I Ching Hexagram 61 - Inner Truth
Description and interpretations of I Ching hexagram 61 "Inner Truth"
中孚 - Zhōng Fú
Phong Trạch Trung Phu
Inner Truth
Upper (Outer) Trigram: ☴ Xun, Wind
Lower (Inner) Trigram: ☱ Dui, Lake
Other Titles: The Symbol of Central Sincerity, Inward Confidence, Inner Truthfulness, Sincerity, Centering- Conforming, Central Return, Faithfulness in the Center, Sincerity in the Center, Insight, Understanding, The Psyche
English Translations & Interpretations
The Judgement
Wilhelm/Baynes: Inner Truth. Pigs and fishes. Good fortune. It furthers one to cross the great water. Perseverance furthers.
Legge: Inner Truth moves even pigs and fish, and leads to good fortune. There will be advantage in crossing the great stream. There will be advantage in being firm and correct.
Blofeld: Inward Confidence and Sincerity. Dolphins -- good fortune! It is advantageous to cross the great river (or sea). Persistence in a right course brings reward.
Liu: Inner Truthfulness. Sea Lions -- good fortune. It is of benefit to cross the great water.
Shaughnessy: Central Return: the piglet and fish are auspicious; harmonious: beneficial to ford the great river; beneficial to determine.
Cleary (1): Faithfulness in the center is auspicious when it reaches even pigs and fish. It is beneficial to cross great rivers. It is beneficial to be correct.
Cleary (2): Sincerity in the center is auspicious when simple-minded ... etc.
Wu: Sincerity moves piglets and fishes. Auspicious. It will be advantageous to cross the big river with perseverance.
The Image
Wilhelm/Baynes: Wind over lake: the image of Inner Truth. Thus the superior man discusses criminal cases in order to delay executions.
Legge: Wood on a Marsh -- the image of Inner Truth. The superior man deliberates about cases of litigation and delays the infliction of death.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes wind blowing over a marshy lake. The Superior Man devotes careful thought to his judgments and is tardy in sentencing people to death.
Liu: The wind over the lake symbolizes Inner Truthfulness. The superior man judges criminals and postpones capital punishment.
Ritsema/Karcher: Above marsh possessing wind. Centering Conforming. A chun tzu uses deliberating litigating to delay dying.
Cleary (1): There is wind above a lake, with truthfulness between them. Thus superior people consider judgments and postpone execution.
Cleary (2): There is wind over a lake, with sincerity in the center. True leaders consider judgments and postpone execution.
Wu: There is wind above the marsh: this is Sincerity. Thus, the jun zi deliberates the verdicts and enjoins the death sentence.
Line 1
初九: 虞吉, 有它, 不燕．
Wilhelm/Baynes: Being prepared brings good fortune. If there are secret designs, it is disquieting.
Legge: The first line, dynamic, shows its subject resting in himself. There will be good fortune. If he sought to any other, he would not find rest.
Blofeld: The officer in charge of hunting and fishing -- good fortune! The presence of others would give rise to anxiety.
Liu: Ponder carefully. Good fortune. Other thoughts lead to anxiety.
Shaughnessy: Self-satisfied auspiciousness ; there are others not tranquil.
Cleary (1): Forethought leads to a good outcome. If there is something else, one is not at rest.
Cleary (2): Preparedness leads to a good outcome, etc.
Wu: Being devoted to a single cause is auspicious. Vacillation would lead to uneasiness.
Line 2
九二: 鶴鳴在陰．其子和之．我有好爵．吾與爾靡之．
Wilhelm/Baynes: A crane calling in the shade. Its young answers it. I have a good goblet. I will share it with you.
Legge: The second line, dynamic, shows its subject like the crane crying out in her hidden retirement, and her young ones responding to her. It is as if it were said: "I have a cup of good spirits," and the response were, "I will partake of it with you."
Blofeld: A crane sings in the shade; its young ones follow suit. I have a fine goblet and will share it with you. (We should allow others to benefit from something or some circumstance which is valuable to us.)
Liu: A crane calls in the shade; its young ones respond. I have a good goblet (wine, virtue) to share with you.
Shaughnessy: A calling crane in the shade, its young harmonizes with it: We have a good chalice, I will down it with you.
Cleary: A calling crane is in the shade, its fledgling joins it; I have a good cup, which I will quaff with you.
Wu: A crane cries in the shade and her young chime in. “I have fine wine. I would like to share it with you.”
