seas. Even life and death have no effect on him, much less the rules of profit and loss! Chuang Tzu
Line 3
Legge: The third line, magnetic, shows its subject distraught amid the startling movements going on. If those movements excite her to right action, there will be no mistake.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Shock comes and makes one distraught. If Shock spurs to action one remains free of misfortune.
Blofeld: Thunderous impetuosity -- to emulate it at this time will not give rise to harm. [The Superior Man usually acts calmly and carefully, but there are times when impetuosity serves a good purpose or, at the very least, does no particular harm.]
Liu: Thunder comes causing a terrified manner. But if one is cautious, one remains free of disaster.
Ritsema/Karcher: Shake: reviving, reviving. Shake moving without blunder.
Shaughnessy: Thunder is so slow; thunder moves without inspection.
Cleary (1): Frightened by thunder; wary action is free from trouble.
Cleary (2): The thunder is faint. Act vigorously, and there will be no trouble.
Wu: He is frightened and uneasy because of the movement, but will not incur misfortune for his undertakings.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Her position is unsuitable to her. Wilhelm/Baynes: The place is not the appropriate one. Blofeld: Thunderous impetuosity is indicated by the unsuitable position of this line. Ritsema/Karcher: Situation not appropriate indeed.
Cleary (2): The position is not appropriate. Wu: His position is improper.
Legge: Line three is magnetic in a dynamic place, but if she moves on to the fourth place, which would be correct for her, the issue will not be bad.
Anthony: The shock of encountering our fate, which seems unbearably harsh, causes emotional trauma. It is as if we are suddenly and irrevocably put into a bad predicament with no options. This negativism, however, means we are still under the effects of shock. If we can withdraw from this negative view, we will see that there are workable and correct means out of the problem. We need to be open-minded in order that the options can become visible. First, we must “keep still” within, refusing to look at the negative images, or listen to the voices of our inferiors.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The startling strokes of fate bring mental conflict to the man. He should retain presence of mind. If he tailors his responses appropriately, he will overpower these external blows.
Wing: An external blow of fate will put to a test your inner strength. Try, at all costs, to maintain your composure. Look for an avenue of change that will alleviate the danger.
Editor: Wilhelm comments: "The word su, here rendered by ‘distraught,’ denotes literally the reviving movements of insects still stiff after their winter sleep.” Ritsema/Karcher translate SU as: "Regain vital energy, courage or strength; bring to life, cheer up; relief; lit.: herb whose smell revives weary spirits. The doubled character intensifies this quality.” The image is one of groggy confusion during a time demanding decisive action: "Wake up and smell the coffee!” Wilhelm also mentions that the line has reference to a foreordained or fated situation -- the shock of fate. The idea is that your fate is demanding that you get moving, that you wake up from your torpor and take action in accordance with the goals of the Work.
The marvel is that there is not a perpetual state of war within the psyche, for each of these elements is endowed with energy and so cannot die. Fortunately for our sanity, many of these irreconcilable elements lie deep within the unconscious, locked in primordial sleep; those which may have stirred are shut away in separate compartments. But as life progresses and an increase of consciousness is achieved, the inner conflicts awaken, and the problem of reconciling the oppositions they reveal has to be undertaken as a serious and urgent task. M.E. Harding -- Psychic Energy
A. Wake up and resolve your confusion.
B. Get a move on -- drastic circumstance demand drastic responses.
Line 5
Legge: The fifth line, magnetic, shows its subject going and coming amidst the startling movements of the time, and always in peril; but perhaps she will not incur loss, and find business which she can accomplish.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Shock goes hither and thither. Danger. However, nothing at all is lost. Yet there are things to be done.
Blofeld: Thunder comes and goes alternately -- trouble is at hand! Careful thought will avert loss, but there are affairs needing attention.
Liu: Thunder going back and forth brings danger. No great loss. Something remains to be achieved.
Ritsema/Karcher:Shake going, coming adversity. Intention without losing possesses affairs.
Shaughnessy: Thunder goes and comes so dangerously; there is no loss, there is service.
Cleary (1): Actively mulling over dangerous plans. No loss; there is concern.
Cleary (2): Thunder goes and comes – dangerous. On reflection there is no loss; there is something to do.
Wu: Either advance or retreat is precarious. There will be no big loss, only small problems.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Her doings are full of risk, but must be undertaken in her central position. Far will she be from incurring any loss. Wilhelm/Baynes: One walks in danger. The "things to be done" are in the middle, hence nothing at all is lost. Blofeld: The first sentence implies that danger threatens our activities. That affairs need our attention is indicated by this central line of the upper trigram. There will be no important losses. Ritsema/Karcher: Exposed moving indeed. One's affairs located-in the center. The great without losing indeed. Cleary (2): This is acting in peril. Wu: This means that any undertaking will be risky… Problems will be solved through compromise.
