Ko / Revolution (Molting)
above:Tui The Joyous, Lake
below:Li The Clinging, Flame
The Chinese character for this hexagram means in its original sense an
animal's pelt, which is changed in the course of the year by molting.
From this word is carried over to apply to the "moltings" in political
life, the great revolutions connected with changes of governments.
The two trigrams making up the hexagram are the same two that appear in
K'uei, OPPOSITION (38),
that is, the two younger daughters, Li and Tui. But while there the
elder of the two daughters is above, and what results is essentially
only an opposition of tendencies, here the younger daughter is above.
The influences are in actual conflict, and the forces combat each other
like fire and water (lake), each trying to destroy the other. Hence the
idea of revolution.
The Judgement
REVOLUTION. On your own day
You are believed.
Supreme success,
Furthering through perseverance.
Remorse disappears.
Political revolutions are extremely grave matters. They should be
undertaken only under stress of direst necessity, when there is no
other way out. Not everyone is called to this task, but only the man
who has the confidence of the people, and even he only when the time is
ripe. He must then proceed in the right way, so that he gladdens the
people and, by enlightening them, prevents excesses. Furthermore, he
must be quite free of selfish aims and must really relieve the need of
the people. Only then does he have nothing to regret.
Times change, and with them their demands. Thus the seasons change in
the course of the year. In the world cycle also there are spring and
autumn in the life of peoples and nations, and these call for social
transformations.
The Image
Fire in the lake: the image of REVOLUTION.
Thus the superior man
Sets the calendar in order
And makes the seasons clear.
Fire below and the lake above combat and destroy each other. So too in the course of the year a combat takes place between the forces of light and the forces of darkness, eventuating in the revolution of the seasons. Man masters these changes in nature by noting their regularity and marking off the passage of time accordingly. In this way order and clarity appear in the apparently chaotic changes of the seasons, and man is able to adjust himself in advance to the demands of the different times.