HEXAGRAM 45 · cuì

Gathering Together

Gathering into a real center: numbers, trust, and the order that keeps a group together

泽地萃Classical Chinese included

Translation approach

The Chinese source stays visible. Where an editorial close rendering is available, it stays near the wording before Astro I Ching expands into cultural interpretation. Why we separate these layers →

CLASSICAL CHINESE

The source anchor

Read the source first. The English layer below remains accountable to these passages rather than replacing them with a simplified verdict.

卦辞 · Judgment

萃：亨。王假有庙，利见大人，亨。利贞。用大牲吉，利有攸往。

Close rendering

Gathering Together: success. The king comes to the ancestral temple. Favorable to see the great person; success. Favorable to remain correct. Using a great sacrifice brings good fortune. Favorable to have somewhere to go.

《大象》 · Image

泽上于地，萃；君子以除戎器，戒不虞。

Close rendering

Lake above Earth: Gathering Together. The noble person therefore prepares weapons and guards against the unexpected.

How to read the middle layer

Close rendering stays near wording and sequence. It is not presented as the only possible translation; the cultural reading below is where Astro I Ching explains image, structure, and practical logic in fuller English.

ASTRO I CHING · CULTURAL READING

Why this hexagram says what it says

Cultural reading of the image

Lake gathers upon Earth, drawing people and resources toward a shared center. Cui asks how a crowd becomes more than a temporary congregation.

Cultural reading of the judgment

Gathering is not the same as cohesion. The larger the group, the more important shared purpose, trustworthy order, and preparation for pressure become.

SIX LINES · ONE STORY

How the hexagram develops from bottom to top

Line 1 · 初六

Classical Chinese

有孚不终，乃乱乃萃，若号一握为笑，勿恤，往无咎。

Close rendering

There is trust, but it does not continue. Then there is confusion, then gathering. If one calls out, a handshake turns it into laughter. Do not worry. Going forward brings no blame.

Cultural reading

Early gathering without stable trust easily forms and dissolves. A shared voice has to become more than a temporary mood.

Line 2 · 六二

Classical Chinese

引吉，无咎，孚乃利用禴。

Close rendering

Being drawn into the gathering brings good fortune and no blame. With trust, even a simple seasonal offering is favorable.

Cultural reading

Healthy gathering does not require controlling every movement; being drawn by a trustworthy relationship can be enough.

Line 3 · 六三

Classical Chinese

萃如，嗟如，无攸利，往无咎，小吝。

Close rendering

Gathering with sighs. Nothing is especially favorable. Going forward brings no blame, only a little regret.

Cultural reading

Wanting to join without finding a place reveals that gathering has not yet become belonging.

Line 4 · 九四

Classical Chinese

大吉，无咎。

Close rendering

Great good fortune. No blame.

Cultural reading

Calling people together matters less than carrying the responsibilities that appear after they arrive.

Line 5 · 九五

Classical Chinese

萃有位，无咎。匪孚，元永贞，悔亡。

Close rendering

Gathered in a position of authority. No blame. If trust is still lacking, maintain great and enduring constancy; regret disappears.

Cultural reading

A central position does not automatically create trust. Consistent principle turns authority into cohesion over time.

Line 6 · 上六

Classical Chinese

赍咨涕洟，无咎。

Close rendering

Sighing and tears. No blame.

Cultural reading

Even at the height of gathering, insecurity may remain; numbers and emotional safety are not the same thing.

BRING IT BACK TO LIFE

What this can help you notice

Useful for communities, events, organizations, and coalitions where gathering people is easy but creating a trustworthy center is harder.

A common misreading

Gathering Together is not cohesion by itself. A crowd without a shared center can still disperse under pressure.

Keep the classical text and the interpretive layer separate: one is the source, the other is Astro I Ching's explanation of how the source can be read.

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