Gathering
萃Cui
No. 45 · Lake over Earth
Cui (Gathering)
People and resources coming together in one place. What holds a gathering together is sincerity and a rightful center, and the more people there are, the more you need to prepare for surprises.
Cast your own hexagramIn Cui (Gathering), people and resources are coming together. It is a good time to host events, build a team and seek out people who can help. The key is a rightful center and sincere intentions, and with more people, a plan for when something goes wrong.
Favorable
- Reach out to people who can help
- Host a gathering
- Prepare a backup plan
- Build relationships sincerely
Avoid
- Saying yes to every invitation
- Forming factions
- Pulling rank on people
- Getting careless in a crowd
Work and money
- Job search
- Talent is gathering in one place, so apply at larger companies, go to career fairs and ask for referrals. The Judgment says it pays to see the great person: reaching out to senior people in your field works better than sending applications on your own.
- Business
- A good time to raise funds and host events that bring customers and partners together. The Judgment favors offering large animals: don't skimp on what the occasion needs. A launch or thank-you party done properly tends to stick in people's minds.
- Money
- Good for crowdfunding, group buys or pulling scattered accounts into one place. As money accumulates, set some aside for emergencies and unexpected costs.
Love and people
- Single
- Where people gather, there is opportunity: parties, weddings, clubs are all worth going to. The first line warns that a confused heart gathers at random, so don't say yes to everyone; spend more time with the one or two you really click with.
- In a relationship
- A good time to meet their family and go to family gatherings together, so people on both sides accept the relationship. The king going to the ancestral temple is about sincere respect: showing up properly matters more than an expensive gift.
- Getting back together
- Possible, but it likely takes a mutual friend to reconnect you. The second line says being drawn in brings good fortune: it tends to work when someone pulls you together. Going straight to them yourself can come across as not letting go.
- People and partnerships
- People are drawing toward you, and chances to collaborate multiply. The fifth line holds the honored place: if some still aren't convinced, don't pull rank. Keep doing the work right over time and goodwill tends to follow.
Daily life
- Exams and study
- Join a study group or a prep course with people aiming for the same goal. Cui (Gathering) is yielding and glad, and a good mood helps you study, but don't let it turn into chatting; set the problems you'll go over each time.
- Moving and travel
- Good for group tours or moving near friends and family. The Judgment says it pays to have somewhere to go, and traveling in a crowd is lively, but have one person in charge of documents and meeting times so nobody gets separated.
- Body and mind
- Lots of people and lots going on; socializing can drain you. The top line sighs with tears streaming, so if you're sad, let yourself cry and talk it out. If the tiredness doesn't lift, remember to see a doctor.
Traditional questions
- Something you are waiting for
- It comes together only when everyone is in place and the conditions add up; no single push will do it. Like water pooling on the ground, it builds slowly, and in a while the news is likely to arrive all at once.
- Disputes and lawsuits
- The other side may have rallied a crowd behind them, and you need weighty support too. The Tuan commentary speaks of gathering by what is right: win support with evidence and fairness rather than forming factions and trading insults.
- Lost things and people
- A good chance of finding it. Dui (Lake) points to water and openings, Kun (Earth) to the ground and cloth: look by a sink to the west, inside open bags, or in low piles of clothes and fabric.
Making a decision
Go ahead, especially if it needs many people to take part. Before you move, line up support from the right people and think through the risks.
If you are…
Cui (Gathering) is about bringing people together: first make sure everyone knows why they're playing, and sincerely ask each person to show up for practice. The Image says guard against the unforeseen, so set backups beyond the starters and a plan for injuries.
Patients come because they trust you. Cui (Gathering) needs a center, so invite their physician to answer the questions people most want to ask. Keep the program simple and let patients talk freely; that does more than a schedule packed with talks.
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.
亨。王假有廟，利見大人，亨，利貞。用大牲吉，利有攸往。
Success. The king goes to his ancestral temple. It pays to see the great person; success; steadfastness pays. Offering large animals brings good fortune. It pays to have somewhere to go.
Lake over Earth: Dui (Lake) above, Kun (Earth) below. Water collects on the ground and becomes a lake, and everything draws toward it. That is why the hexagram is called Cui (Gathering).
Six at the beginning
有孚不終，乃亂乃萃，若號，一握為笑，勿恤，往无咎。
There is sincerity, but not to the end, so there is confusion and gathering at random. If you cry out (to the one you should follow), a small handful of people laugh. Do not worry; going forward brings no blame.
