Thunder high on a mountain sounds distant and small. Xiao Guo is a time when small things matter most and great ambitions should wait. Like a bird that should come down to land rather than fly into a storm, stay low, be careful with details, and err on the side of modesty, care and thrift. Small, conscientious excesses are better than great ones.
Judgment
小過：亨，利貞，可小事，不可大事。飛鳥遺之音，不宜上，宜下，大吉。
Small excess: success. Steadfastness is favorable. Small matters can be done; great matters cannot. A flying bird leaves its cry behind. Going up is not fitting; going down is fitting. Great good fortune.
Image
山上有雷，小過；君子以行過乎恭，喪過乎哀，用過乎儉。
Thunder over the mountain: small excess. Taking this as a model, the noble one leans toward too much courtesy in conduct, too much grief in mourning, and too much thrift in spending.
- Attention to small things
- Modesty and caution
- Avoiding overreach
- Erring on the side of care
- Staying grounded
- modesty
- caution
- details
- restraint
- humility
- carefulness
- In this time, do small things well and avoid great ventures.
- Like the bird, come down rather than flying higher.
- Err slightly on the side of courtesy, grief and thrift.
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
飛鳥以凶。
A bird in flight: misfortune.
Trying to soar before you can fly brings trouble. Stay with the familiar and wait until you are ready.
- Premature flight
- Staying grounded
- Overreaching too early
- Learning to fly before leaving the nest
Line 2Six in the second place 六二
Line text
過其祖，遇其妣；不及其君，遇其臣；无咎。
Passing by the grandfather, one meets the grandmother. Not reaching the lord, one meets the minister. No blame.
You can't reach the top directly, so you work through those closer to hand. Accepting an indirect, modest route is no fault.
- Indirect routes
- Accepting your level
- Insisting on going straight to the top
- Progress through the proper channels
Line 3Nine in the third place 九三
Line text
弗過防之，從或戕之，凶。
Not taking extra precautions; following along, one may be harmed. Misfortune.
Overconfidence leads you to neglect precautions. In this time, more caution than seems necessary is wise.
- Neglected precautions
- Overconfidence
- Thinking you're too strong to need care
- Safety through extra vigilance
Line 4Nine in the fourth place 九四
Line text
无咎，弗過遇之，往厲必戒，勿用永貞。
No blame. Not overstepping, one meets it. Going on is dangerous; one must be on guard. Do not act; remain steadfast throughout.
Hold back and let things come to you. Pushing forward is risky; stay inwardly steady and patient instead.
- Letting things come
- Steady patience
- Forcing an advance
- Meeting what you need without forcing
Line 5Six in the fifth place 六五
Line text
密雲不雨，自我西郊，公弋取彼在穴。
Thick clouds, no rain, from our western outskirts. The duke shoots with a cord-arrow and takes the one hidden in the cave.
You are in a position to accomplish things, but you can't do it alone. Seek out capable people who are hidden away, and bring them in.
- Finding hidden helpers
- Unfulfilled potential
- Trying to do everything yourself
- Bringing in talent that was overlooked
Line 6Six at the top 上六
Line text
弗遇過之，飛鳥離之，凶，是謂災眚。
Not meeting it, going beyond it. The flying bird flies off and is gone. Misfortune: this is called disaster.
Overshooting the mark and refusing to stop, you lose what you were after, like a bird that flies off for good. When you go too far in a time like this, you bring disaster on yourself.
- Going too far
- Self-made disaster
- Refusing to stop
- Turning back before it is gone
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
Four yin lines surround two yang lines in the center: the small outweighs the great. The hexagram resembles a bird with outspread wings. Xiao Guo describes a time when your strength is limited and ambitious undertakings would fail. The reading may suggest focusing on details, keeping a low profile and doing ordinary things conscientiously.
The judgment's bird image is central: a bird that flies too high is lost; it should seek its nest below. The image recommends going a little beyond the usual in modesty: more courteous, more sincere in grief, more economical than strictly necessary. In relation to a question, Xiao Guo may emphasize humility, attention to detail and accepting the limits of the moment.