I Ching · Hexagram 43 of 64
Hexagram 43: Guai （夬） — Breakthrough
Guai is Lake over Heaven: five yang lines resolve a single yin, the lake above the sky about to burst its banks. The hexagram concerns resolving away the yielding and petty and the habits they stand for, uprooting the crooked and revealing what is right, beginning with order within oneself rather than with open battle.
At a glance
| Hexagram | 43 of 64 |
|---|---|
| Name | Guai 夬 · Breakthrough |
| Upper trigram | Dui （兑）· Lake |
| Lower trigram | Qian （乾）· Heaven |
| Structure | Lake over Heaven |
| Lines | 6 lines |
The Judgment （卦辞）
Breakthrough. Proclaimed in the king's court. Sincere calling out: there is peril. Announce it in your own city. Not favorable to take up arms; favorable to have somewhere to go.
ExplainedWhat is resolved away is the petty, and not only people but illness, calamity and bad habit, from uprooting public evil to curing one's own temper. Where increase is never checked the dam breaks, and wealth that grows without giving turns against its owner. It is the age of the petty in power, of the loud and the unprincipled; yet evil at its most brazen is also nearest its fall. Sincere warning is needed, for peril looms, but do not fight: set your own house in order first.
Tuan Zhuan — Commentary on the Judgment （彖传）
Breakthrough means resolution: the firm resolves away the yielding. Strong and pleasing, resolving yet harmonious. Proclaimed in the king's court: the yielding rides upon five firm lines. Sincere calling out, there is peril: in its danger there is light. Announcing it in your own city, not favorable to take up arms: what is esteemed is exhausted. Favorable to have somewhere to go: when the firm grows, the end comes.
ExplainedThe firm and noble resolves away the yielding and petty, conscience resolving away greed, and wisdom, benevolence and courage resolving away craving, anger and delusion; it begins within and works outward. Strong and pleasing means proclaiming heaven's truth while keeping one accord, resolving without shedding blood. To warn of peril turns crisis into light, while arms beget only arms, for the root of violence lies in the human heart. Walk another road, and let the firm grow until conscience spreads and the petty fall without a blow.
Xiang Zhuan — Image Commentary （大象）
The lake above heaven: Breakthrough. Thus the noble one bestows blessings below, and dreads resting upon his virtue.
ExplainedWhen the petty are in power, the noble one gives where he has no obligation and refuses to count his merit, saying only that a chance to serve was granted him. The world does the opposite, growing resentful while serving itself, and to take the opposite road is what separates jade from stone. Gratitude and giving without claiming credit: this alone moves people and sets things right.
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
Strength in the front toe: to go forward and not prevail is blame.
Small ImageGoing forward without prevailing: blame.
ExplainedReady to settle accounts with the petty, the toe twitches with courage; but with no plan and only nerve, one cannot prevail. Where the petty are entrenched and hold the resources, opposition is certain to fail and to draw the blows. Contending against unfairness at home or at work costs one's place, and going without prevailing is one's own fault.
Line 2 · YangLine 2
Warn and call out. Even at night there may be armed men: do not fret.
Small ImageArmed men, do not fret: the middle way is obtained.
ExplainedBy day the petty hold power; by night the demons come, the mind filled with rancor, tension and anxiety. Do not fret over them, but attain the middle way, so that negative feeling dissolves and one can live in such an age without resentment. To rage and hate is to become petty oneself; attaining the center makes one half a noble person, offering incense and studying daily until no anger is left.
Line 3 · YangLine 3
Strength in the cheekbone: there is misfortune. The noble one resolves and resolves, walking alone; meeting rain he is soaked, and there is anger: no blame.
Small ImageThe noble one resolves and resolves: in the end, no blame.
ExplainedWith the middle way comes upright strength; but seeing evil rampant, anger rises to the face, and anger displayed invites calamity. So the noble one resolves and resolves within and walks alone, for the petty band together while the noble one goes by himself. Meeting rain means being doused and slandered, and one may well be angry; still no blame, for as the Way grows the demons recede, and what is struck at only grows larger.
Line 4 · YangLine 4
No skin on the thighs, and his walk is halting. Lead the sheep, and regret vanishes; but hearing the words, he does not believe.
Small ImageHis walk is halting: the position is not fitting. Hearing the words, he does not believe: his hearing is not clear.
ExplainedWithout skin on the thighs every step hurts: with no protective covering, that is, no human accord, everything becomes difficult, for people can obstruct even a good walker. Lead the sheep, keep the hot-tempered ram in hand and be patient, and regret vanishes. But where a friend does not mend after one warning, speak once and stop, lest you shame yourself.
Line 5 · YangLine 5
Purslane resolves and resolves. Walking the center: no blame.
Small ImageWalking the center, no blame: the center is not yet bright.
ExplainedPurslane is the weed of damp shade, the inner petty growing in moist ground. Walk the center and the sun of strong yang dries it until it rots of itself: anger, calculation, selfishness, greed, pride and envy fall away without being torn out by force. The center is more than attained, it is the way coming forth, though not yet in full radiance, for the petty find no ground to work on and leave of themselves.
Line 6 · YinLine 6
No cry is heard: in the end, misfortune.
Small ImageThe misfortune of no cry: it cannot last.
ExplainedThe petty call to heaven and receive no answer, because the center within has been attained and answers the world without: hold to it, and good grows without a fight. When inner and outer are both set at peace, heaven acts and removes the harmful horse, and the Way and the calamity descend together, separating jade from stone. Ask whether you yourself are the harmful horse, making peace at home or breaking it, and let the answer be the knife.
Key takeaway
Breakthrough teaches resolving away the petty and the selfish with firmness in harmony, straightening oneself within before contending without.
Frequently asked questions
What does Hexagram 43 (Guai) mean in the I Ching?
Guai is Lake over Heaven: five yang lines resolve a single yin, the lake above the sky about to burst its banks. The hexagram concerns resolving away the yielding and petty and the habits they stand for, uprooting the crooked and revealing what is right, beginning with order within oneself rather than with open battle.
What is the judgment of Hexagram 43?
Breakthrough. Proclaimed in the king's court. Sincere calling out: there is peril. Announce it in your own city. Not favorable to take up arms; favorable to have somewhere to go. What is resolved away is the petty, and not only people but illness, calamity and bad habit, from uprooting public evil to curing one's own temper. Where increase is never checked the dam breaks, and wealth that grows without giving turns against its owner. It is the age of the petty in power, of the loud and the…
What do the six lines of Hexagram 43 say?
Line 1: Strength in the front toe: to go forward and not prevail is blame. Line 2: Warn and call out. Even at night there may be armed men: do not fret. Line 3: Strength in the cheekbone: there is misfortune. The noble one resolves and resolves, walking alone; meeting rain he is soaked, and there is anger: no blame. Line 4: No skin on the thighs, and his walk is halting. Lead the sheep, and regret vanishes; but hearing the words, he does not believe. Line 5: Purslane resolves and resolves. Walking the center: no blame. Line 6: No cry is heard: in the end, misfortune.
What is the main lesson of Hexagram 43 (Breakthrough)?
Breakthrough teaches resolving away the petty and the selfish with firmness in harmony, straightening oneself within before contending without.
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