Legge: Line five is magnetic in a dynamic place where the action of the hexagram is concentrated. Hence she is always in peril, but her central position indicates safety in the end.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The man is exposed to repeated shocks and continuing peril. As long as he maintains a central position, safety is assured in the end.
Wing: The shocks will continue and you will be faced with constant troubles and difficulties. You can survive the times if you actively change with the changes, thus remaining centered internally and externally.
Editor: Although there is no relationship of correspondence, this line is similar to line three. Psychologically interpreted, the idea is that the ego is responsible for the Work in spacetime, and it is never easy -- every choice you make is a judgment call.
The practice of shock therapy shatters the distorted ego complex to the point of extinction; contact can then be reestablished with the hope of forming new patterns. E.C. Whitmont -- The Symbolic Quest
A. "Roll with the punches" and keep your head.
B. Don't allow unsettled conditions to divert you from the Work. Do what the situation requires.
Line 6
Legge: The sixth line, magnetic, shows its subject, amidst the startling movements of the time, in breathless dismay and looking around her with trembling apprehension. If she takes action, there will be evil. If, while the startling movements have not reached her own person and her neighborhood, she were to take precautions, there would be no error, though her relatives might still speak against her.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Shock brings ruin and terrified gazing around. Going ahead brings misfortune. If it has not yet touched one's own body but has reached one's neighbor first, there is no blame. One's comrades have something to talk about.
Blofeld: Thunder brings disorder and people stare about them in terror. Advancing at this time brings misfortune. The thunder affects not ourselves but our neighbors -- no error. [We are not to blame for the trouble afflicting them; but, as the commentary on this line indicates, they may think we are to blame and plan reprisals.] A marriage causes gossip.
Liu:Thunder causes trembling and frightened looks. Undertaking -- misfortune. It will not threaten your own body, but it might your neighbor. No blame. There will be gossip about marriage.
Shaughnessy: Thunder is so clapping; looking so scared; to be upright is inauspicious. Thunder is not in his body, but in his neighbor; in going there is no trouble. In confused slander there is talk.
Cleary (1):Movement uneasy, gaze unsteady – an expedition will bring misfortune. The action is not in oneself but in the neighbors; there is no blame. Association involves criticism.
Cleary (2):Thunder is faint; the look is shifty. An expedition leads to misfortune.
The thunder does not reach you, but is in the vicinity. There is no blame. Association involves criticism.
Wu: He is wavering in mind and looking anxiously right and left. It will be foreboding to have undertakings. If he can prepare himself well, he will not be affected by the thunderclap that impinges on his neighbor. However, he will be criticized for initiating marriage.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Amid the startling movements she has not found out the course of the due mean. Though evil threatens, she will not fall into error. She is afraid of being warned by her neighbors. Wilhelm/Baynes: He has not attained the middle. Misfortune, but no blame. One is warned by the fear for one's neighbor. Blofeld: That thunder brings disorder is indicated by the failure of the middle line of the upper trigram to win supremacy over this top line. Although misfortune arises, we are not to blame. Fear of our neighbors makes us cautious. Ritsema/Karcher: Center not-yet acquired indeed. Although a pitfall, without fault. Dreading the neighbor, a warning indeed. Cleary (2): The thunder is faint – balance has not been attained. Though there is misfortune, there is no blame. Fear nearby is a warning. Wu: “He is wavering,” because he lacks self-confidence. Despite the perilous situation, he will be free from error if he can learn a lesson from his neighbor.
Legge: Line six is magnetic, and must abide the concluding terrors of the movement. Action on her part is sure to be evil. If she were to take precautions, she might escape with only the censure of her relatives.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The man has not yet found a moderate course of behavior. He is dismayed at the startling events of the times. Action will lead only to evil under such conditions. He should withdraw, taking appropriate precautions, before the shock has affected him personally. His associates may speak against him, but he should not be concerned.
Wing: The times are full of Shocking occurrences which bring disorder to all of society. You cannot combat the times alone, and all those affected are too confused to react appropriately. Retreat is the best course, although it may bring criticism from others who do not comprehend your actions.
Anthony: We must not let shocking events cause us to vilify the Sage, Fate, God, or the people who have wronged us. Shock brings an end to the old, but also a beginning to the new, even though we encounter many dangers to get there. Meanwhile, we must withdraw from the negative effects of shock.
Wu: If he can learn from the experience of his neighbor and rectify his personal life, he will greatly lessen his losses.
