I Ching Hexagram 13 - Fellowship
Description and interpretations of I Ching (Yijing) hexagram 13 "Fellowship"
同人 - Tóng Rén
Thiên Hỏa Đồng Nhân
Fellowship
Upper (Outer) Trigram: ☰ Qian, Heaven
Lower (Inner) Trigram: ☲ Li, Fire
Other Titles: Union of Forces, Fellowship with Men, The Symbol of Companionship, Lovers, Beloved Friends, Like-minded Persons, Concording People, Gathering Men, Sameness with People, Universal Brotherhood, Community, United, Human Association, Union of Men, Integration of Forces, Minor Synthesis, Cliques, Concordance, To Be In Accord With, Confirmation.
English Translations & Interpretations
The Judgement
Wilhelm/Baynes: Fellowship with Men in the open. Success. It furthers one to cross the great water. The perseverance of the superior man furthers.
Legge: Union of Forces appears in the remote districts of the country, indicating progress and success. It will be advantageous to cross the great stream. It will be advantageous to maintain the firm correctness of the superior man.
Blofeld: Lovers (friends) in the open -- success! It is advantageous to cross the great river (or sea). [To make any kind of journey.] The Superior Man will benefit if he does not slacken his righteous persistence.
Liu: Fellowship of men in the open (countryside). Success. It benefits one to cross the great water. It benefits the superior man to continue his task.
Shaughnessy: Gathering men in the wilds; receipt; beneficial to ford the great river; beneficial for the gentleman to determine.
Cleary (1): Sameness with people in the wilderness is developmental. It is beneficial to cross great rivers. It is beneficial for a superior person to be upright.
Cleary (2): … Beneficial for a leader to be correct.
Wu: Fellowship in the open is pervasive, etc. … It will be advantageous to the jun zi who perseveres.
The Image
Wilhelm/Baynes: Heaven together with fire: the image of Fellowship with Men. Thus the superior man organizes the clans and makes distinctions between things.
Legge: The images of heaven and fire form Union of Forces. The superior man, in accordance with this, distinguishes things according to their kinds and classes.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes heaven (the sun) and fire representing a pair of lovers. The Superior Man treats everything in a manner proper to his kind. [an analogy (based on the component trigrams) between the sun and fire, which to some extent are of a kind.]
Liu: Fire goes up to heaven, symbolizing Fellowship with Men. The superior man organizes his kinship group (party), and sorts them out.
Cleary (1): Heaven with fire, sameness with others; superior people distinguish things in terms of categories and groups.
Cleary (2): … Leaders distinguish beings in terms of classes and families.
Wu: Heaven above and fire below form Fellowship. The jun zi distinguishes things by their kinds.
Line 1
初九: 同人于門, 无咎．
Wilhelm/Baynes: Fellowship with men at the gate. No blame.
Legge: The first line, dynamic, shows the representative of the Union of Forces just issuing from his gate. There will be no error.
Blofeld: The beloved is at the gate -- no harm!
Liu: Fellowship of men outside the gate. No blame.
Shaughnessy: Gathering men at the gate; there is no trouble.
Cleary: Sameness with people at the gate is blameless.
Wu: Men of fellowship are at the gate. There will be no blame.
Line 2
六二: 同人于宗, 吝．
Wilhelm/Baynes: Fellowship with men in the clan. Humiliation.
Legge: The second line, magnetic, shows the representative of the Union of Forces in relation with her kindred. There will be occasion for regret.
Blofeld: His beloved (betrothed) is of the same clan as himself -- trouble!
Liu: Fellowship of men in the kinship group (party). Humiliation.
Shaughnessy: Gathering men at the ancestral temple; distress.
Cleary: Sameness with people in the clan is regrettable.
Wu: Fellowship becomes kinship. There will be humiliation.
Line 3
九三: 伏戎于莽, 升其高陵, 三歲不興．
Wilhelm/Baynes: He hides weapons in the thicket; he climbs the high hill in front of it. For three years he does not rise up.
