All hexagrams · ← 35 · 37 →
明夷 36 · Míng Yí · Darkening of the Light
Earth over Fire — upper Kūn 坤 (receptive, yielding, nourishing); lower Lí 離 (clinging, radiant, clarifying)
Hexagram 36, Darkening of the Light (Míng Yí, 明夷), is Earth over Fire. The sun under the earth. Light is wounded; brightness must hide.
The situation
The sun under the earth. Light is wounded; brightness must hide.
The counsel
Veil your light and endure. Keep inner clarity where the outer world is dark.
The six lines
Line 1 — Flying with drooping wings; three days without food. Keep going.
Line 2 — Wounded in the left thigh; helped by a strong horse.
Line 3 — Hunting south, catching the chief. Do not hurry the correction.
Line 4 — Entering the left belly and reaching the heart of the darkness; leaving.
Line 5 — The darkness of Prince Ji. Persist inwardly.
Line 6 — Not light but darkness. It climbed to heaven, then fell.