Xiao Guo — Excess of the Small

The Judgement

小过卦：亨，利贞；可小事，不可大事；飞鸟遗之音，不宜上，宜下，大吉。

Success that goes through; holding to what is right is favourable. Small matters are possible, great matters are not. A flying bird leaves its call behind: it should not climb but come down. Highly auspicious.

AI commentaryIn Xiao Guo, yin lines outnumber yang and the small slightly overstep their bounds; it pictures going a little beyond the usual, correcting a fault by leaning past centre. Its judgement holds that a slight excess kept within steadfast correctness brings success that goes through, yet the time suits small matters, not great designs. Like the call a flying bird leaves behind, the fitting direction is downward, not upward: modest restraint is highly auspicious. The reading favours erring slightly, on the generous side, towards reverence, frugality and grief, and correcting the imbalance of the times through caution, never aiming too high or overstepping one's station.

AI plain readingIn Xiao Guo, yin lines outnumber yang, so the small and yielding side is slightly in excess. It describes going a little past the ordinary, like straightening a bent stick by bending it beyond true. The judgement says a slight excess still brings success that goes through if you hold to what is right, but the time suits small tasks, not grand plans. A flying bird's call carries downward: aim low rather than high, and modesty is highly auspicious. If you draw this hexagram, lean a little towards respect, thrift and genuine grief at times of loss, err on the generous side, and carefully correct whatever is out of balance. Avoid lofty ambitions and anything beyond your proper role.

The Great Image

山上有雷，小过；君子以行过乎恭，丧过乎哀，用过乎俭。

Thunder rolls above the Mountain: Xiao Guo. The noble person, accordingly, leans past the usual measure: more respect in conduct, more grief in mourning, more thrift in spending.

The Six Lines