Increase
益Yi
No. 42 · Wind over Thunder
Yi (Increase)
Take a little from the top and pass it down to those below. When you share the gains and move with the timing, the road keeps widening and big undertakings become possible.
Cast your own hexagramIn Yi (Increase) those above are willing to give and those below gain from it, so the overall road opens upward. It is a good time to set out and take on something big, as long as the gains are shared and you adjust with the timing.
Favorable
- Set out on your own initiative
- Pass resources down
- Fix mistakes when you see them
- Keep at it
Avoid
- Only wanting more for yourself
- Enthusiasm that fizzles fast
- Taking resources, giving no effort
- Covering problems up quietly
Work and money
- Job search
- Yi (Increase) says it pays to have somewhere to go: send applications, ask for a transfer or a new role, and those above are more willing to give resources. The first line adds that once you're given the chance, you need to show solid results.
- Business
- Wind and thunder strengthen each other in Yi (Increase): a good time to expand, open a new location or negotiate partnerships, and larger plans can work. Share some of what you earn with staff and partners so the road stays long.
- Money
- There are chances to increase income, and it suits putting effort into things with room to grow. Once you earn, share some of it, for instance with the people you work with.
Love and people
- Single
- People around you are willing to make introductions, so go to friends' gatherings and setups. Yi (Increase) is about giving downward: be kind first and put in a little more, and the other person tends to respond.
- In a relationship
- One gives way, the other gains, and in Yi (Increase) the relationship rises together. The fifth line speaks of sincerity and a kind heart: think genuinely about what they need, and don't keep score of who gives more.
- Getting back together
- There is a chance, but it takes real change. The Image of Yi (Increase) says to correct faults when you have them: they are likely to come back only once they see you have truly changed, and the effort has to last, not burn out in a few days.
- People and partnerships
- In Yi (Increase), whoever shares resources and credit is the most liked right now. In a partnership, pass gains downward. The top line warns that if you only want a bigger share, no one adds to you and someone may strike: partners can turn into rivals.
Daily life
- Exams and study
- Yi (Increase) speaks of advancing day by day without limit: a little progress each day adds up to a lot. A good time to sign up for a course or a certification. When you see someone study better, borrow it, and fix wrong answers the same day.
- Moving and travel
- Yi (Increase) says it pays to cross the great river: long trips and moving away tend to go smoothly, and a move to a better neighborhood can work. The fourth line speaks of leaning on those above to move the capital: for a big relocation, find someone dependable to lean on.
- Body and mind
- Your energy is good in Yi (Increase) and you want to do more, which makes it easy to add too much at once. Add one new habit at a time and build up exercise and earlier nights slowly. If something truly feels wrong, don't wait; see a doctor.
Traditional questions
- Something you are waiting for
- Likely to come, and often it arrives on its own, the way the second line's tortoise shell can't be refused in Yi (Increase). Your side still has to get moving and keep at it, so that what comes can be kept.
- Disputes and lawsuits
- There is room to negotiate, and both sides can come out ahead. Trading a concession for cooperation beats insisting on everything. The third line of Yi (Increase) reports to the duke with a jade tablet: follow procedure and keep a written record.
- Lost things and people
- Fairly likely to be found, faster if someone helps you look. Zhen (Thunder) is the open road and movement, Xun (Wind) is wood, long things and rope: check intersections, the car, busy spots by the door, wooden furniture, long drawers or by a breezy window.
Making a decision
When it's time to act, act; the overall direction favors moving forward. Keep correcting mistakes as you spot them along the way.
If you are…
Someone above is willing to invest in you, which is what Yi (Increase) calls taking from above to add below. Finish the training seriously, come back with results, and share what you learned with coworkers. When resources are used well, the next chance tends to come your way too.
Yi (Increase) is about passing extra downward, and the road widens as you do. You have time and experience, which makes you well placed to share. Start with a small group at a fixed time, let people improve week by week, and word of mouth tends to spread on its own.
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.
利有攸往。利涉大川。
It pays to have somewhere to go. It pays to cross the great river.
Wind over Thunder: Xun (Wind) above, Zhen (Thunder) below. Wind and thunder feed each other and both grow stronger. In the figure, something is taken from above and given to what is below, so the hexagram is called Yi (Increase): adding, enriching.
Nine at the beginning
利用為大作，元吉，无咎。
It pays to use this for a great undertaking. Only with great good fortune is there no blame.
You have just been given backing or resources from above. Even from a junior position, you need to deliver something solid in return. If the result is only ordinary, people may feel the support went to the wrong person.
