A flash of insight can help you begin, but may not sustain understanding over time. Lí concerns both brightness and attachment: fire needs something to depend on, just as judgment needs facts and appropriate relationships. Its six lines are not uniformly bright or easy. Sunset, sudden eruption, tears, and military action remind us that brightness takes place in different circumstances.
Identity and line order
Lí is hexagram 30 in the traditional King Wen sequence, with symbol ䷝. The lower trigram is Lí ☲ and the upper trigram is Lí ☲; their traditional images are fire and fire, respectively. Count the lines from the bottom: 初九、六二、九三、九四、六五、上九. A solid line is yang and a broken line is yin. Nine and six in the line labels designate yang and yin; they are not additional line numbers.
━━━━━━━━━ 上九
━━━━ ━━━━ 六五
━━━━━━━━━ 九四
━━━━━━━━━ 九三
━━━━ ━━━━ 六二
━━━━━━━━━ 初九
Hexagram statement
離：利貞，亨。畜牝牛，吉。
Original editorial rendering; not a quotation from Legge: Lí: steadfastness is beneficial; there is favorable progress. Keeping a cow: good fortune.
Legge explains that Lí carries meanings of brightness and fire, as well as attachment, while acknowledging that determining the author's overall theme is not simple. He connects the image of the cow with traditional virtues of gentleness and humility.
A modern reading can examine what supports our understanding without equating gentleness with surrendering judgment. The statement does not require raising cattle to obtain good fortune, nor does it assign anyone a permanent role of obedience.
References: zhouyi-30, legge1882-30
Interpretations in the Ten Wings
The Commentary on the Judgment and the Commentary on the Images belong to the commentarial collection known as the Yìzhuàn, usually called the Ten Wings. Below, these commentaries are kept separate from the hexagram and line statements, followed by modern learning applications.
The Commentary on the Judgment explains attachment through the sun and moon depending on heaven and plants depending on the earth. The Commentary on the Images speaks of continuing brightness illuminating the four directions. The commentaries emphasize sustained light, not only a momentary flash.
Today, clear sources, records, and handovers can make understanding available for others to check and continue. Knowing a great deal and helping others see clearly are still two tasks requiring separate effort.
References: zhouyi-30, hon-sep
The six lines, from bottom to top
初九 · When the beginning is confused, watch your footing carefully
履錯然，敬之无咎。
Original editorial rendering; not a quotation from Legge: The steps are tangled; attend to them with care, and there is no blame.
Disordered footsteps are paired with attentive respect. Legge reads this as cautious movement despite an initially confused start. It does not demand perfection from the outset.
When first organizing complex material, distinguish facts, interpretations, and items requiring verification. Carefully checking the basic sequence is more reliable than immediately pursuing an impressive conclusion.
References: zhouyi-30, legge1882-30
六二 · Brightness can have balanced measure
黃離，元吉。
Original editorial rendering; not a quotation from Legge: Yellow brightness: great good fortune.
Yellow is linked with the brightness of Lí, and traditional commentary connects it with a central position. Legge retains this symbolic reading of color and line position.
For a modern reflection, consider measured expression: state clearly what the evidence supports without adding an exaggerated claim. Yellow is not a personal lucky color and cannot automatically improve judgment.
References: zhouyi-30, legge1882-30
九三 · Meet a changing stage without remaining only in lament
日昃之離，不鼓缶而歌，則大耋之嗟，凶。
Original editorial rendering; not a quotation from Legge: In the light of the declining sun, if one does not beat an earthenware jar and sing, there comes the lament of great old age. Misfortune.
The setting sun, singing, and the lament of old age form this line. Legge interprets it through fading light and a person's response; it should not be used to calculate lifespan.
As a stage draws to a close, preserve what you have learned and arrange a reasonable ending. Acknowledging loss and continuing to live can coexist. You need not force yourself to be happy in order to obtain a good outcome.
References: zhouyi-30, legge1882-30
九四 · An abrupt and forceful approach may be hard to sustain
突如其來如，焚如，死如，棄如。
Original editorial rendering; not a quotation from Legge: Suddenly it comes; burning, dying, cast away.
The language is rapid and intense, including burning, death, and rejection. Legge preserves the image of a sudden arrival that finds no place. It is not a prediction of an actual disaster.
A modern analogy would be publishing an extreme conclusion without preparation and then being unable to handle its effects. Allowing room for checking and reflection before speaking makes clarity more than a brief show of force.
References: zhouyi-30, legge1882-30
六五 · Recognize difficulty and allow genuine feeling
出涕沱若，戚嗟若，吉。
Original editorial rendering; not a quotation from Legge: Tears pour forth, with sorrow and sighing. Good fortune.
Tears and distress are not simply judged bad: the text still concludes with good fortune. Legge interprets them through concern and uprightness in a position of importance.
Sadness does not prove that you have lost your judgment. Acknowledge your feelings while seeking practical support and grounds for a next step. This does not mean that tears necessarily bring good luck or that problems resolve themselves.
References: zhouyi-30, legge1882-30
上九 · Using power still requires distinguishing its targets
王用出征，有嘉折首，獲匪其醜，无咎。
Original editorial rendering; not a quotation from Legge: The king goes on campaign: merit lies in striking down the chief, while sparing captives who are not his associates. No blame.
The final line describes a royal campaign and a distinction between dealing with leaders and other captives. Legge explains it as limited, discriminating punishment. This is the language of ancient politics and war.
The modern reflection retains only the warning against indefinitely expanding a problem or assigning indiscriminate blame. The ancient passage cannot authorize violence, punishment, or accusations, much less allow individuals to decide whom to harm.
References: zhouyi-30, legge1882-30
Making an explanatory document usable by the next person
Original modern scenario
A team member organizing the background of exhibition objects initially writes only the story as she understands it. Later, she separates original sources, established facts, and interpretation, flags what remains unverified, and asks another member to read the draft.
The reader finds a connection unclear. She supplies the evidence instead of hiding the uncertainty to preserve a smooth narrative. When she is temporarily away, others can continue the checks using her records.
The modern application of Lí here is understanding that can be carried forward. Clarity is not only compelling expression; it also means letting others see how to assess what you say.
Misreadings to avoid
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Lí guarantees neither fame nor a bright future nor disaster. Its references to burning, death, old age, and tears should not become predictions of personal fate.
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Traditional readings of attachment and the cow do not require unconditional obedience. Military passages must remain in their historical context and cannot serve as permission for present-day actions.
Three practices
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Choose a view you feel very certain about and list the sources that actually support it.
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Identify one part that remains uncertain and decide how to check it further.
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Try explaining your understanding to someone else, and check whether they can see where the conclusion comes from.
Related hexagram
Kǎn — Repeated Water (hexagram-29)
Kǎn reminds us to respond steadily amid difficulty; Lí reminds us that clear judgment needs support. Patience and understanding that others can check can reinforce each other when facing a problem.
A closing question
While reading Lí, ask: does what seems clear to me now have a reliable enough basis for that clarity to last?
Textual note
The third line uses the “嗟” variant explicitly listed in the base edition; its main text instead has “差”.