42. Increase 益
Yi · Thunder over Wind
The Judgment
Increase favors bold movement and undertaking what matters. This is a time when energy flows downward to nourish what is below, and the effort you invest tends to multiply. Conditions support crossing into new territory, even ambitious ventures. Act while the current runs in your favor, and direct the surplus toward others as well as yourself.
The Image
Wind and thunder reinforce each other, each amplifying the other's force. The wise person, seeing this, moves toward the good without hesitation and corrects faults the moment they appear.
What it means
Increase is the mirror image of Decrease: a season when adding, investing, and expanding pay off. Resources, goodwill, and momentum are available, and what you put in tends to return amplified. The wind-and-thunder image points to compounding energy, where the right actions reinforce one another.
The deeper teaching is that genuine increase often comes from what flows downward, from those with more giving to those with less. Lifting others, sharing your gains, and strengthening your foundation are not distractions from growth; they are its engine.
Move decisively now, but stay self-correcting. The combination of forward initiative and quick honesty about your own mistakes is what keeps growth healthy rather than reckless. Improve continuously, and let your gains lift the people around you.
Love and relationships
Give generously and openly now; warmth and effort invested in the relationship return enriched, and bold sincerity is welcomed.
Career and decisions
A strong window for launching, investing, and expanding; pour energy into worthwhile projects and share the upside, and momentum tends to compound.
The six lines
- 1. Six at the beginning
This is the time for a significant undertaking, and great works bring good fortune. With strong backing behind you, aim high and act.
When changing: Encourages launching an ambitious effort while support is strong.
- 2. Nine in the second place
Lasting benefit comes your way, beyond what anyone could turn aside. Stay steady and sincere, and the gain holds.
When changing: Indicates durable good fortune that rewards constancy.
- 3. Nine in the third place
Even hard events can become a source of growth when met honestly. Stay sincere and walk a measured middle path, and difficulty turns useful.
When changing: Shows adversity converting into benefit when handled with integrity.
- 4. Nine in the fourth place
Walk a balanced course and others will trust your counsel and follow your lead. Sound judgment makes you someone people rely on in transitions.
When changing: Signals you can guide a significant change if you stay balanced and trusted.
- 5. Six in the fifth place
A kind and sincere heart needs no questioning; its goodness is plain, and it is met with kindness in return. Genuine generosity is its own reward.
When changing: Affirms that wholehearted goodwill brings recognition without effort.
- 6. Six at the top
If you stop giving and only take, you lose the support that fed your growth. A heart that becomes inconstant invites trouble.
When changing: Warns that hoarding or selfishness reverses the gains you've enjoyed.
Related hexagrams
益 Increase
Cast this for your questionOn-page guidance is original modern synthesis for reflection, informed by the public-domain Legge text. It is not a reproduction of any copyrighted translation, and not a prediction.