Fire rises toward heaven: two things that share the same upward direction. Tong Ren is fellowship based on common purpose, open to everyone and not limited to family or faction. It succeeds when it is public, principled and inclusive, and fails when it becomes a clique. Shared goals make great undertakings possible.
Judgment
同人于野，亨。利涉大川，利君子貞。
Fellowship in the open country: success. Favorable to cross the great river. Favorable: the noble one's steadfastness.
Image
天與火，同人；君子以類族辨物。
Heaven together with fire: fellowship. Taking this as a model, the noble one groups clans by kind and tells things apart.
- Community with shared purpose
- Openness beyond factions
- Collaboration
- Principled unity
- Clear organization
- fellowship
- community
- cooperation
- inclusion
- purpose
- openness
- Unite around shared values, not narrow interests.
- True fellowship is open, not secret or exclusive.
- Clarity about differences makes real unity possible.
The six lines
Lines are numbered from the bottom. In a reading, only the lines that are changing apply to your cast.
Line 1Nine at the beginning 初九
Line text
同人于門，无咎。
Fellowship at the gate: no blame.
At the beginning of a shared effort, everything is open, as if gathered at the gate. Without hidden agendas there are no grounds for blame.
- Open beginnings
- Transparency
- Starting with secret arrangements
- A collaboration built on transparency
Line 2Six in the second place 六二
Line text
同人于宗，吝。
Fellowship within the clan: regret.
Union confined to your own group, family or faction becomes narrow and self-serving. Exclusiveness brings regret.
- Cliquishness
- Narrow loyalty
- Favoring your own group unfairly
- Widening the circle
Line 3Nine in the third place 九三
Line text
伏戎于莽，升其高陵，三歲不興。
Troops hidden in the undergrowth; climbing the high hill to look out. For three years, no rising up.
Mistrust has replaced fellowship. Hidden hostility and watchful suspicion make action impossible, and the stalemate drags on.
- Mistrust
- Hidden hostility
- Harboring hidden grievances
- Bringing suspicion into the open
Line 4Nine in the fourth place 九四
Line text
乘其墉，弗克攻，吉。
Mounting the city wall, but unable to attack. Good fortune.
The conflict reaches a point where attacking is no longer possible, and on reflection, no longer right. Turning back from hostility brings good fortune.
- Turning away from attack
- Reconciliation
- Pressing a fight against your better judgment
- Peace through recognizing limits
Line 5Nine in the fifth place 九五
Line text
同人，先號咷而後笑，大師克相遇。
Fellowship: first wailing, then laughter. Great armies succeed in meeting.
People who belong together are separated by obstacles, which causes grief. Overcoming the separation brings joy. Deep bonds survive hardship.
- Reunion after struggle
- Enduring bonds
- Giving up on a bond too soon
- Joyful reunion after difficulty
Line 6Nine at the top 上九
Line text
同人于郊，无悔。
Fellowship in the meadows outside the city: no regret.
The fellowship is not yet complete or wide, but it is sincere among those present. Nothing to regret, though more remains possible.
- Partial fellowship
- Contentment with modest unity
- Expecting complete unity too soon
- Valuing the connection that exists
Related hexagrams
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Cast a readingChinese text: Zhouyi 周易 (received classical text). English rendering and notes: Site rendering. About our sources
Commentary
Fire and heaven both move upward, which makes them natural companions. Tong Ren is the hexagram of people who join together for a common aim. The judgment places this fellowship "in the open", in public and not behind closed doors, and this openness is the key to its success. The reading may suggest that your situation calls for cooperation and broadening your circle.
The image adds a necessary refinement: real unity does not erase differences but organizes them. Each person's role is clear. Fellowship based on factional interest turns into its opposite. In relation to a question, Tong Ren may emphasize collaboration, shared goals and the difference between community and cliquishness.