Line 3
六三: 得敵, 成鼓, 或罷, 或泣, 或歌．
Wilhelm/Baynes: He finds a comrade. Now he beats the drum, now he stops. Now he sobs, now he sings. (Here the source of a man’s strength lies not in himself but in his relation to other people. No matter how close to them he may be, if his center of gravity depends on them, he is inevitably tossed to and fro between joy and sorrow.)
Legge: The third line, magnetic, shows its subject having met with her mate. Now she beats her drum, and now she leaves off. Now she weeps, and now she sings.
Blofeld: He makes an enemy. Beating a drum by fits and starts, he weeps and sings in turn. [We are conscious of having made an enemy, but we cannot make up our minds what to do about it. The implication is that we should have more courage.]
Liu: One meets a person. Suddenly he beats a drum, and suddenly he stops; then he weeps, then he sings. (You can expect to gain sometimes, but also to lose sometimes; in happiness hides sadness, but from sadness will spring joy.)
Shaughnessy: Getting an enemy: now drumming, now weary, now crying, now singing.
Cleary (1): Finding enemies , sometimes drumming, sometimes stopping, sometimes crying, sometimes singing. [Believing in what is not to be believed will inevitably destroy faith. This is faith that takes the false to be true.]
Cleary (2): Finding a mate … etc. [All of this is due to lack of virtuous qualities and being out of place.]
Wu: He meets with his counterpart. Sometimes he drums, sometimes he stops, sometimes he wails, and sometimes he sings.
Line 4
六四: 月幾望, 馬匹亡, 无咎．
Wilhelm/Baynes: The moon nearly at the full. The team horse goes astray. No blame.
Legge: The fourth line, magnetic, shows its subject like the moon nearly full, and like a horse pulling a chariot whose fellow disappears. There will be no error.
Blofeld: A team of horses strays just before the full moon -- no error!
Liu: The moon will be full. He loses a team of horses. No blame.
Shaughnessy: The moon is past full; the horse will necessarily be lost; there is no trouble.
Cleary (1): The moon approaches fullness. The pair of horses is gone. No fault.
Cleary (2): The moon is almost full. When the horse’s mate disappears, there is no fault.
Wu: The moon is almost full. One horse of a pair is lost. No blame.
Line 5
九五: 有孚攣如, 无咎．
Wilhelm/Baynes: He possesses truth, which links together. No blame.
Legge: The fifth line, dynamic, shows its subject perfectly sincere, and linking others to him in closest union. There will be no error.
Blofeld: He seems to be pulled forward by his confidence in what he is doing -- no error!
Liu: His truthfulness is steadfast. No blame. [Good fortune in everything.]
Shaughnessy: There is a return linkedly; there is no trouble.
Cleary (1): With faithfulness that is firm, there is no fault.
Cleary (2): With sincerity that is firm, there is no fault.
Wu: Sincerity can unite people as if connecting them with strings. No blame.
Line 6
上九: 翰音登于天, 貞凶．
Wilhelm/Baynes: Cockcrow penetrating to heaven. Perseverance brings misfortune.
Legge: The topmost line, dynamic, shows its subject as chanticleer trying to mount to heaven. Even with firm correctness there will be evil.
Blofeld: The noise of cocks crowing rises to the sky -- to persist now would bring misfortune. (This suggests that we are over-confident and inclined to crow about our good fortune; but we should remember that triumph seldom lasts long and avoid seeking even greater triumphs at this time.)
Liu: The crow of a cock piercing the heavens. To continue -- misfortune.
Shaughnessy: The golden pheasant's sound ascends to the heavens; determination is inauspicious.
Cleary (1): The voice of a pheasant reaches the skies; even if devoted, the outlook is bad.
Cleary (2): A rooster ascends to the skies. Self-righteousness leads to misfortune.
Wu: The crowing sound of a rooster ascends high in the sky. It will be foreboding, even with perseverance.
Notes
For an in-depth glossary of I Ching, click here.
Hexagram 61 depicts that you have a sincere and true friend; someone whom you can trust and depend on. It addresses the relationship of a superior treating his subordinates with truth and sincerity.
If your heart is free from prejudice, you are certain to succeed in whatever you do. Good fortune lies ahead. However, if your inner mind harbours bad intentions, beware of the consequences which are revealed through your own discretions.
Understand the basic truth of the matter and do not rush to judgment when dealing with other people’s mistakes or shortcomings. Without sincerity, friendship will not last.