Small Image: 元吉无咎，下不厚事也。
Six in the second place
或益之十朋之龜，弗克違，永貞吉。王用享于帝，吉。
Someone increases him with a great tortoise shell worth ten strings of cowries; he cannot refuse it. Lasting steadfastness brings good fortune. The king uses it to make an offering to the Lord on High: good fortune.
The benefit is arriving from outside: a mentor or an opening has come looking for you. Accept it while keeping to your role, and keep working steadily over time; that is what keeps the good fortune with you.
Small Image: 或益之，自外來也。
Six in the third place
益之用凶事，无咎。有孚中行，告公用圭。
Being increased through hard and dangerous affairs: no blame. With sincerity, walking the middle way, one reports to the duke holding a jade tablet.
Being dropped into a crisis or a tough assignment is really pushing you to grow. As you handle it, be clear about what is going on and report it upward through proper channels. Don't cover anything up.
Small Image: 益用凶事，固有之也。
Six in the fourth place
中行，告公從。利用為依遷國。
Walking the middle way, one reports to the duke and is heeded. It pays to lean on those above in a great matter such as moving the capital.
You sit in the middle, and your word carries weight. When you propose a big plan, like a relocation or a change of direction, start from what benefits everyone, and those above are likely to agree.
Small Image: 告公從，以益志也。
Nine in the fifth place
有孚惠心，勿問元吉。有孚惠我德。
With sincerity and a kind heart, no need to ask: great good fortune. People in turn sincerely cherish my virtue.
Help people and look after those below you sincerely, without calculating the return. Trust built this way adds up, and people tend to give back on their own.
Small Image: 有孚惠心，勿問之矣。惠我德，大得志也。
Nine at the top
莫益之，或擊之，立心勿恆，凶。
No one increases him; someone may even strike him. His resolve does not hold steady. Misfortune.
If you keep wanting more and won't share, the people around you can turn into opponents. Time to pull back, hand some of the gains over, and stop saying one thing today and another tomorrow.
Small Image: 莫益之，偏辭也。或擊之，自外來也。
益，損上益下，民說无疆，自上下下，其道大光。利有攸往，中正有慶。利涉大川，木道乃行。益動而巽，日進无疆。天施地生，其益无方。凡益之道，與時偕行。
Yi (Increase): decreasing what is above to increase what is below; the people's joy knows no bounds. Coming down from above to those below, its way shines greatly. It pays to have somewhere to go: being central and correct brings blessings. It pays to cross the great river: the way of wood (the boat) now goes through. Yi moves and is gentle, advancing day by day without limit. Heaven bestows and earth brings forth; its increase is not confined to one place. In every way of increase, one moves together with the time.
The Image風雷，益；君子以見善則遷，有過則改。
Wind and thunder: this is Yi (Increase). The noble person, seeing this, moves toward the good when seeing it, and corrects faults when having them.
The Sequence: why it comes here損而不已，必益，故受之以益。
The hexagram before is Sun (Decrease). Decreasing cannot go on without end; once it reaches its limit it is bound to turn into increase. So Sun is followed by Yi (Increase).
Miscellaneous Notes損、益，盛衰之始也。
Sun (Decrease) and Yi (Increase) are the beginnings of flourishing and decline. The common reading: increase carried to its limit turns into decrease, so Yi is where decline begins; decrease carried to its limit turns into increase, so Sun is where flourishing begins.
Related hexagramsFAQ
What does Yi mean for love?
People around you are willing to make introductions, so go to friends' gatherings and setups. Yi (Increase) is about giving downward: be kind first and put in a little more, and the other person tends to respond. One gives way, the other gains, and in Yi (Increase) the relationship rises together. The fifth line speaks of sincerity and a kind heart: think genuinely about what they need, and don't keep score of who gives more.
What does Yi mean for work?
Yi (Increase) says it pays to have somewhere to go: send applications, ask for a transfer or a new role, and those above are more willing to give resources. The first line adds that once you're given the chance, you need to show solid results. A good time to launch new plans and go out to negotiate partnerships. If you lead a team, look after them and pass resources down; things move faster that way.
With Yi, will what I am waiting for come?
Likely to come, and often it arrives on its own, the way the second line's tortoise shell can't be refused in Yi (Increase). Your side still has to get moving and keep at it, so that what comes can be kept.
With Yi, will I find what I lost?
Fairly likely to be found, faster if someone helps you look. Zhen (Thunder) is the open road and movement, Xun (Wind) is wood, long things and rope: check intersections, the car, busy spots by the door, wooden furniture, long drawers or by a breezy window.
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.