Hexagram of the Day Saturday, January 17, 2026: #55 Abundance (Fullness) (丰)

'Jia' (arrive) has the fanqie pronunciation geng-bai. Abundance means great. Moving through clarity: this is the momentum of flourishing greatness. Hence its divination holds the way of prevalence.

Yet when a ruler reaches this peak of flourishing, decline is bound to follow, so there is also cause for sorrow. The sage believed that empty sorrow is of no benefit; if only one can preserve constancy and not go to excessive extremes, that will suffice.

Hence the warning: do not worry; be like the sun at midday.

Explaining the name and meaning of the hexagram through its virtues. Explaining the hexagram statement. This further clarifies the implied meaning beyond the hexagram statement, saying that one must not exceed the center.

'Zhe' (decide) has the fanqie pronunciation zhi-she. It takes the image of awe and illumination operating side by side.

Abundance, Order of the Hexagrams: That which attains its proper return will surely become great; hence it is succeeded by Abundance. When things gather and return, they inevitably achieve greatness; hence after The Marrying Maiden, it is succeeded by Abundance.

Abundance has the meaning of flourishing greatness. As a hexagram, Zhen is above and Li is below; Zhen is movement, and Li is brightness. Moving with brightness, and through moving able to be bright: these are both ways to attain abundance.

Brightness is sufficient to illuminate, and movement is sufficient to bring prevalence; only then can one achieve abundance and greatness. Abundance means flourishing greatness; its meaning naturally brings prevalence.

Reaching the utmost brilliance and greatness under Heaven is something only a king can attain. 'Jia' means to arrive.

The honor of the Heavenly position, the wealth of the four seas, the multitude of all living beings, and the greatness of the Kingly Way: only a king can bring the Dao of Abundance to its extreme!

In the time of Abundance, with the multitude of people and the flourishing of affairs, how could governing them thoroughly be easy? It is indeed a matter of concern.

One ought to be like the blazing clarity of the midday sun, shining universally with nothing it does not reach; only then will there be no sorrow.

Abundance carries the meaning of flourishing greatness. Li is brightness and Zhen is movement; brightness and movement support each other to achieve abundance and greatness.

The king possesses the expanse of the four seas and the multitude of millions of people, bringing greatness under Heaven to its peak; hence only a king can attain the Dao of Abundance and greatness.

Since all that he possesses is great, his way of preserving and governing it must also be great; therefore, what the king values is the utmost greatness.

Since what he possesses is broad and what he governs is vast, he should worry that he cannot reach everything; he ought to be like the brilliant illumination of the midday sun, shining universally across all under Heaven without missing anything—then he can be free from sorrow.

Only in this way can he preserve his abundance and greatness. How could preserving abundance and greatness be accomplished by petty talent or small wisdom? 'When the sun reaches midday, it begins to decline; when the moon reaches fullness, it wanes.

The waxing and waning of Heaven and Earth ebb and flow with the seasons; how much more so with humans! How much more so with ghosts and spirits!'

Having spoken of the culmination of abundance and flourishing, it speaks again of how difficult it is to maintain permanently, serving as an admonition.

When the sun reaches midday at the peak of its brightness, it must slant and decline; when the moon reaches full maturity, it suffers eclipse and waning.

Even the waxing and waning of Heaven and Earth ebb and flow with the seasons—how much more so with humanity, ghosts, and spirits? Waxing and waning refer to flourishing and decline; ebbing and flowing refer to advancing and retreating.

The movements of Heaven and Earth also advance and retreat with the seasons. 'Ghosts and spirits' refers to the traces of creative transformation; in the flourishing and decline of the myriad things, their ebbing and flowing can be seen.

Giving this admonition at the time of flourishing abundance is intended to urge holding to the center so as not to become overly abundant. How could dwelling in the Dao of Abundance ever be easy?

Thunder and lightning both arrive: brightness and awe move together. The two trigrams unite, hence it says 'both arrive.' Brightness and movement support each other, creating the image of Abundance.

Li is brightness, the image of illuminating scrutiny; Zhen is movement, the image of awe-inspiring judgment. Deciding lawsuits requires illuminating the true facts; only through clarity can there be fairness.

Executing punishments requires inspiring awe against villainy; only through decisive action can it be accomplished. Therefore, observing the image of thunder and lightning—brightness and movement—the noble person decides lawsuits and executes punishments.

Biting Through speaks of ancient kings establishing laws, while Abundance speaks of the noble person deciding lawsuits: in Biting Through, brightness is above and attached to awe-inspiring thunder, which is the ruler's affair, hence it is enacting punishments and establishing laws; in Abundance, brightness is below and attached to awe-inspiring thunder, which is the application of the noble person, hence it is deciding lawsuits and executing punishments.

In The Wanderer, brightness is above, yet it speaks of the noble person: The Wanderer takes caution in using punishments and not retaining prisoners in lawsuits, which all noble persons should naturally practice.

Greatness and prevalence are what a king attains. The meaning of Abundance lies in broadening and magnifying what is subtle and minute, opening up what is hidden and stagnant.

