62 小過 Small Preponderance
Judgement
This is a time of small things: you can advance in the minor, not in the major. There is progress, always with firmness and integrity, and a subtle image: the cry of a bird in flight, coming down toward you; better to descend than ascend. Humility and sobriety go well. Do not launch into feats. Ask yourself what small matter you can look after well today without aiming for more.
Image
Thunder over a hill: a noise that never becomes a storm. The wise person, in conduct, goes a little far in humility, in mourning a little far in grief, and in spending a little far in saving. It is a discreet excess in small things, always toward the sober. Ask yourself where you could err toward humility or prudence at no real cost.
Lines
Line 1
A bird flies and keeps climbing until it ends badly. This is the image of someone who rises without need, when the time asks to stay low. The urge to go beyond, at this moment, does not help. Ask yourself whether you are climbing without need.
Line 2
You pass by your grandfather and meet your grandmother; you attempt nothing against your lord and find him as a minister. You are unlikely to go wrong. This is the indirect road: you do not reach the first, but you find what you need another way. Ask yourself what indirect route you could use if the main one is closed.
Line 3
You take no extraordinary precautions against danger, and some take the chance to attack you. That tends to end badly. Overconfidence in delicate times has a cost. It is not fear, it is prudence: a little extra attention can prevent a lot. Ask yourself what small oversight leaves you exposed, and what simple precaution you could take without obsessing.
Line 4
You are unlikely to go wrong: you face the situation without overstepping what is natural. If you advance, there is danger and it helps to be cautious. You need not keep up your firmness forever. Ask yourself where you cling to a firmness that is no longer needed.
Line 5
Dense clouds come from the western borders and no rain falls. The prince shoots his arrow and catches a bird in a cave. Something builds up without release, and still there is a quiet hit: catching what is hidden. Ask yourself what tension you have been building up without discharging, and what small achievement you could celebrate meanwhile.
Line 6
You do not face the situation and you overshoot your course. It is like a bird flying very high. That tends to end badly: it is calamity of your own making. You did not use what was within reach and went far. Ask yourself what excess of yours is carrying you beyond the reasonable.
Reflection
- What small matter can you look after well today without aiming for more?
- What indirect route could you use if the main one is closed?
- What excess of yours carries you beyond the reasonable?