Progress
晉Jin
No. 35 · Fire over Earth
Jin (Progress)
Like the sun rising over the earth: moving up, being seen and being given responsibility. Along with the recognition, it asks you to let your own character shine.
Cast your own hexagramJin (Progress) is the sun rising: you are seen, appreciated and given chances to move up. Ride the momentum forward, and polish your character and skills along the way so you live up to the position.
Favorable
- Seek visibility
- Show yourself openly
- Put your results on the table
- Bring others up with you
Avoid
- Scheming for position
- Grabbing a seat, dodging the duty
- Quitting after one rebuff
- Overreaching and making enemies
Work and money
- Job search
- Interview, push for the promotion, put your results where leadership can see them. Like Marquis Kang received three times in a day, chances to be noticed are plentiful. Just don't be the fourth line's rat, grabbing the seat while dodging responsibility.
- Business
- Business is on the rise: exposure, new customers and partnerships come more easily. Kun (Earth) below is receptive, so people are willing to follow you. Keep the marketing honest; a better product goes further than inflated claims.
- Money
- There is room for income to rise, usually tied to your performance and recognition at work. Money earned honestly is the kind that stays.
Love and people
- Single
- You are easy to notice these days, so go to gatherings and let friends introduce you. The Image says to make your own bright virtue shine: show your real self openly, and skip the hard-to-get games.
- In a relationship
- Jin (Progress) favors moving forward: meeting the family, going public, talking about next steps. The second line advances while anxious and still finds good fortune in steadfastness. Nerves are normal; don't let them make you back off.
- Getting back together
- There is a chance, if you have really grown and they can see it. Reach out openly and say what you feel. The first line is advancing and being pushed back: if the first attempt is rebuffed, don't rush. Stay relaxed.
- People and partnerships
- Good for building ties with people who can champion you, and others tend to back you; the third line says everyone trusts and agrees. Don't take credit from coworkers. Rising together is what holds.
Daily life
- Exams and study
- Grades have room to climb. Aim for a higher rank, a certification or an application. Jin (Progress) is light rising out of the ground: show what you know. A portfolio or an oral exam is your stage.
- Moving and travel
- A good time for trips, work travel, or moving to a city with better prospects. A move can go ahead; pick a place with good daylight and bright rooms, and living there tends to lift your mood.
- Body and mind
- Your mood leans bright and you have drive. Get sunlight and stay active in the daytime. Being visible brings pressure too, so don't stay up late to perform. If your body is acting up, don't keep putting it off; book time with a doctor.
Traditional questions
- Something you are waiting for
- The news clears step by step like a sunrise, and it leans good. The condition is that you push forward and let them see you. Waiting in place tends to make it slower.
- Disputes and lawsuits
- It helps to bring things into the daylight: lay out the evidence and records openly, and your side is more likely to be believed. Avoid back-channel moves. The top line warns that even in the right, overreaching brings humiliation.
- Lost things and people
- A fair chance of getting it back. Li (Fire) above means bright spots, under lamps, by windows; Kun (Earth) below means low places, the floor, piles of cloth and clothes. Search in good daylight: bright areas, the floor, laundry heaps.
Making a decision
This is a time to move forward. Go after what you want and commit to it. Just do it in the open, without maneuvering for position behind people's backs.
If you are…
Jin (Progress) is your moment to be seen by leadership. State the main points clearly, put the results up front, and answer questions openly. If someone challenges you, stay calm; your composure is remembered longer than the numbers.
Jin (Progress) says to make your own bright virtue shine, so let your strengths show. Write about specific things you did and what came of them, not so modestly that no one can tell who you are. Don't exaggerate either; one interview question can expose it.
This is the reading when no line is changing. With changing lines, Zhu Xi’s method says which line to read, and the result page after a casting tells you directly.
康侯用錫馬蕃庶，晝日三接。
Marquis Kang (a lord who keeps the realm at peace; some say King Wu's younger brother, Kangshu) breeds the horses bestowed on him into great herds, and is received three times in a single day.
Fire over Earth: Li (Fire) above, Kun (Earth) below. Li is fire and the sun, Kun is the earth. The sun comes up out of the ground, climbing higher and shining brighter, so it is called Jin (Progress): advancing and rising.
Six at the beginning
晉如，摧如，貞吉。罔孚，裕无咎。
Advancing, and pushed back. Steadfastness brings good fortune. Not yet trusted; staying relaxed and unhurried, no blame.
