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Hexagram 35: Jin (晋) — Progress
Hexagram 35, Jin (晋) — Progress, is the thirty-fifth figure of the I Ching, composed of the Fire trigram over the Earth trigram; the ancients read it as the sun rising over the land.
Meaning
Jin is the hexagram of advancement. The sun climbs above the earth, and the old readers saw the steady, public rise of a person whose merits are coming to be seen. The judgment pictures a prince honoured with horses in large numbers, received three times in a single day — the image of progress that is recognised and rewarded. But the text is careful: progress, to be real, must be earned, not seized.
Read against the working life, the figure is about the honest climb. The lower lines admit the difficulty — progressing but turned back, progressing in sorrow — and the commentators saw in them the discouragement that comes before advancement is certain. The fourth line is the warning: progress like a hamster, which runs without getting anywhere, is not progress at all. Move forward on merit, and accept that the early stages are often uncertain.
For a person whose reputation is growing, Jin was read as the growth of trust. The fifth line, take not to heart loss and gain, was the commentators' counsel to the one whose rise brings both admirers and envious rivals. A person who advances will draw both, and steadiness of character — not the pursuit of favour — is what keeps the climb clean.
Within a cycle, this figure marks a phase of forward movement. It is the season when effort begins to be rewarded, when what was planted becomes visible. The image of fire over the earth is the book's picture of light spreading across the land — a moment for steady advance, done openly and on the strength of what one has genuinely earned.
The Judgment
“Progress. The powerful prince is honored with horses in large numbers.”
The Six Lines of Progress
Line 1Progressing, but turned back. Perseverance brings good fortune. If one meets with no confidence, one should remain calm. No mistake.
Line 2Progressing, but in sorrow. Perseverance brings good fortune. Then one obtains great happiness from one's ancestress.
Line 3All are in accord. Remorse disappears.
Line 4Progress like a hamster. Perseverance brings danger.
Line 5Remorse disappears. Take not to heart loss and gain. Undertakings bring good fortune. Everything serves to further.
Line 6Making progress with the horns is permissible only for the purpose of punishing one's own city. To be conscious of danger brings good fortune.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Which trigrams build Hexagram 35?
Jin (晋) places the Fire trigram (Li, 离) above the Earth trigram (Kun, 坤). The sun rising above the earth was the ancients' image of a steady, visible climb — the source of the meaning of progress.
What does the judgment of Hexagram 35 mean?
It reads: 'Progress. The powerful prince is honored with horses in large numbers.' The old commentaries explain the picture of the honoured prince as progress that is recognised and rewarded — but only because it rests on real merit, received openly rather than seized.
What is meant by progress like a hamster?
The fourth line, 'Progress like a hamster,' was read as a caution. A hamster runs busily in place, and the commentators saw in the image the difference between real advancement and mere motion — activity without direction is not progress.
Related
Source: Judgment and line texts follow the Wilhelm/Baynes rendering of the Yijing.
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