Hexagram 45: Gathering
Outer trigram (upper)
Đoài
Marsh · Metal
Inner trigram (lower)
Khôn
Earth · Earth
Judgment
萃：亨，王假有廟，利見大人，亨，利貞，用大牲，吉，利有攸往.
Translation
Gathering Together: success. The king approaches the ancestral temple. It is favorable to see a great person, success, favorable to hold to what is right, favorable to use a substantial offering — good fortune, favorable to have somewhere to go.
Commentary
Above is Tui, the lake; below is Khôn, the earth. Water gathers on the earth to form a lake, just as all things gather together. Line 5, yang, centered and correctly placed, becomes the point around which everything else converges. Any true gathering needs a center — a temple, a leader — along with sincerity and adherence to what is right.
Line Readings
Line 1 (yin)
初六：有孚不終，乃亂乃萃，若號，一握為笑，勿恤，往，无咎.
Translation
Sincerity that is not sustained brings confusion before the gathering forms. But if you call out sincerely, hands will clasp in laughter — do not worry, go forward, no blame.
Commentary
Line 1, yin, is not correctly placed, and its sincerity wavers, causing some initial confusion. Yet if it calls out with genuine feeling, others will join it warmly and joyfully — there is no need to worry, and moving forward brings no fault.
Line 2 (yin)
六二：引吉，无咎，孚乃利用禴.
Translation
Being drawn along by another brings good fortune, no blame. With true sincerity, even a modest summer offering is favorable.
Commentary
Line 2 is yin, centered and correctly placed, and corresponds with line 5, yang — being led into the gathering by it is a good thing. Because its sincerity is genuine, even a simple offering is accepted.
Line 3 (yin)
六三：萃如嗟如，无攸利，往无咎，小吝.
Translation
Wishing to gather but only sighing, nothing is gained. Moving forward brings no blame, though a little regret remains.
Commentary
Line 3 is yin, neither centered nor correctly placed. It wants to belong to the gathering but cannot find its proper place, hence the sighing. Moving up to follow line 4 avoids fault, though not without some lingering regret.
Line 4 (yang)
九四：大吉，无咎.
Translation
Great good fortune, no blame.
Commentary
Line 4 is yang and not correctly placed, but sits close to the ruler and helps bring the gathering together — a considerable achievement. Only work carried out with real integrity and on a large scale avoids fault here; done rightly, it is great good fortune.
Line 5 (yang)
九五：萃有位，无咎，匪孚，元永貞，悔亡.
Translation
Gathering others from a position of authority, there is no blame. If trust is not yet complete, holding steady to what is right over time will dissolve any regret.
Commentary
Line 5 is yang, centered and correctly placed, in the position of honor, and leads the gathering. If it has not yet won everyone's full trust, persisting patiently in the right course will eventually clear away any regret.
Line 6 (yin)
上六：齎咨涕洟，无咎.
Translation
Sighing and weeping — no blame.
Commentary
Line 6, yin, sits at the very end, isolated with no one to gather with, hence the grief. But recognizing this pain and reflecting honestly on it keeps it free of real fault.