Hexagram 31 line 3: Influence, yang in the third place

What changes when line 3 moves

Line 3 of Hexagram 31 is yang, a solid line. When it is cast as old yang (a 9) it flips, and the hexagram becomes Hexagram 45, Gathering Together: The lake gathering on the earth: people assembling around a centre, with the resources to make the gathering matter.

Read together, the reading moves from Influence toward Gathering Together. Mutual attraction: influence that works because it is felt, not forced, and the courtship that follows. Earth below, lake above: water collecting on the land, a reservoir. Gathering Together describes assembly: people collecting around a leader or a cause, resources pooled, a community formed. 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 31 changing to 45 →

Line 3 in context

Love & relationships

Do not chase everything that pulls you; choose. In love and relationships, Hexagram 31 reads: The reading for love itself: genuine mutual attraction. Let it work at its own pace. The lines warn against pushing with the body before the heart has spoken, and against influencing by talk. Receptivity is what draws the other person.

Career

Do not chase everything that pulls you; choose. In career, Hexagram 31 reads: Influence that comes from openness rather than pressure. People approach a person who is receptive. Persuade by listening. The reading favours partnerships and alliances that form naturally.

Money

Do not chase everything that pulls you; choose. In money, Hexagram 31 reads: Attraction of the right people and opportunities through openness and good faith. Not the time to push a deal; the time to be approachable and let it come. Beware of influence exercised through mere talk.

A decision

Do not chase everything that pulls you; choose. In decisions, Hexagram 31 reads: Decide by what you feel drawn to, once you have distinguished the deep pull from the restless one. The reading supports commitment where the attraction is mutual and calm.