Hexagram 20 line 3: Contemplation, yin in the third place

What changes when line 3 moves

Line 3 of Hexagram 20 is yin, a broken line. When it is cast as old yin (a 6) it flips, and the hexagram becomes Hexagram 53, Development: The wild goose flying stage by stage to its home: gradual, orderly progress that cannot be hurried.

Read together, the reading moves from Contemplation toward Development. Looking and being looked at: a moment for seeing the whole clearly before anything is done. Mountain below, wind above: a tree on a mountain, growing slowly, visible from far away. Development describes progress that must be gradual, and the tradition's image is the wild goose migrating in stages: the shore, the cliff, the plateau, the tree, the summit, the cloud heights. 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.

Hexagram 20 changing to 53 →

Line 3 in context

Love & relationships

Look at what your actions have produced, and decide from that. In love and relationships, Hexagram 20 reads: 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.

Career

Look at what your actions have produced, and decide from that. In career, Hexagram 20 reads: 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.

Money

Look at what your actions have produced, and decide from that. In money, Hexagram 20 reads: 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.

A decision

Look at what your actions have produced, and decide from that. In decisions, Hexagram 20 reads: 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.