Hexagram 30
離 Lí
The Clinging Fire
☲ Fire above ☲ Fire
Judgment 卦辭
利貞。亨。畜牝牛。吉。
Commentary
Success through persistence. Care of the cow brings good fortune. Fire depends on what it burns—without fuel, no flame. Consciousness depends on what it attaches to. Accept this dependence and cultivate docility. Clarity without harshness; brilliance sustained through what nourishes it.
Classical Text
離離下離上 離，利貞，亨。 畜牝牛吉。 「畜牝牛吉」者，柔處於內而履正中，是牝之善者，外強內順，是牛之善者也。離之為體，以柔順為主，故畜養牝牛，乃得其吉。若畜養剛健，則不可也。此云畜牝牛，假像以明人事也。言離之為德，須內順外強，而行此德，則得吉也。若內剛外順，則反離之道也。
Li (lower Li, upper Li) Li. Benefit in Correctness. Success. Nurturing a female cow brings good fortune. "Nurturing a female cow brings good fortune": the yielding occupies the inner position and treads the correct center — this is the excellence of the female. Outer strength with inner docility — this is the excellence of the cow. The constitution of Li takes yielding docility as its governing principle, therefore nurturing a female cow brings good fortune. If one were to nurture the firm and vigorous, that would not be fitting. This reference to nurturing a female cow uses the image to illuminate human affairs. It says that the virtue of Li requires inner docility and outer strength; practicing this virtue brings good fortune. If one were inwardly firm and outwardly docile, that would be contrary to the Way of Li.
Image 象
明兩作，離。大人以繼明照於四方。
Fire doubled—the sun's course repeated. The great person perpetuates this brightness to illuminate the four directions. Light spreading continuously, penetrating deeply into human nature. The work of clarity never finishes.
Lines 爻辭
履錯然敬之無咎
Waking—impressions crisscross, activity begins. Preserve composure now. Don't be swept along by the bustle. Seriousness at the start matters because the beginning contains the seed of everything that follows.
Classical commentary
初九，履錯然，敬之，无咎。
Initial Nine. Treading with alert caution. Showing reverence. No blame.
黃離元吉
Yellow light. Supreme good fortune. Midday, the sun at zenith, the perfect mean. Yellow is the color of measure. This is culture at its height—complete harmony through holding to the center.
Classical commentary
六二，黃離，元吉。
Six in the Second. Yellow clinging. Sublime good fortune.
日昃之離不鼓缶而歌則大耋之嗟凶
The light of the setting sun. Some beat pots and sing; others lament old age. Both responses are wrong. Transitoriness is the condition—neither denial nor despair serves. Cultivate yourself and await your allotted time.
Classical commentary
九三，日昃之離，不鼓缶而歌，則大耊之嗟，凶。
Nine in the Third. The clinging of the setting sun. If one does not beat the clay vessel and sing, then there will be the lament of great old age. Misfortune.
突如其來如焚如死如棄如
It comes suddenly—flames up, dies down, is discarded. The meteor, the straw fire. Brilliant but consuming itself. Excitability and restlessness may bring quick prominence but produce nothing lasting. Spent too fast.
Classical commentary
九四，突如其來如，焚如，死如，棄如。
Nine in the Fourth. Abruptly it comes. Blazing. Dying. Cast aside.
出涕沱若戚嗟若吉
Tears flowing, sighing and lamenting. Good fortune. At the peak, understanding vanity brings genuine change of heart. This isn't passing mood but real transformation. Grief that preserves clarity.
Classical commentary
六五，出涕沱若，戚嗟若，吉。
Six in the Fifth. Shedding tears in torrents, grieving and lamenting. Good fortune.
王用出征有嘉折首獲匪其醜無咎
The king campaigns to discipline. Kill the leaders, spare the followers. Punishment's purpose is discipline, not revenge. Root out the source of the problem; tolerate what's harmless. Excessive severity defeats itself.
Classical commentary
上九，王用出征，有嘉折首，獲匪其醜，无咎。
Top Nine. The king uses this to go forth on campaign. There is glory in severing the head. What is captured is not of one's own kind. No blame.