Editor: The "neighbor” in the warning is the fifth line, described as coping with shock reasonably well, though unable, as ruler, to hold the entire hexagram together. Line six is advised to learn from her observation of line five's troubles to remain calm and stationary, out of the fray. In other words, by analyzing the adversity of others, one can avoid making their mistakes. Another way of conveying the same idea is to regard the "relative” who might "speak against” line six as the third line correlate who is forced by her circumstances to take action: because of this, line three is unable to understand why line six cannot support her. The clear message here is one of adopting an unconventional or independent point of view: survival now depends on not following the crowd. Blofeld, Liu, Ritsema/Karcher and Wu are the only translators who mention "gossip about marriage." Psychologically interpreted, this can mean stress connected with any synthesis of thought and feeling -- perhaps a new attitude or belief. If this is the only changing line, the new hexagram becomes number twenty-one, Discernment, giving a hint that cold-blooded, dispassionate analysis is the best way to cope with a tricky situation.
The devastating impact of this fire can free the mind from its fetters and open the way that leads to the center; but if the conscious mind is not prepared, not strongly built on firm foundations, it may end in catastrophe. In psychological terms the outcome will be dissociation, the division of the mind against itself. A. Douglas -- The Tarot
A. Forewarned is forearmed. Never act when confused. Differentiate the components of the situation, center your thinking, then act in your own best interests.
B. Despite contrary input (psychological or social), observation, experience and/or common sense counsel self-protection.
13 Fellowship
Other titles: Fellowship with Men, The Symbol of Companionship, Lovers, Beloved Friends, Like-minded persons, Concording People, Gathering Men, Sameness with People, Universal Brotherhood, Fellowship, Community, United, Human Association, Union of Men, Integration of Forces, Minor Synthesis, Cliques, Concordance, To Be In Accord With, Confirmation
Judgment
Legge: Union of Forces appears in the remote districts of the country, indicating progress and success. It will be advantageous to cross the great stream. It will be advantageous to maintain the firm correctness of the superior man.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Fellowship with Men in the open. Success. It furthers one to cross the great water. The perseverance of the superior man furthers.
Blofeld:Lovers (friends) in the open -- success! It is advantageous to cross the great river (or sea). [To make any kind of journey.] The Superior Man will benefit if he does not slacken his righteous persistence.
Liu: Fellowship of men in the open (countryside). Success. It benefits one to cross the great water. It benefits the superior man to continue his task.
Ritsema/Karcher: Concording People , tending-towards the countryside. Growing. Harvesting: wading the Great River. Harvesting: chun tzu, Trial. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of sharing a goal with others. It emphasizes that finding ways to cooperate with and harmonize people's efforts is the adequate way to handle it...]
Shaughnessy: Gathering men in the wilds; receipt; beneficial to ford the great river; beneficial for the gentleman to determine.
Cleary (1):Sameness with people in the wilderness is developmental. It is beneficial to cross great rivers. It is beneficial for a superior person to be upright.
Cleary (1): … Beneficial for a leader to be correct.
Wu: Fellowship in the open is pervasive, etc. … It will be advantageous to the jun zi who perseveres.
The Image
Legge: The images of heaven and fire form Union of Forces. The superior man, in accordance with this, distinguishes things according to their kinds and classes.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Heaven together with fire: the image of Fellowship with Men. Thus the superior man organizes the clans and makes distinctions between things.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes heaven (the sun) and fire representing a pair of lovers. The Superior Man treats everything in a manner proper to his kind. [an analogy (based on the component trigrams) between the sun and fire, which to some extent are of a kind.]
Liu: Fire goes up to heaven, symbolizing Fellowship with Men. The superior man organizes his kinship group (party), and sorts them out.
Ritsema/Karcher: Heaven associating-with fire. Concording People. A chun tzu uses sorting the clans to mark-off the beings.
Cleary (1): Heaven with fire, sameness with others; superior people distinguish things in terms of categories and groups.
Cleary (2): … Leaders distinguish beings in terms of classes and families.
Wu: Heaven above and fire below form Fellowship. The jun zi distinguishes things by their kinds.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: In Union of Forces the magnetic line has the central place of influence and responds to her correlate line in the upper trigram of Strength. The hexagram takes its name from the upper trigram of Strength lending its power to the lower trigram of Clarity and Intelligence. This represents the correct course of the superior man. It is only the superior man who can comprehend and affect the minds of all under the sky.
Legge: Union of Forces describes a condition which is the opposite of the preceding hexagram of Divorcement. What was there distress and obstruction is here a union of forces. But it must be based entirely on the good of the whole, without any taint of selfishness.