Legge: The third line, dynamic, shows its subject with his arms hidden in the thick grass, and at the top of a high mound. But for three years he makes no demonstration.
Blofeld: Concealing his weapons in the bushes, he climbs his high hill. For three years he enjoys no happiness. [His cowardice was so great that he dared not seek home, wife or children for three years. The implication is that boldness at all costs is required.]
Liu: They hide arms in the bushes. They climb to the summit of a hill. For three years they do not act.
Shaughnessy: Surrendered appearance in tall grass. Climbing its high peak, for three years it does not arise.
Cleary (1): Subduing fighters in the bush, climbing up a high hill, even in three years there will be no flourishing.
Cleary (2): He hides fighters in the bush, etc.
Wu: He conceals weapons in bushes. He moves up to high mounds. He makes no headway in three years. [He is planning to overwhelm by force those with whom he disagrees, but he is alone and cannot make a breakthrough.]
Line 4
九四: 乘其墉, 弗, 克攻, 吉．
Wilhelm/Baynes: He climbs up on his wall; he cannot attack. Good fortune.
Legge: The fourth line, dynamic, shows its subject mounted on the city wall; but he does not proceed to make the attack he contemplates. There will be good fortune.
Blofeld: He climbs his battlemented wall, for he is unable to attack -- good fortune! [At first sight this case looks rather like that indicated by the third line, but here cowardice and concealment are replaced by courage modified by common sense and a desire to do his duty as best he can.]
Liu: They climb on the wall. They are unable to attack. Good fortune.
Shaughnessy: Riding astride its wall; you will not succeed in attacking it; auspicious.
Cleary: He mounts the wall but does not succeed in the attack. This is lucky.
Wu: He ascends to the top of his fortress, and is convinced that the offensive will fail. This will be auspicious. [He ascends to a good vantage point to survey his surroundings and realizes his blunder. He is quick to correct himself. Reasoning wins over force.]
Line 5
九五: 同人, 先號咷而. 後笑, 大師克相遇．
Wilhelm/Baynes: Men bound in fellowship first weep and lament, but afterward they laugh. After great struggles they succeed in meeting.
Legge: The fifth line, dynamic, shows the representative of the Union of Forces first wailing and crying out, and then laughing. His great army conquers, and he and his second line correlate meet together.
Blofeld: The lovers begin by weeping and wailing, but they finish by laughing, for the crowd succeeds in bringing them together.
Liu: Fellowship of men. They cry and lament. Later they laugh. After great battles they have success.
Shaughnessy: Gathering men at first weeping and wailing, but later laughing; the great captains succeed in meeting each other.
Cleary: In sameness with people, first there is weeping, afterward laughter. A great general wins, then meets others.
Wu: Men of fellowship first wail and then laugh. The large armed forces meet after victory.
Line 6
上九: 同人于郊, 无悔．
Wilhelm/Baynes: Fellowship with men in the meadow. No remorse.
Legge: The sixth line, dynamic, shows the representative of the Union of Forces in the suburbs. There will be no occasion for repentance.
Blofeld: Her beloved is in a distant frontier region -- no regret! [In Chinese history, it often happened that a man was drafted and sent far away to a frontier region from which he could not be expected to return for many years. In this case, his beloved (betrothed or wife) has enough wisdom to give up repining, since the case is a hopeless one. The implication is that we should not repine.]
Liu: Fellowship of men in the open countryside. No remorse.
Shaughnessy: Gathering men in the pasture; there is no regret.
Cleary (1): Being the same as people in the countryside, there is no regret.
Cleary (2): Sameness with people in the countryside involves no regret.
Wu: Men of fellowship gather outside of the city. There will be no regret.
Notes
For an in-depth glossary of I Ching, click here.
Hexagram 13 indicates people coming together. Two or more people come together with open and mutual aims. The bond between them creates a new power if there is a clear direction.
Avoid being selfish towards others, for fellowship comes only through common goals. The fellowship of people will give you the combined strength and cooperation to achieve all great things in life.
