Hexagram 62
小過 Xiǎo Guò
Small Exceeding
☳ Thunder above ☶ Mountain
Judgment 卦辭
亨。利貞。可小事。不可大事。飛鳥遺之音。不宜上宜下。大吉。
Commentary
Success. Persistence furthers. Small things may be done; great things should not be done. The flying bird brings the message: It is not well to strive upward, it is well to remain below. Great good fortune. Exceptional modesty and conscientiousness are sure to be rewarded with success; however, it is important that they should not become empty form and subservience but be combined always with correct dignity in personal behavior. We must understand the demands of the time to find the necessary offset for its deficiencies. We must not count on great success, since the requisite strength is lacking. A bird should not try to surpass itself and fly into the sun; it should descend to the earth, where its nest is.
Classical Text
小過艮下震上 小過，亨，利貞。可小事，不可大事。飛鳥遺之音，不宜上，宜下，大吉。 ○注「飛鳥遺其音聲，哀以求處」。○正義曰：遺，失也。鳥之失聲，必是窮迫，未得安處。《論語》曰：「鳥之將死，其鳴也哀。」故知遺音即哀聲也。 *止或作上。矯或作厚。止之或作立之。
Smallness in Excess: Gen (Keeping Still) below, Zhen (Arousing) above. Smallness in Excess. Success. Benefit in Correctness. Small matters are permissible; great matters are not. The flying bird leaves behind its call—it is not fitting to ascend, fitting to descend. Great good fortune. Note on "the flying bird loses its call, crying mournfully in search of a resting place." The Correct Meaning states: 'leaves behind' (yi) means 'to lose.' When a bird loses its voice, it must be in dire straits, having not yet found a safe resting place. The Analerta states: 'When a bird is about to die, its cry is mournful.' Thus we know that 'leaving behind its call' means a mournful cry. *'Stop' (zhi) is sometimes written as 'ascend' (shang). 'Rectify' (jiao) is sometimes written as 'generous' (hou). 'Stop it' (zhi zhi) is sometimes written as 'establish it' (li zhi).
Image 象
山上有雷，小過。君子以行過乎恭，喪過乎哀，用過乎儉。
Thunder on the mountain. In conduct, give preponderance to reverence. In bereavement, give preponderance to grief. In expenditures, give preponderance to thrift. Thunder on the mountain seems much nearer than thunder on the plain. Thus you must always fix your eyes more closely and more directly on duty than does the ordinary person, even though this might make your behavior seem petty to the outside world. You are exceptionally conscientious in actions. In bereavement, emotion means more than ceremoniousness. In personal expenditures, you are extremely simple and unpretentious.
Lines 爻辭
飛鳥以凶
The bird meets with misfortune through flying. A bird ought to remain in the nest until it is fledged. If it tries to fly before this, it invites misfortune. Extraordinary measures should be resorted to only when all else fails. At first, put up with traditional ways as long as possible; otherwise you exhaust yourself and still achieve nothing.
Classical commentary
初六，飛鳥以凶。
Initial Six. The flying bird—hence misfortune.
過其祖遇其妣不及其君遇其臣無咎
She passes by her ancestor and meets her ancestress. He does not reach his prince and meets the official. No blame. This unusual behavior is an expression of modesty. She ventures to approach the ancestress, for she feels related to her by common sex. Hence here deviation from the rule is not a mistake. Another image: the official who conscientiously fulfills duty, taking place among other officials. This extraordinary restraint is likewise not a mistake in exceptional times.
Classical commentary
六二，過其祖，遇其妣，不及其君。遇其臣，无咎。
Six in the Second. Passing by one's grandfather, encountering one's grandmother. Not reaching one's ruler, encountering one's minister. No blame.
弗過防之從或戕之凶
If one is not extremely careful, somebody may come up from behind and strike. Misfortune. At certain times extraordinary caution is absolutely necessary. But upright and strong personalities who are conscious of being in the right disdain to hold themselves on guard because they consider it petty. This self-confidence deludes them. There are dangers lurking for which they are unprepared. Such danger is not unavoidable; one can escape it if one understands that the time demands attention to small and insignificant things.
Classical commentary
九三，弗過防之，從或戕之，凶。
Nine in the Third. Not exceeding, one should guard against it. Following along, one may be harmed. Misfortune.
無咎弗過遇之往厲必戒勿用永貞
No blame. He meets him without passing by. Going brings danger. One must be on guard. Do not act. Be constantly persevering. Hardness of character is tempered by yielding position so that no mistakes are made. The situation calls for extreme caution; one must make no attempt of one's own initiative to reach the desired end. Going on would bring danger. Therefore, be on guard and not act but continue inwardly to persevere.
Classical commentary
九四，无咎，弗過遇之，往厲必戒，勿用永貞。
Nine in the Fourth. No blame. Not exceeding, one encounters it. Advancing brings danger—one must be on guard. Do not employ lasting Correctness.
密雲不雨自我西郊公弋取彼在穴
Dense clouds, no rain from our western territory. The prince shoots and hits him who is in the cave. In exceptional times there may be a born ruler qualified to set the world in order, but who cannot achieve anything or confer blessing because they stand alone and have no helpers. In such times you must seek out helpers with whose aid you can carry out the task. But these helpers must be modestly sought out in the retirement to which they have withdrawn. It is not their fame but their genuine achievements that are important.
Classical commentary
六五，密雲不雨，自我西郊，公弋取彼在穴。
Six in the Fifth. Dense clouds without rain, coming from our western outskirts. The duke shoots with a corded arrow and captures that which is in the burrow.
弗遇過之飛鳥離之凶是謂災眚
He passes him by, not meeting him. The flying bird leaves him. Misfortune. This means bad luck and injury. If one overshoots the goal, one cannot hit it. If a bird will not come to its nest but flies higher and higher, it eventually falls into the hunter's net. He who in times of preponderance of small things does not know how to call a halt, but restlessly seeks to press on and on, draws upon himself misfortune at the hands of gods and men, because he deviates from the order of nature.
Classical commentary
上六，弗遇過之，飛鳥離之，凶，是謂災眚。
Top Six. Not encountering, one passes beyond it. The flying bird is caught in the net. Misfortune. This is called calamity and error.