Hexagram 17 of 64
隨 Suí · Following
上 兌 Lake (Duì) over 下 震 Thunder (Zhèn)
Go with the hour; do not strain against it.
Judgment
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, judgment. English translation in preparation.
Image
In short: thunder in the lake.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, Great Image. Short gloss by Koyonari; full translation in preparation.
Commentary
Suí shows thunder resting within the lake; the thunder yields to the water's flow without asserting a contrary direction. Suí counsels adapting to the present rhythm without fighting yourself. The path that feels natural today is likely the path you should walk. Straining stubbornly to follow what was fixed yesterday often leads to missing both opportunities.
Koyonari commentary.
The Six Lines
“The official standard changes; steadfastness brings good fortune. Going out of the gate to associate brings success.” The matter under one’s charge changes, but the right path must still be upheld. “Steadfastness brings good fortune” means holding to that path can bring an auspicious outcome. Going out to form relationships can bring accomplishments. Suí’s initial line concerns beginning to follow: what one follows may change, but the right path remains the standard.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 1. Koyonari translation.
“The office changes: following uprightness brings good fortune. Going out to interact brings merit: one does not stray.” When duties change, following the upright path brings good fortune; going out the door to interact with others brings success because one does not lose the proper way.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 2. Koyonari translation.
“Clinging to the boy, losing the mature man.” Xì means being tied or attached to someone. The second yin line attaches itself to the young boy, losing the chance to follow the mature man. In the line imagery, the boy is the nearby initial yang line; the man is the fifth yang line. Closeness to one means losing the other; following requires a choice.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 3. Koyonari translation.
“Cleaving to the boy: one cannot stay with both.” Tying oneself to the young boy prevents drawing close to the adult man; the two cannot be maintained together.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 4. Koyonari translation.
“Clinging to the mature man, letting go of the boy. Following brings what is sought; favorable to remain steadfast.” Attachment to the mature man loses contact with the young boy. In the line imagery, the man is the fourth yang line; the boy is the initial yang line. What is sought through following can be obtained. “Favorable to remain steadfast” means abiding by the right path. The third yin line chooses and gains, but must still uphold what is right.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 5. Koyonari translation.
“Cleaving to the mature man: the mind abandons what is below.” Attaching to the mature man shows one's purpose is to abandon the boy below and follow upward.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 6. Koyonari translation.
“Following obtains catches; steadfastness in this is misfortune. Possessing sincerity on the path, with clarity, what blame?” Gaining a following while serving as a minister means gathering people's allegiance; even adherence to the right path can entail misfortune, an unfavorable situation. If there is sincerity and trustworthiness, actions accord with the right path, and intentions and conduct are made clear, what fault could there be to blame? This passage identifies both the risk of gaining popular support and the conditions for no blame.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 7. Koyonari translation.
“Following and making a capture: its meaning is misfortune. Being sincere while on the path: this shows enlightened merit.” To follow others and gain something for oneself is, in principle, perilous; maintaining sincerity and walking the upright path produces the effect of clarity and wisdom (Wang Bi's commentary explains it as making one's achievements manifest thereby).
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 8. Koyonari translation.
“Sincere trust in what is excellent brings good fortune.” Drawing close to goodness with sincerity and trustworthiness can bring good fortune, an auspicious outcome. Fú means sincerity and trustworthiness; jiā means goodness and excellence. The fifth yang line occupies the honored position; what it sincerely follows is the path of goodness.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 9. Koyonari translation.
“Sincere in what is excellent: good fortune, for the position is correct and central.” Trusting and following the good brings good fortune because nine in the fifth place is firm, upright, and central, acting with balanced propriety.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 10. Koyonari translation.
“Bound and restrained, then tied closely. The king offers sacrifice on the Western Mountain.” Following reaches its limit, yet some refuse to follow: only restraint, binding, and further securing bring compliance. Wáng Bì and Kǒng Yǐngdá adopt this reading. Zhū Xī instead sees an unbreakable bond of following. One reading equates hēng with xiǎng, referring to royal sacrifices at Xīshān (Western Mountain); older commentaries also read it as tōng, “to pass through.”
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 11. Koyonari translation.
“Bound and held fast: exhausted at the top.” Compelling following through tight binding and restraint occurs because the way of Following has reached the very top, finding itself in an exhausted extremity where it can no longer continue.
Zhouyi, hexagram 17, line 12. Koyonari translation.