Xiao Guo

Judgment

小過. 亨. 利貞. 可小事, 不可大事. 飛鳥遺之音, 不宜上, 宜下, 大吉.

It will prosper, it is beneficial. You can do small things, but You can not do big things. The flying birds make a noise, but they do not deserve to climb up, and they deserve to come down. It will be good greatly.

Interpretation

The Sogwa Hexagram has Jin (Thunder) in the upper trigram and Gan (Mountain) in the lower trigram. The image of this hexagram shows thunder above a mountain. The sound of thunder above the mountain is louder than usual, indicating that it is somewhat excessive. Sogwa means "a little excessive."

初六 飛鳥以(矢),凶

Initial Six: The bird is shot with an arrow, disaster.

Ija refers to an arrow. The oracle indicates that the arrow is deeply embedded in the bird, leading to inevitable harm. This reflects the situation of a king whose reign is severely wounded, symbolizing disaster. A person consulting the oracle and receiving this line should be cautious, as harm or disaster may be imminent.

六二 過其祖,遇其妣,不及其君,遇其臣. 无咎

Six Second: Passed by the ancestors, encountered the mother, not up to the ruler, encountered the ministers, no harm.

The praise of the elders is important, but it must not obscure the flaws of the ruler. The king, though praised, faces consequences for his faults, as loyal subjects are few in such times. This situation warns of the consequences of unbalanced authority.

九三 弗過防之,從或戕之,凶

Nine Third: Prevent it from passing, if followed, it may harm.

The term "Bul" refers to something in a state of decay, while "Gwa" refers to failure. The person has neglected the necessary precautions, allowing their situation to deteriorate. The person asking about the hexagram is currently in a situation where their neglect has caused harm, leading to great misfortune. The task will result in failure.

九四 无咎,弗過遇之,往厲,必戒,勿用永貞

Nine Fourth: No harm, prevent its passing, advance with caution, be vigilant, do not use the long-term resolve.

Warnings prevent greater harm. The task at hand will be free of fault with caution.

六五 密雲不雨,自我西郊,公弋取彼在穴

Six Fifth: The clouds are thick but no rain, I am at the western suburbs, the public hunts the one in the hole.

Dark clouds gather but rain delays, until King Wu finally takes the bird, signaling ripe conditions. The task at hand is maturing well, soon to succeed if you wait patiently for the right moment.

上六 弗遇過之,飛鳥離之,凶.是謂災眚

Top Six: Does not encounter the passing one, the bird leaves, disaster. This is called a calamity or misfortune.

Vassals fail to curb King Zhou’s errors, inviting Wu’s lethal strike and Yin’s fall, a calamity. The task at hand brews disaster from unchecked flaws, growing uncontrollable and ominous.