Hexagram 38
火泽睽
Opposition
Hexagram 38, Kui (Opposition), is Fire over Lake - flame rising, water sinking, the two elements turning away from each other.
Upper Trigram
☲
离 (火)
Lower Trigram
☱
兑 (金)
Palace
艮 Palace
Shi / Ying Lines
Shi: Line 4 · Ying: Line 1
The 离 trigram (火) sits above the 兑 trigram (金), forming 火泽睽. This hexagram belongs to the 艮 Palace.
Judgment (卦辞)
Opposition. In small matters, good fortune.
Judgment text follows the Wilhelm–Baynes translation (The I Ching or Book of Changes, Princeton University Press), quoted for commentary.
Image (象辞)
Above fire, below the lake: the image of Opposition.
Line Texts (爻辞)
Remorse disappears. If you lose your horse, do not run after it. (悔亡)
One meets his lord in a narrow street. (遇主于巷)
One sees the wagon dragged back, the oxen halted. (见舆曳)
Isolated through opposition, one meets a like-minded man. (睽孤)
Remorse disappears. The companion bites through. (悔亡)
Isolated, one sees companion as pig covered with dirt. (睽孤)
Hexagram 38 in Love & Relationships
Relationships: When you pull apart, seek accord in small matters. Do not mistake difference for betrayal.
Hexagram 38 in Career & Decisions
Career: Disagreement is not always a problem. Opposing views can refine an outcome neither side would reach alone.
Hexagram 38 as a yes / no answer
Depends on timing
The hexagram counsels timing and care: the answer depends on how and when you proceed.
The I Ching reads situations, not fixed outcomes — your reading can weigh the moving lines with this leaning.
In-Depth Analysis[+]
Hexagram 38, Kui (Opposition), is Fire over Lake - flame rising, water sinking, the two elements turning away from each other. This is the hexagram of divergence, of the moment when people or forces pull apart. The judgment: 'in small matters, good fortune' - when full agreement is impossible, find accord in the small. The lines trace opposition's path: the lost horse not chased, the meeting in a narrow street, and the isolation of the final line that mistakes a companion for a dirty pig. Kui teaches that opposition is not always enmity - fire and water, though opposed, together cook the meal. Difference can serve a common end.
Historical Stories[+]
Fire and water in the kitchen: opposites that together prepare the meal - the productive side of opposition.
The productive tension between the two houses of a legislature, whose disagreement refines law into something both can accept.
Practical Applications[+]
Career: Disagreement is not always a problem. Opposing views can refine an outcome neither side would reach alone.
Relationships: When you pull apart, seek accord in small matters. Do not mistake difference for betrayal.
Personal Growth: The parts of yourself that oppose each other can still serve a common end. Integrate, do not suppress.
Classical Sources for Hexagram 38
卜筮正宗 (The Orthodox Manual of Divination)清 (Qing Dynasty, 1644–1912)
The Eighteen Questions framework, the classification of hexagram patterns by life domain (career, wealth, relationships, health, travel, litigation), and the methodological rules for interpreting conflicting lines.
Related Hexagrams
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Ask the I Ching about Hexagram 38