Cast & Chart

Hexagram 58 of 64

Joy

兌 Duì

Upper trigram: 兌 Duì, lake

Lower trigram: 兌 Duì, lake

The judgment

亨。利貞。

Success. It is fitting to hold firm.

The Great Image

麗澤，兌；君子以朋友講習。

Lakes joined side by side: this is Joy. In the same way, the noble person discusses and practices with friends.

The six lines

Lines are counted from the bottom. Read a line closely when it changes in your cast.

  1. Line 1 初九

    和兌，吉。

    Harmonious joy. Good fortune.

    This joy is the easygoing kind that fits in with others and asks for nothing. Consider where a simple, friendly presence is all that is needed from you.

  2. Line 2 九二

    孚兌，吉，悔亡。

    Trusting joy. Good fortune. Regret goes.

    Here the joy rests on being believed. Ask whether the cheer you show people matches what you actually think.

  3. Line 3 六三

    來兌，凶。

    Coming after joy. Misfortune.

    This joy comes courting from outside and wants something in return. Ask what a pleasant offer or a bit of flattery is really asking of you.

  4. Line 4 九四

    商兌，未寧，介疾有喜。

    Bargaining over joy, not yet at rest. Walled off from the affliction, there is gladness.

    Someone is bargaining over which pleasure to take and cannot rest. Ask what you would need to set a boundary against so that your mind could settle.

  5. Line 5 九五

    孚于剝，有厲。

    Trust placed in what strips away. There is danger.

    Trust is being given here to something that wears you down. Ask who or what you keep believing in despite what it takes from you.

  6. Line 6 上六

    引兌。

    Joy drawn along.

    Something is drawing pleasure along as if on a line, and the text gives no verdict. Consider who is doing the pulling.

What this hexagram says

This hexagram is lake below and lake above, each with two solid lines under one broken line. Standing water gives a bright surface that refreshes what is around it. Tradition also links this trigram with the open mouth, with speech and with pleasure.

The judgment is only two phrases: Success, and it is fitting to hold firm. Pleasure is welcome here on the condition that it keeps its footing. The image adds friends talking over what they are learning. Ask whether your enjoyment is shared and honest.

If your question is about a friendship, a team's mood or how to spend your time, tradition reads this as a time for open conversation and real enjoyment. The lines caution against pleasure that flatters, pleasure that bargains and trust placed in what wears you down.

A hexagram is a prompt for reflection. It cannot promise a result, and it is no substitute for medical, legal or financial advice.

Where this text comes from

The Chinese follows the Wikisource text of the Zhou Yi (its page for this hexagram, 周易/兌), compared with the Project Gutenberg edition. The Great Image comes from the Wikisource page 周易/大象.

  • Wikisource, 周易

    Retrieved 2026-11-08

  • Project Gutenberg eBook 25501, 易經

    Retrieved 2026-11-08

Read this hexagram with its traditional commentaries in our library.

The English renderings and the advice are by Cast & Chart. The advice is a modern reading and is not part of the classical text.