益
“Augmenting” — King Wen #42
Increase. The time favors bold generosity and beginning great works.
The Judgment 卦辞
利有攸往，利涉大川。
Yi indicates that (in the state which it denotes) there will be advantage in every movement which shall be undertaken, that it will be advantageous (even) to cross the great stream.— The I Ching, trans. James Legge, 1899 (public domain)1
The Six Lines 爻辞
利用為大作，元吉，無咎。
The first NINE, undivided, shows that it will be advantageous for its subject in his position to make a great movement. If it be greatly fortunate, no blame will be imputed to him.
或益之十朋之龜，弗克違。永貞吉；王用享于帝，吉。
The second SIX, divided, shows parties adding to the stores of its subject ten pairs of tortoise shells whose oracles cannot be opposed. Let him persevere in being firm and correct, and there will be good fortune. Let the king, (having the virtues thus distinguished), employ them in presenting his offerings to God, and there will be good fortune.
益之用凶事，無咎；有孚中行，告公用圭。
The third SIX, divided, shows increase given to its subject by means of what is evil, so that he shall (be led to good), and be without blame. Let him be sincere and pursue the path of the Mean, (so shall he secure the recognition of the ruler, like) an officer who announces himself to his prince by the symbol of his rank.
中行，告公從，利用為依遷國。
The fourth SIX, divided, shows its subject pursuing the due course. His advice to his prince is followed. He can with advantage be relied on in such a movement as that of removing the capital.
有孚惠心，勿問元吉。有孚惠我德。
The fifth NINE, undivided, shows its subject with sincere heart seeking to benefit (all below). There need be no question about it; the result will be great good fortune. (All below) will with sincere heart acknowledge his goodness.
莫益之，或擊之，立心勿恆，凶。
In the sixth NINE, undivided, we see one to whose increase none will contribute, while many will seek to assail him. He observes no regular rule in the ordering of his heart. There will be evil.
Reading the Picture
Hexagram 42 places thunder (震) beneath wind (巽) —movement breaking out of stillness below, gentle influence working inward above. This is why the tradition reads it as “Augmenting”:increase. The time favors bold generosity and beginning great works Whenever you cast this figure, the classical reading points back to that turning of forces.
Questions About Hexagram 42
What does 益 (yì) mean?
Hexagram 42 of the I Ching is named 益 (yì), usually rendered "Augmenting" in English editions. Its figure pairs thunder (震) below with wind (巽) above.
Which trigrams form hexagram 42?
巽 (Wind) sits above and 震 (Thunder) sits below — the classical picture is movement breaking out of stillness beneath gentle influence working inward.
How is hexagram 42 related to the other hexagrams?
Changing every line of hexagram 42 gives hexagram 32 — 恆 (Persevering). Turned upside down it becomes hexagram 41 — 損 (Diminishing). Its nuclear hexagram — the inner pattern of lines 2 through 5 — is hexagram 23 — 剝 (Stripping).
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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.