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Hexagram 53: Development
漸 · Jiàn
Development. The maiden is given in marriage. Good fortune. Perseverance furthers.Judgment 卦辭
On the mountain, a tree: the image of Development. The superior man keeps to his dignity and by this gains respect.Image 象辭
Core Meaning of Hexagram 53
Hexagram 53 is gradual progress — the wild goose flying stepwise up the shore, tree growing on the rocky mountain. Nothing here leaps; everything advances by lawful stages, each position properly reached before the next. The classic application is courtship and marriage done in order — courtship honored stagewise — but it governs any ripening excellence: careers, craft, healing.
Hexagram 53 in a Reading
In a reading, go gradually — and dignify the process. Skip no step; each stage has duties that make the next one sound (the goose does not despise the shore on its way to the heights). Rushed intimacy, hacked growth, skipped apprenticeships — all store collapse. Keep your bearing while slow (‘keeps to his dignity’); patience is not passivity. Steady, staged advance now brings the good fortune.
Common Questions
What does hexagram 53 mean?
Hexagram 53 is gradual progress — the wild goose flying stepwise up the shore, tree growing on the rocky mountain. Read the full meaning above, or cast your own reading with our free online I Ching coins.
What is the structure of hexagram 53?
Hexagram 53 is built from the trigram Wind above and Mountain below — binary 001011 read from the bottom line to the top. Development is King Wen number 53 of the 64 hexagrams.
Related Hexagrams
Other Hexagrams with Trigram Wind Above
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