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Hexagram 61: Inner Truth
中孚 · Zhōng Fú
Inner Truth. Pigs and fishes. Good fortune. It furthers one to cross the great water. Perseverance furthers.Judgment 卦辭
Wind over the lake: the image of Inner Truth. The superior man discusses criminal cases to delay executions.Image 象辭
Core Meaning of Hexagram 61
Hexagram 61 is inner truth — an empty, open center (two yin lines at the heart of four yang) like the wind moving over the lake: invisible force with real effect. Its emblem is disarming: truth so real it moves even pigs and fishes — the notoriously unmoved. Sincerity of this caliber does what armies cannot, including crossing the great water.
Hexagram 61 in a Reading
In a reading, the operative force is your sincerity itself — its presence or absence. Empty yourself of strategy and say/do the true thing plainly; even the unlikely party responds to real. The image’s mercy matters: the superior man delays executions — inner truth is generous before it is right, giving doubt the benefit. Power flows now not from position but from being demonstrably true at the center.
Common Questions
What does hexagram 61 mean?
Hexagram 61 is inner truth — an empty, open center (two yin lines at the heart of four yang) like the wind moving over the lake: invisible force with real effect. Read the full meaning above, or cast your own reading with our free online I Ching coins.
What is the structure of hexagram 61?
Hexagram 61 is built from the trigram Wind above and Lake below — binary 110011 read from the bottom line to the top. Inner Truth is King Wen number 61 of the 64 hexagrams.
Related Hexagrams
Other Hexagrams with Trigram Wind Above
Keywords: i ching hexagram 61, hexagram 61 meaning, inner truth, zhong fu, wind over lake, sincerity at the center, trust, influence on the difficult