The dynamic line correctly in the fifth place occupies the most important position, and has for his correlate the magnetic second line, also in her correct place. The one female line is naturally sought after by all the male lines. The editors of the K'ang-hsi edition would make the second line respond to all of the lines of the upper trigram, as being more agreeable to the idea of union.
The upper trigram is that of Heaven, the lower is of Fire, whose tendency is to mount upwards. This image suggests the fire ascending, blazing to the sky and uniting with it. All these ideas are in harmony with the notion of union, but it must be free of all factionalism, and this is indicated by its being in the remote districts of the country, where people are unsophisticated and free from the corrupting effects of urban intrigue. Although a union from such motives can cope with the greatest difficulties, yet a word of caution is added.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: Connections are being made. If you are able to maintain your will, it is advisable to push for a synthesis .
The Superior Man differentiates and prioritizes; he sorts and evaluates his options.
This is another image of union -- not the supreme union of hexagram number eleven, Harmony, but a subordinate union of forces within the psyche which builds toward an eventual grand alliance. The component trigrams show the union of Strength and Clarity, suggesting that a certain level of mental comprehension is involved. To receive the hexagram without changing lines is often a confirmation of your particular thought -- saying, in effect: "You've made the connection."
Comprehension (synthesis) involves making distinctions (analysis) -- a paradoxical process in which one must divide before one can (re)unite. (This is the solve et coagula of alchemy.) Thus we see the superior man in the Image creating categories to bring about union -- this is discrimination directed toward reclassification or rectification. For example, a heterogeneous mixture of vegetable and flower seeds is made meaningful when one sorts them into their separate categories. The disparate elements then become coherently "united" -- in I Chingterms, each line obtains its proper correlate as in Hexagram number 63.
(Dialectic) alternates between synthesis and analysis until it has gone through the entire domain of the intelligible and has arrived at the principle. Stopping there, for it is only there that it can stop, no longer busying itself with a multitude of objects since it has arrived at unity, it contemplates. Plotinus -- The Enneads
The Chinese name of this hexagram includes the word Jen, which is apparently a difficult concept, since many philosophers have spent a good deal of energy in trying to define it:
Jen has been variously translated as benevolence, perfect virtue, goodness, human-heartedness, love, altruism, etc. None of these expresses all the meanings of the term. It means a particular virtue, benevolence, and also the general virtue, the basis of all goodness. ...Neo-Confucianists interpreted it as impartiality, the character of production and reproduction, consciousness, seeds that generate, the will to grow, one who forms one body with Heaven and Earth, or "the character of love and the principle of mind." In modern times, it has even been equated with ether and electricity... Wing-Tsit Chan -- A Source Book in Chinese Philosophy
Chu Hsi defines Jen as the "character of the mind" (psyche) and "the principle of love" (union). Interpreted in this way we are enabled to apprehend the essence of the word "love," which is union -- becoming one with its object. I have chosen the title of Union of Forces to emphasize intra-psychic dynamics which are not immediately obvious in Wilhelm's title of Fellowship with Men. For example in dealing with questions pertaining to the Work, the concept of "ego states" or "subpersonalities" is often relevant to the symbolism of this hexagram:
The human self has been described here as composed of different ego states separated by boundaries. It has been likened to the structure of political principalities. From clinical observation we find that ego states can cooperate for mutual well-being, like allied nations against a common enemy. An ego state may become split, like East and West Germany, or fracture into many segments, like the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Ego states may become cognitively dissonant and hostile to each other, like Syria and Israel. In fact, the behavior of ego states within an individual is not unlike that between individuals, and between those groups of individuals called countries. Why should the behavior of human "stuff" not be substantially similar at all levels of its organizations? ...The evidence of self division into ego states is significant, and an equally tenable hypothesis might be that the states and boundaries of political entities have been imposed by men on each other because these represent an externalization of the internal divisions in their own selves. J.G. Watkins -- The Therapeutic Self
This hexagram's "shadow side" reveals circumstances preventing the union of entities or forces, more than those conditions promoting fruitful affiliation. Note that only the first and fifth lines of the figure depict a positive synthesis; the first one is minor, and in the case of line 5, union is attained only after much struggle. Line 2 reveals a clique or faction situation opposed to the general welfare, and lines 3 and 4 are images of recalcitrant forces unable to either join or attack the alliance. The sixth line depicts a partial union (probably the most common outcome in general experience), which the Confucian commentary nevertheless minimizes. Out of six lines then, only two describe anything like complete fellowship. I have received this hexagram without changing lines when the context of the question revealed an “incestuous,” clique-type situation, so not all "fellowship" or Union of Forcesis necessarily an ideal configuration.