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I Ching · Hexagram 21 Biting Through

Hexagram 21 for career: Biting Through

噬嗑 Shì Kè · Career

An obstacle, a wrong or a person who is blocking things, and the moment to act on it decisively. Be clear about the facts, proportionate in the response, and do not let it drag. Justice, not vengeance.

Thunder below, fire above: lightning and thunder, clarity and force together. The image is of a mouth with something stuck in it that must be bitten through before the jaws can close. Biting Through describes an obstacle, often a person or a wrong, that cannot be talked around and must be dealt with decisively. The tradition's judgement is that it furthers to administer justice: to act with the clarity of lightning and the firmness of thunder, in proportion, under rule. The reading is favourable to firm action and it insists that the action be fair.

Advice
Identify the obstruction precisely and remove it with firm, fair, proportionate action.
Warning
Force without clarity, or punishment beyond the fault, turns justice into a new wrong.

The changing lines, read for career

If your cast of Hexagram 21 had changing lines, these are what each one adds to a career question, and where each leads.

  1. Line 1 · changes into 35 Progress

    Feet in the stocks, toes hidden. No blame. Correct the small fault now, lightly, before it becomes a large one.

  2. Line 2 · changes into 38 Opposition

    Biting through soft meat, nose disappears. No blame. The case is clear; act, but watch your own vehemence.

  3. Line 3 · changes into 30 The Clinging

    Biting on old dried meat and striking on something poisonous. Slight humiliation. No blame. The old problem will resist and it will be unpleasant; deal with it regardless.

  4. Line 4 · changes into 27 Nourishment

    Biting on dried gristly meat, receiving metal arrows. It furthers to be mindful of difficulties and persistent. Be hard and straight, and do not underestimate the resistance.

  5. Line 5 · changes into 25 Innocence

    Biting on dried lean meat, receiving yellow gold. Persistently aware of danger. No blame. Judge the matter fairly and firmly, and stay aware of how it could go wrong.

  6. Line 6 · changes into 51 The Arousing

    Neck in the cangue, ears hidden. Misfortune. If you have been warned and stopped listening, the consequence is now heavy; hear it.

Hexagram 21 in fullLove & relationshipsMoneyA decision

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