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Hexagram 31: Xian (咸) — Influence
Hexagram 31, Xian (咸) — Influence, is the thirty-first of the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching, the Lake trigram standing over the Mountain trigram; it is the classic symbol of attraction, courtship, and the mutual influence between two people.
Meaning
Xian is the hexagram of attraction — the book's own word for it is also the word for "courtship," and its image is the youngest daughter (Lake) above the youngest son (Mountain). Two young energies meeting for the first time. The judgment makes the good outcome explicit: "to take a maiden to wife brings good fortune." Attraction, read well, is the beginning of a lasting bond; the whole art is in how the influence moves.
In the tradition, Xian is read through the body. Its six lines trace influence rising from the big toe, through the calves and thighs, to the heart (line 4), and finally to the jaws and tongue. The teaching is about restraint and depth: attraction that stays in the lower body is mere impulse; the noble form moves inward to the heart and is expressed in words, not just sensation.
In career and enterprise, Xian reads as influence and persuasion. It describes the power to move others — through genuine presence rather than manipulation. Line 4's counsel is the key: when the mind is agitated and scattered, only those on whom you fix your conscious, steady attention will follow. Influence, the hexagram says, is a matter of focused sincerity, not of force.
For timing, Xian is the moment of first contact — the early, electric phase of anything new. The counsel is to let attraction deepen before acting on it, to keep the influence sincere, and to let it rise toward the heart. What begins in honest mutual influence, the judgment promises, can become something that lasts.
The Judgment
“Influence. Success. Perseverance furthers. To take a maiden to wife brings good fortune.”
The Six Lines of Influence
Line 1The influence shows itself in the big toe.
Line 2The influence shows itself in the calves of the legs. Misfortune. Tarrying brings good fortune.
Line 3The influence shows itself in the thighs. Holds to that which follows it. To continue is humiliating.
Line 4Perseverance brings good fortune. Remorse disappears. If a man is agitated in mind and his thoughts go hither and thither, only those friends on whom he fixes his conscious thoughts will follow.
Line 5The influence shows itself in the back of the neck. No remorse.
Line 6The influence shows itself in the jaws, cheeks, and tongue.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What does Hexagram 31 (Xian, Influence) mean?
Hexagram 31, Xian (咸) — Influence, is the hexagram of attraction and courtship: Lake over Mountain, the youngest daughter above the youngest son. Its judgment — "to take a maiden to wife brings good fortune" — reads mutual attraction as the beginning of a lasting bond.
What is the trigram structure of Hexagram 31?
Xian is the Lake trigram (兑) above and the Mountain trigram (艮) below. Lake is the youngest daughter and Mountain the youngest son, so the pairing is the book's image of two young energies meeting and drawing each other — the origin of influence.
Why are the six lines of Hexagram 31 arranged by body parts?
The lines trace influence rising from the big toe to the calves, thighs, heart, neck, and finally the mouth. It is a map of how attraction should move: from impulse toward the heart and into sincere speech, rather than remaining in mere sensation.
Related
Source: Judgment and line texts follow the Wilhelm/Baynes rendering of the Yijing used across energyyi.com (Wilhelm's original German, 1924, is in the public domain).
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