You meant to stand with the right people, but the noise around you pulled you off course. Speaking up may get you laughed at. Let it go and return to the direction you had already chosen.
Small Image: 乃亂乃萃，其志亂也。
Six in the second place
引吉，无咎，孚乃利用禴。
Being drawn in brings good fortune and no blame. With sincerity, it is fitting to use the simple summer offering.
Someone offers you a hand, so take it and join in. When the sincerity is real, a simple gesture is enough; there is no need to spend a lot to keep the relationship going.
Small Image: 引吉无咎，中未變也。
Six in the third place
萃如，嗟如，无攸利，往无咎，小吝。
Wanting to gather, but only sighing. Nothing is gained. Going forward brings no blame, though a little humiliation.
The circle you want to join won't let you in, and all you can do is fret. Looking elsewhere for a way in is fine; you just have to set aside a bit of pride.
Small Image: 往无咎，上巽也。
Nine in the fourth place
大吉，无咎。
Only with great good fortune is there no blame.
Everyone is gathering around you, but your position isn't fully legitimate. Do the work well and for the common good, or people may say you stole the spotlight from those above you.
Small Image: 大吉无咎，位不當也。
Nine in the fifth place
萃有位，无咎。匪孚，元永貞，悔亡。
Holding the honored place in the gathering: no blame. If some still do not trust, keep a great, lasting and steadfast virtue, and regret disappears.
You are the center people gather around, and your position is secure. If some still aren't convinced, don't reach for authority to force them. Keep doing the right thing over time, and people tend to come around.
Small Image: 萃有位，志未光也。
Six at the top
齎咨涕洟，无咎。
Sighing and lamenting, tears streaming and nose running. No blame.
Being left out and unable to join in really hurts. Admitting where you stand and letting it show is better than pretending you're fine, and it leaves room for things to turn.
Small Image: 齎咨涕洟，未安上也。
萃，聚也；順以說，剛中而應，故聚也。王假有廟，致孝享也。利見大人亨，聚以正也。用大牲吉，利有攸往，順天命也。觀其所聚，而天地萬物之情可見矣。
Cui (Gathering) means gathering. Yielding below and glad above, the firm line holds the center and is answered: hence there is gathering. The king goes to his ancestral temple to make offerings with filial devotion. It pays to see the great person, and there is success: the gathering is by what is right. Offering large animals brings good fortune and it pays to have somewhere to go: this follows the mandate of heaven. Look at where things gather, and the true nature of heaven, earth and all things can be seen.
The Image澤上于地，萃；君子以除戎器，戒不虞。
The lake rises above the earth: this is Cui (Gathering). The noble person, seeing this, repairs the weapons to guard against the unforeseen.
The Sequence: why it comes here物相遇而後聚，故受之以萃；萃者聚也。
Before this comes Gou (Coming to Meet), which is meeting. People and things first meet, and only then come together, so Gou is followed by Cui (Gathering). Cui means gathering.
Miscellaneous Notes萃聚，而升不來也。
Cui (Gathering) is gathering in, people and things drawing to one place, while Sheng (Pushing Upward) goes up and does not come back. Cui settles where it is; Sheng keeps climbing.
Related hexagramsFAQ
What does Cui mean for love?
Where people gather, there is opportunity: parties, weddings, clubs are all worth going to. The first line warns that a confused heart gathers at random, so don't say yes to everyone; spend more time with the one or two you really click with. A good time to meet their family and go to family gatherings together, so people on both sides accept the relationship. The king going to the ancestral temple is about sincere respect: showing up properly matters more than an expensive gift.
What does Cui mean for work?
Talent is gathering in one place, so apply at larger companies, go to career fairs and ask for referrals. The Judgment says it pays to see the great person: reaching out to senior people in your field works better than sending applications on your own. Good for hiring, pooling resources and running large events. Whoever leads needs to be fair, and backup plans and ground rules should be ready in advance.
With Cui, will what I am waiting for come?
It comes together only when everyone is in place and the conditions add up; no single push will do it. Like water pooling on the ground, it builds slowly, and in a while the news is likely to arrive all at once.
With Cui, will I find what I lost?
A good chance of finding it. Dui (Lake) points to water and openings, Kun (Earth) to the ground and cloth: look by a sink to the west, inside open bags, or in low piles of clothes and fabric.
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.