Hexagram 18
RepairingGǔ 蠱
Also translated as Work on What Has Been Spoiled, Decay, Remedying.
Mountain above Wind / Wood below
The character shows worms in a bowl: something left untended has gone bad. Gu is about inherited problems, such as family patterns, neglected structures and stale habits, and the work of setting them right. The decay is not a reason for despair; it is a call to act. Careful reflection before and after the repair keeps the work from simply repeating old mistakes.
Judgment
蠱：元亨，利涉大川。先甲三日，後甲三日。
Corruption: supreme success. Favorable to cross the great river. Three days before the first day, three days after.
Image
山下有風，蠱；君子以振民育德。
Wind below the mountain: corruption. Taking this as a model, the noble one rouses the people and nurtures virtue.
- Repairing inherited problems
- Facing neglect
- Renewal through effort
- Careful planning
- Breaking old patterns
- repair
- decay
- renewal
- responsibility
- reform
- inheritance
- Problems that were inherited can still be fixed by you.
- Consider the causes before acting and the consequences after.
- Renewal takes energetic, sustained work.
The six lines
Lines are numbered from the bottom. In a reading, only the lines that are changing apply to your cast.
Line 1Six at the beginning 初六
Line text
幹父之蠱，有子，考无咎，厲終吉。
Setting right the father's corruption. Because there is a son, the late father is blameless. Danger, but in the end good fortune.
The problem stems from tradition or rigid habit and has not yet gone deep. Correcting it now honors the past rather than condemning it, though the work has risks.
- Correcting early
- Honoring while changing
- Treating reform as rejection of the past
- Fixing a pattern before it hardens
Line 2Nine in the second place 九二
Line text
幹母之蠱，不可貞。
Setting right the mother's corruption. One cannot be too rigid about it.
Errors that come from weakness or tenderness need gentle correction. Harshness would hurt more than it helps.
- Gentle correction
- Tact
- Being too severe
- Healing through a light touch
Line 3Nine in the third place 九三
Line text
幹父之蠱，小有悔，无大咎。
Setting right the father's corruption. A little regret, but no great blame.
You may act a bit too forcefully in repairing old mistakes, causing friction. Still, it is better to act energetically than to let things rot.
- Vigorous repair
- Accepting minor friction
- Overcorrecting
- Real progress despite a few bruises
Line 4Six in the fourth place 六四
Line text
裕父之蠱，往見吝。
Indulging the father's corruption. Going on this way: regret.
Being too lenient toward the source of the decay lets it spread. Looking away will eventually be embarrassing.
- Too much tolerance
- Avoidance
- Letting things slide to avoid conflict
- Taking up the work you have been postponing
Line 5Six in the fifth place 六五
Line text
幹父之蠱，用譽。
Setting right the father's corruption, and earning praise for it.
You take on the task of renewal and do it well, with help from capable people. The work earns respect.
- Successful renewal
- Recognition
- Doing it all alone
- Praise for well-handled reform
Line 6Nine at the top 上九
Line text
不事王侯，高尚其事。
Not serving kings or lords, one holds one's own affairs higher.
Not every task is yours to take up. Sometimes the right choice is to step away from worldly affairs and work on something of deeper value, including yourself.
- Higher purpose
- Withdrawing from worldly affairs
- Feeling obliged to fix everything
- Devoting yourself to what matters most
Related hexagrams
Have a question on your mind?
Cast a readingChinese text: Zhouyi 周易 (received classical text). English rendering and notes: Site rendering. About our sources
Commentary
The wind blows at the base of the mountain and stagnates there; the air becomes stale. Gu describes situations that have gone wrong through neglect or through patterns passed down, often from parents, institutions or past habits. The hexagram is nevertheless positive: it promises supreme success to those who take up the work of repair.
The mysterious phrase about three days before and after the starting day is usually read as: think carefully about how the decay began, and about how to keep it from returning. Repair is more than a quick fix. In relation to a question, Gu may emphasize honest diagnosis, taking responsibility for what you have inherited and the energy needed to make a new start.