Hexagram 18 of 64
蛊 gǔ
Work on the Decayed
艮 (gèn, Mountain) above · 巽 (xùn, Wind) below
The Judgment 卦辞
Something inherited or long-neglected has gone wrong at the root. Do not blame the past — dig it out, name it, and repair it. This work earns real respect.
The Image 大象
Below the mountain, wind: decay. The wise person stirs up the people and cultivates character, so that old damage becomes new growth.
The six lines 爻辞
Each line of 蛊 has its own classical text. If a line in your cast is changing, its text is the heart of your reading.
Line 1 · 初六
Repairing what the father left spoiled: a son equal to it. Hard, but ends well.
「干父之蛊，有子，考无咎，厉终吉」
Line 2 · 九二
Repairing what the mother left spoiled — gently. Some things cannot be forced straight.
「干母之蛊，不可贞」
Line 3 · 九三
Repairing the father's mess: some regret, no great blame. Do the work anyway.
「干父之蛊，小有悔，无大咎」
Line 4 · 六四
Tolerating the decay instead of repairing it. Going on like this brings trouble.
「裕父之蛊，往见吝」
Line 5 · 六五
Repair the spoilage and win honor for it. Cleaning up earns its praise.
「干父之蛊，用誉」
Line 6 · 上九
Serve no king nor lord — hold your task higher than that. Some work is its own rank.
「不事王侯，高尚其事」
If you drew this in a reading
A demanding pattern. This is one of the demanding patterns. It does not say "doom" — it says "the way through is narrow." Slow down, protect what matters, refuse shortcuts, and let the hexagram teach you the specific discipline it describes.
In yes/no questions this hexagram leans no — the pattern counsels holding back.
The trigrams give the flavor: 艮 (Mountain) above — keeping still — restraint, meditation, knowing when to stop — over 巽 (Wind) below — gentle penetration — gradual influence, flexibility, patience. Where those two energies meet, 蛊 is born.
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