Hexagram 20 changing to 42: Contemplation to Increase

Where it starts: 20 Contemplation

Looking and being looked at: a moment for seeing the whole clearly before anything is done. Earth below, wind above: wind moving across the land, reaching everywhere. The Chinese character means both to observe and to be observed, and the hexagram holds both: a tower from which the whole country can be seen, and a tower that the whole country can see. Contemplation describes a pause for perspective. The tradition's image is of the moment in a ritual after the purification and before the offering, when sincerity is at its highest and nothing has yet been done. The reading asks you to look, honestly, at the whole situation and at yourself, and to understand that you are also being watched.

Where it goes: 42 Increase

The top gives to the base and everything grows: a time of increase, to be used well and used now. Thunder below, wind above: the two reinforcing each other, wind spreading the thunder's force. Increase is the mirror of Decrease: what is above gives to what is below, and the whole flourishes. The tradition's judgement is expansive: it furthers to undertake something, it furthers to cross the great water. The image describes the inner counterpart: seeing good, imitate it; seeing faults, correct them. The reading says the time is one of growth and generosity from above, that it favours large undertakings, and that it will not last; the lines warn at the end of increase that no one helps a person who has stopped giving.

The lines that move

1. Line 1

   Boy-like contemplation. For a lesser person no blame; for the superior person, humiliation.

   Seeing only the surface, as a child sees a procession. Excusable in someone with no responsibility; embarrassing in someone who should understand more. The line asks how deep your looking goes. If you are responsible for the situation, look deeper than the surface.

What is changing. The situation of Contemplation is moving toward Increase. Take the wide view, examine yourself honestly, and act only once you have seen the whole. As the change completes: Use the season of increase for substantial undertakings, and keep giving as you receive.

love and relationships

Now: Step back and look at the whole relationship rather than the last argument. See the pattern. The reading also reminds you that how you behave is being observed and forms the other person's view of you. Then: A time of growth and giving. Invest in the relationship generously; the conditions favour it and the giving comes back. The reading warns that increase is a season, and that taking without giving, at the end, leaves you alone.

career

Now: A time for assessment rather than action: survey the whole field, understand the people, and set an example by how you conduct the survey. Others are watching how you look at them. Then: Expansion. The reading supports the ambitious project and the big crossing. Use the help coming from above, give it forward, and improve what can be improved while the wind is behind you.

money

Now: Review before you act. Look at the whole financial picture with honesty, including the parts you have been avoiding. Decisions made from this overview are sounder than any made in the moment. Then: Growth, and the moment to act on it: invest, undertake, build. Use the increase for lasting good rather than display. The reading is favourable and time-limited; use it while it lasts.

decisions

Now: Do not decide yet; see. Take the widest view available, examine your own motives, and let the decision follow from clarity. The pause is not avoidance; it is the offering before the act. Then: Take the expansive option. The conditions support undertaking something substantial. Decide now; the reading says increase is a moment, and moments pass.