Hexagram 61: Inner Truth
中孚 Zhōng Fú · Wind over Lake
This hexagram is about genuine sincerity: trust that comes from an honest center and reaches even hard-to-reach people. When your words and intentions are true, they carry further than you expect. Open yourself without prejudice to understand others, and let your influence rest on real feeling rather than on argument or pressure.
| Number (King Wen order) | 61 |
|---|---|
| Chinese name | 中孚 (Zhōng Fú) |
| Upper trigram | ☴ Wind (Xùn): gentle, penetrating |
| Lower trigram | ☱ Lake (Duì): joyful, open |
| Unicode symbol | ䷼ |
On this page (9)
Hexagram 61 in plain words
Wind blows over the lake. The wind stirs the water and moves it, the invisible acting on the visible. The hexagram's shape also shows an open space at the center, two yielding lines framed by strong ones, the image of a heart free of prejudice and therefore able to take in the truth. Tradition says that even pigs and fishes are reached, meaning sincerity touches even the least receptive.
The commentary says the wise person takes time over hard judgments, in other words, approaches others with understanding rather than haste to judge. Inner truth here means two things: being truthful yourself, and seeing others as they really are. When you have both, your influence works quietly, like a crane calling and its young answering from far away. The lines warn against hidden motives and against leaning on others too much, and finally against empty words that claim more than they can deliver. Speak from where you actually stand. Let your sincerity be steady and unforced, and trust that it does its work.
The judgment
Kung Fû (moves even) pigs and fish, and leads to good fortune. There will be advantage in crossing the great stream. There will be advantage in being firm and correct.
Translation: James Legge, 1882 (public domain).
The image
(The trigram representing the waters of) a marsh and that for wind above it form Kung Fû. The superior man, in accordance with this, deliberates about cases of litigation and delays (the infliction of) death.
From Legge's Appendix II (the Great Symbolism), The Sacred Books of the East, vol. 16, 1882 (public domain).
In plain words: Wind moves over the lake and stirs it all the way down. Let sincerity guide you: think twice before you judge anyone, and choose patience over harshness.
The six lines
Read only the lines that changed in your reading. Lines are counted from the bottom.
Line 1 (bottom)
The first NINE, undivided, shows its subject resting (in himself). There will be good fortune. If he sought to any other, he would not find rest.
Being ready in yourself brings good fortune. If you have hidden designs or lean on others, you lose your peace.
Line 2
The second NINE, undivided, shows its subject (like) the crane crying out in her hidden retirement, and her young ones responding to her. (It is as if it were said), 'I have a cup of good spirits,' (and the response were), 'I will partake of it with you.'
A crane calls in the shade, and its young one answers. I have a good cup of wine and will share it with you: honest feeling finds an echo.
Line 3
The third SIX, divided, shows its subject having met with his mate. Now he beats his drum, and now he leaves off. Now he weeps, and now he sings.
You find a partner or a rival, and now you drum, now you stop, now weep, now sing. Depending on someone else for your mood leaves you swinging back and forth.
Line 4
The fourth SIX, divided, shows its subject (like) the moon nearly full, and (like) a horse (in a chariot) whose fellow disappears. There will be no error.
The moon is nearly full, and one horse of the pair goes its own way. Leaving a partisan bond to follow what is higher brings no blame.
Line 5
The fifth NINE, undivided, shows its subject perfectly sincere, and linking (others) to him in closest union. There will be no error.
Your sincerity links people together like a chain. There is no blame.
Line 6 (top)
The topmost NINE, undivided, shows its subject in chanticleer (trying to) mount to heaven. Even with firm correctness there will be evil.
The rooster's crow tries to reach heaven. Claims that go beyond your real substance bring misfortune if you insist on them.
Related hexagrams
| Opposite (every line changed) | 62. Small Exceeding |
|---|---|
| Inverse (turned upside down) | 61. Inner Truth (itself) |
| Nuclear (lines 2 to 5) | 27. Nourishment |
All three relations have traditional Chinese names (cuo gua for the opposite, zong gua for the inverse, hu gua for the nuclear). Many modern readers use the opposite as the shadow side of a situation, the inverse as the same moment seen from the other side, and the nuclear hexagram as its inner core.
If one line changes
With a single changing line, hexagram 61 turns into:
| Line 1 changes | Hexagram 59, Dispersion |
|---|---|
| Line 2 changes | Hexagram 42, Increase |
| Line 3 changes | Hexagram 9, Small Taming |
| Line 4 changes | Hexagram 10, Treading |
| Line 5 changes | Hexagram 41, Decrease |
| Line 6 changes | Hexagram 60, Limitation |
Learn more: what the I Ching is, how to read changing lines, the eight trigrams, how to cast with coins or yarrow.
Hexagram 61 in love and relationships
In love, honesty and openness are everything right now. Say what you truly feel, listen without judgment, and trust builds on its own.
Hexagram 61 for work and decisions
At work, your credibility is your strongest asset. Communicate plainly, keep promises, and try to understand others before judging them.
Questions
What does hexagram 61 mean?
This hexagram is about genuine sincerity: trust that comes from an honest center and reaches even hard-to-reach people. When your words and intentions are true, they carry further than you expect. Open yourself without prejudice to understand others, and let your influence rest on real feeling rather than on argument or pressure.
What does hexagram 61 mean in love?
In love, honesty and openness are everything right now. Say what you truly feel, listen without judgment, and trust builds on its own.
What does hexagram 61 mean for work?
At work, your credibility is your strongest asset. Communicate plainly, keep promises, and try to understand others before judging them.
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