Five yielding lines rise beneath a single strong one at the top, like a house whose foundation is eroding. Bo describes a time of decline, when inferior forces gain ground and what is good is being undermined. It is not a time for bold moves. Hold still, strengthen your base, be generous to those who support you, and trust that the cycle will turn.
Judgment
剝：不利有攸往。
Stripping: not favorable to have anywhere to go.
Image
山附於地，剝；上以厚下安宅。
A mountain leaning on the ground: stripping. Taking this as a model, those above make the base generous and broad, and their dwelling stays secure.
- Decline and erosion
- Holding still
- Strengthening the foundation
- Accepting the season
- Seeds of renewal
- decline
- erosion
- patience
- foundation
- endurance
- acceptance
- When things are being undermined, don't take bold action.
- Strengthen your base and support those who depend on you.
- Even at the end of decline, the seed of renewal remains.
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
剝床以足，蔑貞凶。
The bed is stripped at its legs. Steadfastness is cut away: misfortune.
The undermining begins at the foundation, quietly. Holding your position by force will not work. Stay aware and avoid exposing yourself.
- Early erosion
- Undermined foundations
- Ignoring damage at the base
- Noticing decline early
Line 2Six in the second place 六二
Line text
剝床以辨，蔑貞凶。
The bed is stripped at its frame. Steadfastness is cut away: misfortune.
The erosion reaches higher and support is lacking. Caution and adaptability are needed; stubbornly holding your ground is dangerous.
- Spreading decline
- Lack of support
- Stubborn resistance without allies
- Adapting to protect yourself
Line 3Six in the third place 六三
Line text
剝之，无咎。
Breaking away from them: no blame.
Surrounded by a negative environment, you keep your connection to what is good, even if that means breaking with your surroundings. This is right.
- Breaking with a bad environment
- Staying true
- Going along with the decline
- Keeping faith with what is good
Line 4Six in the fourth place 六四
Line text
剝床以膚，凶。
The bed is stripped down to the skin. Misfortune.
The decline now touches you directly. There is no avoiding the hardship; endure it and wait for the turn.
- Direct hardship
- Endurance
- Making rash moves out of distress
- Enduring until the cycle turns
Line 5Six in the fifth place 六五
Line text
貫魚，以宮人寵，无不利。
A string of fish; favor through the palace women. Nothing is unfavorable.
The weaker forces stop opposing and voluntarily align themselves with the strong, like fish on a line. Cooperation reverses the decline.
- Willing alignment
- Turning the tide
- Rejecting cooperation offered
- A peaceful end to the struggle
Line 6Nine at the top 上九
Line text
碩果不食，君子得輿，小人剝廬。
A great fruit left uneaten. The noble one gains a carriage; the small-minded person's hut is stripped.
Decline has run its course. What is good survives like a seed, and those of character will be supported. Those who caused the decline destroy their own shelter.
- Seed of renewal
- Endurance of the good
- Joining in destructive behavior
- A new beginning from what survives
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
Bo is autumn turning to winter: the leaves fall, the structure is stripped down to its last strong element. Inferior influences are advancing from below and the only yang line stands alone at the top. The reading may suggest a situation in which conditions are deteriorating and resistance would be futile.
The advice is to submit to the time without despair. Avoid pushing forward, and concentrate on what keeps you stable, as the image says, by caring for the base. The final line contains a famous image of hope: the large fruit that is not eaten, whose seed will start the next cycle. In relation to a question, Bo may emphasize patience, protecting essentials and preparing quietly for renewal.