Da Guo · Great Excess
大过卦 · 泽风大过
- Overload
- Crisis
- Responsibility
- Lightening the load
The Judgment
Tâ Kwo suggests to us a beam that is weak. There will be advantage in moving (under its conditions) in any direction whatever; there will be success.
栋桡。利有攸往，亨。
The Image
The lake rises above the trees: great excess. The noble one, in the same way, stands alone without fear and withdraws from the world without regret.
泽灭木，大过。君子以独立不惧，遁世无闷。
Plain-language reading
Your situation
The weight on your shoulders may already be more than you can carry. Da Guo is a roof beam that is thick in the middle and weak at both ends, a ridgepole bending under the load. Too much work, responsibility or emotion has piled up, the whole structure is losing balance, and if this continues something will give.
Where to put your effort
This is an extraordinary time that calls for extraordinary courage and measures: either cut the load decisively and redistribute it, or find new support. You cannot just grit your teeth and hold on where you are. Meanwhile, keep your inner independence and composure, and hold on to yourself under pressure.
Four areas of life
- Career
- Hold back and reflect; not a time to seek fame.
- Wealth
- Prices swing from low to high; hard to call.
- Family
- Guard against things tilting; a marriage with a large age gap.
- Health
- Liver and kidneys both strained; hard to cure fully.
Health notes come from traditional texts and are cultural reference only. If you feel unwell, please see a doctor.
The six lines
Read from the bottom up: the first line is at the bottom, the top line is at the top. Open each line for details.
Nine in the second placeThe second line, undivided, shows a decayed willow producing shoots, or an old husband in possession of his young wife. There will be advantage in every way.Moving
九二：枯杨生稊，老夫得其女妻，无不利。
Image：An old man with a young wife: extraordinary, yet they are good for each other.
- Career
- Fame in later life; defeat turned to victory.
- Wealth
- The timber business should be profitable.
- Family
- A withered tree blossoms; an older husband and young wife can have children.
- Health
- Dangerous at first, then safe.
Nine in the third placeThe third line, undivided, shows a beam that is weak. There will be evil.Moving
九三：栋桡，凶。
Image：The misfortune of the sagging ridgepole: it cannot be supported.
- Career
- Stubborn and headstrong; even success will fail in the end.
- Wealth
- Relying only on yourself, you lose both people and money.
- Family
- A broken beam makes the house unliveable; unfavourable for marriage.
- Health
- Something unexpected may happen.
Nine in the fourth placeThe fourth line, undivided, shows a beam curving upwards. There will be good fortune. If (the subject of it) looks for other (help but that of line one), there will be cause for regret.Moving
九四：栋隆，吉。有它吝。
Image：The good fortune of the bracing ridgepole: it does not sag below.
- Career
- You can take on great responsibility; do not waste yourself on small things.
- Wealth
- The timber business can be profitable.
- Family
- An impressive home.
- Health
- Chest tightness, but nothing serious.
Nine in the fifth placeThe fifth line, undivided, shows a decayed willow producing flowers, or an old wife in possession of her young husband. There will be occasion neither for blame nor for praise.Moving
九五：枯杨生花，老妇得其士夫，无咎无誉。
Image：A withered poplar flowers: how could it last? An old woman with a young husband: it is also shameful.
- Career
- Success in later life; aim for stability.
- Wealth
- Beware of romantic entanglements; you could lose both fame and fortune.
- Family
- Impropriety in the home; an older wife and younger husband.
- Health
- Neither good nor bad.
Related hexagrams
Judgment and line texts from the public-domain translation by James Legge (1882). Readings by DeepHeart AI.
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