I Ching · Hexagram 42 of 64
Hexagram 42: Yi （益） — Increase
Yi is Wind over Thunder: wind and thunder together draw down the sweet rain, the upper diminished to enrich the lower. The hexagram speaks of heaven sending down its goodness for the benefit of all and of oneself, and of going out to do good while the rare moment for spreading the Way is at hand.
At a glance
| Hexagram | 42 of 64 |
|---|---|
| Name | Yi 益 · Increase |
| Upper trigram | Xun （巽）· Wind |
| Lower trigram | Zhen （震）· Thunder |
| Structure | Wind over Thunder |
| Lines | 6 lines |
The Judgment （卦辞）
Increase. Favorable to have somewhere to go; favorable to cross the great river.
ExplainedIncrease is benefit: for oneself and for others, on every side, in work and health, family and marriage, in gaining the Way and in the aid of the holy. Wind and thunder gathering bring the rain, and rain in season irrigates everything. Entering this hexagram, all that is unfavorable has drained away; do not keep the doors shut but open wide and expand, for even the heaviest pressure can be crossed when blessing is at its height and one's own cultivation runs deep.
Tuan Zhuan — Commentary on the Judgment （彖传）
Increase: diminishing the upper to benefit the lower, the people are pleased without limit. From above descending below, its way is greatly bright. Favorable to have somewhere to go: central and upright, there is celebration. Favorable to cross the great river: the way of wood proceeds. Increase moves and is yielding: daily advance without limit. Heaven bestows, earth gives birth: its benefit has no direction. In every way of increase one goes along with the time.
ExplainedAs rain descends from above, so heaven sends down the Way to save the good: not hoarding, but giving. And the gift is not money, which enriches only to ruin, but the Way itself, which opens the heart, leads out of suffering and grows brighter the more faithfully it is kept. To move and be yielding is to act on heaven's command and go with its current, so that advance has no limit and blessing arrives from every quarter.
Xiang Zhuan — Image Commentary （大象）
Wind and thunder: Increase. Thus the noble one, seeing good, moves toward it; having faults, corrects them.
ExplainedWhen heaven sends down the Way, the noble one daily moves toward good and mends what is wrong. Repentance without form cuts deeper than repentance for deeds, for it strikes at the root: delusion, arrogance and envy, from which every offense grows. Correct those roots and former karma is wiped out at once, never to rise again.
The Six Lines （六爻）
The lines are read from the bottom upward. Each carries its own text, a Small Image commentary, and a plain-English reading.
Line 1 · YangLine 1
Favorable to use the time for great work: great good fortune, no blame.
Small ImageGreat good fortune, no blame: the one below need not make a great affair of it.
ExplainedThe hour of heaven's Way has come and is rare; use it to fulfill great vows. Saving one soul is better than building a seven-storey pagoda, and saving a spirit is greater still. Ability is not required, only the willingness to go and help others to completion; great good fortune lies in holding the root, and no blame in clearing karma.
Line 2 · YinLine 2
Someone increases him with a tortoise worth ten pairs of shells; he cannot resist it. Everlasting steadfastness brings good fortune. The king presents the offering to God: good fortune.
Small ImageSomeone increases him: it comes from outside.
ExplainedWhen one does the great work, will ignorance hold one back? No: heaven sends the tortoise of ten pairs, a good and wise advisor whose insight is not mere knowledge, and one should simply obey. Such guidance keeps a person upright forever, and when a leader takes such wisdom into service, his standing rises from lord to king.
Line 3 · YinLine 3
He is increased by calamity: no blame. With sincerity, walk the center, and report to the lord with the jade tablet.
Small ImageIncrease by calamity: it is his by nature.
ExplainedAffliction, whether illness, defeat or slander, is itself a benefit, for it wears down the temper and clears karma. The finest vessels are forged under the hammer, and even being slandered as a heresy is a kind of gain. When calamity comes, hold to sincerity and the center, and report your difficulty to heaven with the jade of a formless trust, leaving the outcome to its arrangement.
Line 4 · YinLine 4
Walking the center, he reports to the lord and the lord follows: favorable to use this to move the state.
Small ImageReporting to the lord, he follows: thereby increasing the will.
ExplainedAfter walking the center and taking the difficulty to heaven, one continues to report everything, great or small, granting no credit to one's own strength. Then heaven does not merely mend body and mind but moves the very country, exchanging the defiled land for the pure one, and the will finds its fulfillment.
Line 5 · YangLine 5
With sincerity, a heart of kindness: ask no further questions, and there is great good fortune. With sincerity, kindness increases my virtue.
Small ImageWith sincerity, a heart of kindness: ask nothing further. Kindness increases my virtue: great attainment of the will.
ExplainedAt the summit, sincerity within and labor without, repentance before the holy, reverence for the teacher, testing endured, the Way moistens the heart, the greatest kindness being that the Way descends and enlightens. Ask nothing further, for questions multiply and prevent the holding of the one; keep faith single and unspoken. Then every virtue gathers of itself and the will is greatly fulfilled.
Line 6 · YangLine 6
None increases him; someone strikes him. He sets his heart without constancy: misfortune.
Small ImageNone increases him: a partial saying. Someone strikes him: it comes from outside.
ExplainedThe worst line of the hexagram: instead of benefit, blows, for one who neither believes nor receives but slanders the Way. Wanting instant results and lacking constancy, one despairs of slow growth; yet the heart changes first, then the body, then relations, then fortune. To want only one's circumstances changed and not one's heart is to slander the Way and be struck down.
Key takeaway
Increase teaches that heaven sends down good for the benefit of all, and that one should go out and do good now, in a rare season for spreading the Way.
Frequently asked questions
What does Hexagram 42 (Yi) mean in the I Ching?
Yi is Wind over Thunder: wind and thunder together draw down the sweet rain, the upper diminished to enrich the lower. The hexagram speaks of heaven sending down its goodness for the benefit of all and of oneself, and of going out to do good while the rare moment for spreading the Way is at hand.
What is the judgment of Hexagram 42?
Increase. Favorable to have somewhere to go; favorable to cross the great river. Increase is benefit: for oneself and for others, on every side, in work and health, family and marriage, in gaining the Way and in the aid of the holy. Wind and thunder gathering bring the rain, and rain in season irrigates everything. Entering this hexagram, all that is unfavorable has drained away; do not keep the…
What do the six lines of Hexagram 42 say?
Line 1: Favorable to use the time for great work: great good fortune, no blame. Line 2: Someone increases him with a tortoise worth ten pairs of shells; he cannot resist it. Everlasting steadfastness brings good fortune. The king presents the offering to God: good fortune. Line 3: He is increased by calamity: no blame. With sincerity, walk the center, and report to the lord with the jade tablet. Line 4: Walking the center, he reports to the lord and the lord follows: favorable to use this to move the state. Line 5: With sincerity, a heart of kindness: ask no further questions, and there is great good fortune. With sincerity, kindness increases my virtue. Line 6: None increases him; someone strikes him. He sets his heart without constancy: misfortune.
What is the main lesson of Hexagram 42 (Increase)?
Increase teaches that heaven sends down good for the benefit of all, and that one should go out and do good now, in a rare season for spreading the Way.
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