The Sixty-Four Hexagrams of Life, Part One: The Self-Renewing Qian Hexagram

The Qián hexagram is the first hexagram of the Zhouyi. All six of its lines are yang, making it a pure-yang hexagram, embodying the masculine, vigorous energy of the human world. The Commentary on the Images (Xiàng Zhuàn) explains Qián thus: "The movement of heaven is powerful and strong; the noble person, accordingly, ceaselessly strengthens himself."

Qián symbolizes a spirit that fears no hardship and strives upward; it is the primal force by which we human beings have continually renewed life on earth. Qián is the most affirmative of the sixty-four hexagrams of the Zhouyi, and so its statement reads: "Qián: great success, furthering through perseverance." Qián symbolizes heaven, and the noble person among humans who bears this masculine vigor; it possesses the great roundness that gives birth to the myriad things, and Qián is smooth-achieving, auspicious, upright, and serene.

Life should take Qián as its guiding hexagram. Since a person has been born into this world, he should not waste his capable body, but strive to perfect himself and become someone useful to family and society. He must have a spirit of ceaseless self-strengthening, and through that spirit overcome every difficulty—undaunted by the toil of opening a path through brambles, undaunted by the long road ahead—living a whole life with resolve and ideals.

The six lines of Qián symbolize the stages of a person's striving.

First nine: The dragon is submerged; do not act.

The first nine line is the first line of Qián. However vast a person's future, he must begin at the lowest starting point. At the starting point, one's ability and virtue are not yet sufficient to influence the world around; it is no time to be restless. One should adopt the posture of "the submerged dragon does not act," silently burying oneself in work, accumulating deeply before releasing. Whoever becomes a great vessel must possess genuine ability; thus at the first-nine stage we should spend our time on storing up knowledge and accumulating capital, constantly learning and striving, and making ourselves better.

Second nine: The dragon appears in the field; it furthers one to see the great person.

The second nine is the second line of Qián. It symbolizes the state of a person who has just left his study and begun to show his talent. The "great person" is a noble person of upright heart and sincere intent. As long as one is upright and kind by nature, after a period of "the submerged dragon does not act," signs of standing out from the grove will gradually emerge. This is the state of "the dragon appearing in the field"—the dragon in the fields, a prelude to flying up to the sky.

Third nine: The noble person is diligent all day long, and at night remains as watchful as if in peril; no blame.

The third nine is the third line of Qián. It symbolizes a person who has gradually begun to rise above others. Once a person rises above others, he encounters many unforeseen problems: some envy, some slander, some scheme in secret. All this is perfectly normal. As the saying goes, "The tree that stands out in the forest will be struck down by the wind." "Diligent all day long, watchful at night as if in peril" reminds a person to be constantly earnest and alert, always examining himself, and not to overstep; only thus will no misfortune befall him. "No blame" means no disaster.

Fourth nine: Perhaps leaping into the abyss; no blame.

By the fourth nine, a person's ability has gradually reached a quite outstanding level; now he may leap from the field into the abyss and display his prowess, for the various conditions are basically ripe and his ability and character have been well tempered, so that when he steps out to show what he can do, no misfortune will occur.

Fifth nine: The dragon flies in the sky; it furthers one to see the great person.

Top nine: The overbearing dragon has cause for regret.

Using nine: Seeing a host of dragons with no leader; good fortune.