I Ching · Hexagram 10 Treading
Hexagram 10 line 1: Treading, yang in the first place
I Ching 10.1
Simple conduct. Going on brings no blame.
Plain, modest behaviour at the start of a journey, expecting nothing and demanding nothing. The line approves of it entirely; someone who proceeds simply is not a target and can go far.
Advice. Keep it simple and expect nothing; that is safe and it is enough.
What changes when line 1 moves
Line 1 of Hexagram 10 is yang, a solid line. When it is cast as old yang (a 9) it flips, and the hexagram becomes Hexagram 6, Conflict: A dispute you are sincere in but cannot win outright: meet halfway, and take advice before going further.
Read together, the reading moves from Treading toward Conflict. Careful conduct in a delicate situation: treading on the tiger's tail, and not being bitten. Water below, heaven above: the two move in opposite directions and cannot meet. Conflict describes a disagreement that has hardened, where you may be in the right and still cannot carry it through by force. The primary hexagram describes the situation; the changing line is the point of movement in it; the resulting hexagram is where that movement leads. Both hexagrams belong to the reading, and the changing line is the hinge between them.
Line 1 in context
- Love & relationships
- Keep it simple and expect nothing; that is safe and it is enough. In love and relationships, Hexagram 10 reads: A delicate situation with someone whose reaction you cannot predict. Tact matters more than truth-telling for its own sake. Be kind, be careful, and do not test the tiger to see if it bites.
- Career
- Keep it simple and expect nothing; that is safe and it is enough. In career, Hexagram 10 reads: You are dealing with a powerful person or a dangerous situation. The reading favours impeccable conduct: polite, correct, unhurried, never presumptuous. Know your place in the order and act from it.
- Money
- Keep it simple and expect nothing; that is safe and it is enough. In money, Hexagram 10 reads: Proceed with care in a situation where a misstep is costly. Read the terms. Do not provoke a stronger party. Modest, correct dealings get through where clever ones get bitten.
- A decision
- Keep it simple and expect nothing; that is safe and it is enough. In decisions, Hexagram 10 reads: Choose the option that lets you move carefully and correctly. If the decision requires you to step on the tiger, do it with full attention and good manners, not bravado.
Cast your own reading
The topic is pre-selected. The hexagram is not: the coins decide it.
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