Hexagram 46 of 64
升 shēng
Pushing Upward
坤 (kūn, Earth) above · 巽 (xùn, Wind) below
The Judgment 卦辞
Growth from within, pushing up through the earth like a tree — steadily, not by force. Go meet the great people; the direction is favorable.
The Image 大象
Within the earth, wood grows: pushing upward. The wise person, with devoted heart, piles up small things to make something high and great.
The six lines 爻辞
Each line of 升 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
Rising with real assent — great good fortune.
「允升，大吉」
Line 2 · 九二
Sincerity is the offering that matters. No blame in the simple rite.
「孚乃利用禴，无咎」
Line 3 · 九三
Rising into an empty town — nothing in the way. Unopposed ascent.
「升虚邑」
Line 4 · 六四
The king offers sacrifice at Mount Qi — good fortune, no blame. The ascent honors what is high.
「王用亨于岐山，吉无咎」
Line 5 · 六五
Steady good fortune, climbing stair by stair. The ascent has steps.
「贞吉，升阶」
Line 6 · 上六
Climbing blindly onward. Only ceaseless, honest effort still helps.
「冥升，利于不息之贞」
If you drew this in a reading
A favorable pattern. Among the sixty-four patterns, this one belongs to the favorable family: its core movement supports what you would do with it. Favorable does not mean automatic — the hexagram still asks you to hold up your end with steadiness and good faith.
In yes/no questions this hexagram leans yes — the pattern supports proceeding.
The trigrams give the flavor: 坤 (Earth) above — receptive devotion — nourishment, patience, carrying others — over 巽 (Wind) below — gentle penetration — gradual influence, flexibility, patience. Where those two energies meet, 升 is born.
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