坤
“Field” — King Wen #2
Pure receptive force. Success comes through yielding, patience and steady support of what already is.
The Judgment 卦辞
元亨，利牝馬之貞。君子有攸往，先迷，後得主，利。西南得朋，東北喪朋。安貞吉。
Kun (represents) what is great and originating, penetrating, advantageous, correct and having the firmness of a mare. When the superior man (here intended) has to make any movement, if he take the initiative, he will go astray; if he follow, he will find his (proper) lord. The advantageousness will be seen in his getting friends in the south-west, and losing friends in the north-east. If he rest in correctness and firmness, there will be good fortune.— The I Ching, trans. James Legge, 1899 (public domain)1
The Six Lines 爻辞
履霜，堅冰至。
In the first SIX, divided, (we see its subject) treading on hoarfrost. The strong ice will come (by and by).
直方大，不習無不利。
The second SIX, divided, (shows the attribute of) being straight, square, and great. (Its operation), without repeated efforts, will be in every respect advantageous.
含章可貞；或從王事，無成有終。
The third SIX, divided, (shows its subject) keeping his excellence under restraint, but firmly maintaining it. If he should have occasion to engage in the king's service, though he will not claim the success (for himself), he will bring affairs to a good issue.
括囊，無咎無譽。
The fourth SIX, divided, (shows the symbol of) a sack tied up. There will be no ground for blame or for praise.
黃裳，元吉。
The fifth SIX, divided, (shows) the yellow lower garment. There will be great good fortune.
龍戰于野，其血玄黃。
The sixth SIX, divided (shows) dragons fighting in the wild. Their blood is purple and yellow.
Reading the Picture
Hexagram 2 places earth (坤) beneath earth (坤) —receptive ground holding all things below, receptive ground holding all things above. This is why the tradition reads it as “Field”:pure receptive force. Success comes through yielding, patience and steady support of what already is Whenever you cast this figure, the classical reading points back to that turning of forces.
Questions About Hexagram 2
What does 坤 (kūn) mean?
Hexagram 2 of the I Ching is named 坤 (kūn), usually rendered "Field" in English editions. Its figure pairs earth (坤) below with earth (坤) above.
Which trigrams form hexagram 2?
坤 (Earth) sits above and 坤 (Earth) sits below — the classical picture is receptive ground holding all things beneath receptive ground holding all things.
How is hexagram 2 related to the other hexagrams?
Changing every line of hexagram 2 gives hexagram 1 — 乾 (Force). Turned upside down, the figure is itself — one of the four symmetrical hexagrams. Its nuclear hexagram — the inner pattern of lines 2 through 5 — is itself.
Ask your own question
Reading about hexagram 2 is looking it up. Casting it — shaking the tube, watching your own coins fall — is how an answer becomes yours.
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1 Legge, James. The Yi King, Sacred Books of the East vol. XVI (1899), public domain. Classical Chinese from the received Zhouyi text. · For reflection and entertainment — not financial, medical, or life advice.