If one is the ruler of all under Heaven yet allows subtle and hidden matters to remain blocked, sorrow will not cease; hence only when reaching 'abundant prevalence' can one be free from sorrow.

Exercising the virtue of abundant prevalence free from sorrow, one should occupy the center of Heaven to illuminate universally; hence it says, 'It is fitting to be like the sun at midday.'

Greatness is what a king esteems; hence he attains it. Possessing the virtue of being free from sorrow, he is suited to illuminate all under Heaven. The application of Abundance is constrained by slanting and waning.

Applied where there is deficiency, it esteems abundance; applied where there is already fullness, it begins to overflow. It cannot be maintained as permanent; hence it sets forth in full the Dao of ebbing and flowing.

Civilized and bright in movement, not losing human sentiment and principle.

Rectified Meaning: 'Abundance brings prevalence'—'Abundance' is the name of the hexagram. Both the Tuan Commentary and the Order of the Hexagrams define 'Feng' as 'great.'

Thus Abundance is a name for manifold greatness and the meaning of brimming sufficiency; when wealth is abundant and virtue is great, it is called Abundance.

When virtue is great, there is nothing it does not encompass; when wealth is plentiful, there is nothing it does not bring to completion. Being unhindered and unobstructed is called 'prevalence'; hence it says, 'Abundance brings prevalence.'

'The king attains it'—'jia' means to arrive. The Dao of abundant prevalence is what a king esteems; without a king's virtue, one cannot attain it; hence it says, 'The king attains it.' Rectified Meaning: 'Wu' means 'not' or 'free from.'

When a king can attain abundant prevalence, he is free from sorrow; hence it says, 'Do not worry.'

Employing the virtue of abundant prevalence free from sorrow, he can then rule over the myriad states and shine upon the four quarters, like the sun at midday shining everywhere under Heaven; hence it says, 'It is fitting to be like the sun at midday.'

'The Tuan says: Abundance means great.' Rectified Meaning: 'Abundance means great' explains the name of the hexagram, which precisely bears the meaning of expanding greatness. Commentary note: 'pronounced like the da of chanda (expanding greatness).'

Rectified Meaning: 'Chan' means expanding and broadening. In general, there are two kinds of greatness in things: one is natural greatness, and the other is greatness expanded and magnified by human effort.

The meaning of Abundance is to expand and magnify what is subtle and minute; thus when Abundance is called great, it refers to the greatness of expanding and magnifying, not natural greatness; hence it provides this pronunciation.

Rectified Meaning: 'Moving, hence abundant'—this explains why the hexagram is named Abundance based on the two trigrams.

Moving without brightness cannot be glorious and great; only by relying on brightness to move can one achieve abundance; hence it says, 'Bright and moving, hence abundant.'

'The king attains it; he esteems greatness'—the Dao of abundance and greatness is what a king esteems; the reason a king can attain it is that he is able to esteem greatness.

Rectified Meaning: At midday, the sun shines over all under Heaven; the king is free from sorrow, and his virtue spreads brilliantly, matching the fullness of the midday sun; hence it says, 'Do not worry; it is fitting to be like the sun at midday; it is fitting to shine upon all under Heaven.'

Rectified Meaning: Here Confucius establishes an admonition through Abundance. The above spoke of a king using the virtue of abundance and greatness to illuminate all under Heaven, just like the midday sun.

Yet flourishing must be followed by decline; this is the natural and constant principle. The sun is at its height at midday, but once past noon it slants; the moon is full, but once past its fullness it wanes.

The cold and heat of Heaven come and go; the hills and valleys of Earth shift and change. When full, things ebb with time; when empty, things flow with time.

If even Heaven, Earth, the sun, and the moon cannot endure forever, how could humans, ghosts, and spirits preserve their fullness and flourishing for long? This encourages timely cultivation of virtue, and warns to remember destruction while abiding in preservation.

That this text mentions Heaven and Earth first and humans, ghosts, and spirits later is using the lighter to illustrate the heavier, and placing the honored before the humble.

That the sun and moon precede Heaven and Earth is because, following directly upon 'fitting to be like the sun at midday,' it discusses slanting and waning; using the sun and moon in contrast, it then presents Heaven and Earth alongside them—this is the stylistic convention of writing.

Rectified Meaning: 'Thunder and lightning both arrive: Abundance'—thunder is the awe-inspiring motion of Heaven; lightning is the brilliant illumination of Heaven.

When thunder and lightning arrive together, awe and brightness are fully present, sufficient to constitute Abundance.

'The noble person decides lawsuits and executes punishments'—the noble person models himself on heavenly awe to apply punishments, and must also act with civil brightness and movement.

Deciding lawsuits means passing judgments; in passing judgments on litigation, one must uncover the true and false facts; in applying punishments, one must hit the mean between leniency and severity.

If one acts without brightness, wanton excesses will follow; therefore, the noble person models upon this hexagram to decide lawsuits and execute punishments.