Hexagram 58: The Joyous
Outer trigram (upper)
Đoài
Marsh · Metal
Inner trigram (lower)
Đoài
Marsh · Metal
Judgment
兌：亨，利貞.
Translation
The Joyous (Lake): success. Favorable to hold to what is right.
Commentary
Dui (lake) sits both above and below. Lake follows lake — joy upon joy. Genuine joy has the power to move and inspire others, but one must hold to what is right and not fall into reckless indulgence.
Line Readings
Line 1 (yang)
初九：和兌，吉.
Translation
Joy that is harmonious and balanced — good fortune.
Commentary
This yang line is correctly placed. Its joy is natural and unforced, free of pretense, and untouched by outside temptation — a favorable sign.
Line 2 (yang)
九二：孚兌，吉，悔亡.
Translation
Joy grounded in sincerity — good fortune, and regret vanishes.
Commentary
This yang line holds the central position. Its joy comes from genuine, sincere feeling, and it is not lured astray by outside temptation (represented by line 3) — good fortune, and regret dissolves.
Line 3 (yin)
六三：來兌，凶.
Translation
Joy that comes chasing after outside pleasure — misfortune.
Commentary
This yin line is neither central nor correctly placed. It seeks joy from external sources, tempting others into reckless pleasure, without any real inner contentment of its own — misfortune.
Line 4 (yang)
九四：商兌未寧，介疾有喜.
Translation
He weighs where his joy should lie and is not yet settled; by discerning what is harmful and avoiding it, he finds cause for happiness.
Commentary
This yang line is not centrally placed, caught between two competing sources of joy — the corrupting pull of line 3 and the wholesome influence of line 5 — and has not yet made up its mind. By recognizing what is harmful and steering clear of it, it finds genuine cause for joy.
Line 5 (yang)
九五：孚于剝，有厲.
Translation
Placing trust in someone who exploits and erodes from within — there is danger.
Commentary
This yang line is central and correctly placed, but it sits close to line 6, a yin line representing someone untrustworthy. Trusting such a corrosive influence is dangerous — one must stay alert to the small-minded person standing nearby.
Line 6 (yin)
上六：引兌.
Translation
Joy drawn out and prolonged without end.
Commentary
This yin line stands at the extreme, endlessly stretching out its pleasure without knowing when to stop, lacking self-restraint. This is cause for concern, even though the text does not state outright whether it is fortunate or unfortunate.