䷔Biting ThroughShì Kè

The judgment

亨。利用狱

Something is stuck between the teeth and nothing passes until it breaks. This one calls for a clean bite, and it leaves marks on the one who makes it.

The image

Thunder under fire: a spark with force behind it. Heat without a bite scorches the surface and stops there.

The six lines

Read from the bottom up. A line that moves is read here, and read again in the hexagram it becomes.

1. 初九Line 1

   屦校灭趾，无咎

   A wooden brace locks the feet; each step jerks short, holding the walker in place.

   Marked in the textno blame

2. 六二Line 2

   噬肤灭鼻，无咎

   Biting soft flesh, the nose sinks in; ease tempts one to press too close.

   Marked in the textno blame

3. 六三Line 3

   噬昔肉，遇毒；小吝，无咎

   Biting spoiled meat, the bad taste is already in the mouth, yet pulling back feels wasteful.

   Marked in the textnarrow goingno blame

4. 九四Line 4

   噬干胏，得金矢，利艰贞，吉

   Dried meat still on the bone: the teeth strike something hard and cannot grind through, so the chewing slows and works at it again and again. At last the meat loosens and a bronze arrowhead shows itself, the thing that blocked the teeth was buried in the meat all along.

   Marked in the textauspicious

5. 六五Line 5

   噬干肉，得黄金，贞厉，无咎

   Tearing at dried meat, the teeth meet a lump of yellow bronze sunk deep in the fibers, too heavy to swallow and not to be spat out. Holding it there, the jaw aches; the body stays steady while the lump is worked loose bit by bit.

   Marked in the textdangerno blame

6. 上九Line 6

   何校灭耳，凶

   The yoke presses to the ears; still pushing forward, the sound around grows muffled.

   Marked in the textominous

Where each changing line leads

Flip one line and it is a different hexagram. These are the six it becomes.

• 初九→ProgressHexagram 35
• 六二→OppositionHexagram 38
• 六三→The ClingingHexagram 30
• 九四→NourishmentHexagram 27
• 六五→InnocenceHexagram 25
• 上九→The ArousingHexagram 51