You went for an opportunity and got turned down; people don't know or trust you yet. Do your own work well at your own pace. There is no need to rush to prove yourself, and don't let the setback make you act rashly.
Small Image: 晉如，摧如；獨行正也。裕无咎；未受命也。
Six in the second place
晉如，愁如，貞吉。受茲介福，于其王母。
Advancing, but anxious. Steadfastness brings good fortune. One receives this great blessing from one's grandmother.
On the way up you feel unsure, and no one is speaking up for you. Keep doing things properly. A senior person, well placed and kind, is likely to notice you and give real support.
Small Image: 受茲介福，以中正也。
Six in the third place
眾允，悔亡。
Everyone trusts and agrees. Regret disappears.
You may not be the most qualified, but the people around you back your move forward. Go with that shared agreement and push together, and the thing you were worried about tends to resolve.
Small Image: 眾允之志，上行也。
Nine in the fourth place
晉如鼫鼠，貞厲。
Advancing like a long-tailed rat (a big rat, greedy and timid). Even steadfastness is dangerous.
You hold a position you can't quite carry, wanting more while afraid of being found out. That is a risky place to be. Be honest about the gap in ability: either close it or stop grasping for the seat.
Small Image: 鼫鼠貞厲，位不當也。
Six in the fifth place
悔亡，失得勿恤，往吉无不利。
Regret disappears. Do not worry about gain or loss. Going forward brings good fortune; nothing is unfavorable.
You are in the lead and people are willing to work with you. Stop calculating whether every move pays off. Put your energy into doing the right thing and keep going.
Small Image: 失得勿恤，往有慶也。
Nine at the top
晉其角，維用伐邑，厲吉无咎，貞吝。
Advancing with the horns. Fit only for punishing one's own city. Danger, yet good fortune, no blame. Even being in the right brings humiliation.
You have pushed all the way to the top. Force is only fit for putting your own house in order, like team discipline or your own bad habits. Turn hard tactics on others and it tends to look ugly, even if you are right.
Small Image: 維用伐邑，道未光也。
晉，進也。明出地上，順而麗乎大明，柔進而上行。是以康侯用錫馬蕃庶，晝日三接也。
Jin (Progress) means advancing. Brightness rises above the earth. What is below is yielding and clings to the great brightness above; the yielding line advances and moves up to the ruler's place. That is why Marquis Kang breeds the horses bestowed on him into great herds, and is received three times in a single day.
The Image明出地上，晉；君子以自昭明德。
Brightness rises above the earth: this is Jin (Progress). The noble person, seeing this, makes their own bright virtue shine.
The Sequence: why it comes here物不可以終壯，故受之以晉；晉者進也。
Things cannot stay strong and stand still forever. Once strength has grown, it pushes forward. So Da Zhuang (Great Power) is followed by Jin (Progress), and Jin means advancing.
Miscellaneous Notes晉晝也，明夷誅也。
Jin (Progress) is daytime; Ming Yi (Darkening of the Light) is wounding. In Jin the sun rises above the earth and its light reaches everywhere; in Ming Yi the sun sinks below the earth and its light is hurt. Traditional commentaries read the word for punishment here as wounding.
Related hexagramsFAQ
What does Jin mean for love?
You are easy to notice these days, so go to gatherings and let friends introduce you. The Image says to make your own bright virtue shine: show your real self openly, and skip the hard-to-get games. Jin (Progress) favors moving forward: meeting the family, going public, talking about next steps. The second line advances while anxious and still finds good fortune in steadfastness. Nerves are normal; don't let them make you back off.
What does Jin mean for work?
Interview, push for the promotion, put your results where leadership can see them. Like Marquis Kang received three times in a day, chances to be noticed are plentiful. Just don't be the fourth line's rat, grabbing the seat while dodging responsibility. A good time to go for a promotion, pitch an idea, interview, or let leadership see your results. Step forward; people above are inclined to give you resources.
With Jin, will what I am waiting for come?
The news clears step by step like a sunrise, and it leans good. The condition is that you push forward and let them see you. Waiting in place tends to make it slower.
With Jin, will I find what I lost?
A fair chance of getting it back. Li (Fire) above means bright spots, under lamps, by windows; Kun (Earth) below means low places, the floor, piles of cloth and clothes. Search in good daylight: bright areas, the floor, laundry heaps.
A hexagram answers one question; your chart shows the whole of you and your year.
The classical text follows the standard edition of the Zhouyi. The plain readings are Xingge’s own, offered as a reference, not as the final word.