I woke up on September 30th with the clearly formed thought that Hexagram 39 is describing exactly what just happened in Appalachia. Water over Mountain. I first came to know Jian as it was described to me by a teacher. They said it reminded them of the movie Fitzcarraldo, in which the title character, played by Klaus Kinski, is on a mission to move a steamboat over the Andes. The movie was made in 1982, a Water Dog year! Spoiler alert: things don’t turn out as planned, but his true intention is realized. #howfateworks

I write a monthly guide for subscribers in which I include a divination by way of the Yi Jing. I write the guide for people who want to incorporate Chinese Astrology and Date Selection into their lives, but also for people who want to learn more about Chinese Metaphysics. I always stick to first principles and that’s what I teach too. For best results, that’s the way.

This month the Yi Jing divination is based on a pair of Hexagrams – they are considered to be a pair by Yi Jing scholars. The annual Hexagram for the Wood Dragon year is number 38, Kui. The Hexagram for the Wood Dog month is number 39, Jian. This month of the Wood Dog is the culmination of the strangeness of the year. They are a pair, so we might consider how 38 might evolve into 39. Strangeness turns into difficulty. Take note that every line changes. Are you ready for that? Water clashes Fire, Earth clashes Water. Eclipsed again!

Hexagram 38

The hexagram Kui consists of the Fire trigram on the top and the Lake trigram on the bottom. Both trigrams are yin, meaning they represent middle daughter and the youngest daughter.

If you saw fire on top of water in real life, you would know something unusual is going on. If you saw it in a dream, that would make more sense. Strange things appear in dreams all the time. The text of Hexagram 38 describes a dream like experience, where symbols and images are hard to relate to a rational perspective. That has been my experience of this Wood Dragon year. I have seen things I never dreamed of, much less thought I would see.

In divination I like to leave logic behind for the first stage of interpretation and just go with what comes to mind. That process is what Hexagram 38 reminds me of. The ideograph consists of 目 mu on the left and 癸 gui on the right: a staring or squinting eye next to a ghost or grass mat for offering sacrifice. I’ll leave it to you to embellish these ideas with 2024 in mind.

Following the advice of Hexagram 38, I have been sticking to small matters in 2024. That is where I have found some good fortune. The larger matters have only just now become susceptible to influence. Maybe you’re experiencing something similar?

Hexagram 39

The hexagram Jian consists of the Water trigram over the Mountain trigram as I’ve already mentioned. In Hexagram 39 the trigrams are yang, meaning they represent the middle son and the youngest son. If we’re talking about 38 and 39 as a pair, we can see that focus has shifted from yin to yang – from what we couldn’t see to what is now obvious?

Since the literal interpretation of Water over Mountain has offered itself, I will stick with the forecast regarding the compass directions/locations that are mentioned in the Gua Ci: Advantage to the west and south, no advantage to the east and north. You might take this literally if you’re making a decision.

Hexagram 39 speaks of externally imposed difficulties but ultimately forecasts good fortune. This may not be the time to advance, read the room. Unity is a better option than advancement. Let the events come and respond accordingly. Whenever you see the line “Advantageous to see the Great Man” it’s a suggestion that you seek out someone with expertise, or perhaps a diviner. That’s the final text of line 6.

My reading of Jian this time is in the context of hurricane Helene and Appalachia. How does it resonate for you? Is the advice about personal matters or external ones? With the Yi Jing it’s usually both for me.