鼎Cauldron
dǐngAlso known as “The Caldron” (Wilhelm/Baynes) and “Ting” (Legge)
In plain words
Fire over wood: the cauldron that cooks the offering. Supreme success — the vessel that turns raw into cooked, nourishing the wise and settling the new order after a revolution.
The attitude it asks for
Put things in their proper place, cultivate talent, and let the new arrangement mature slowly on the fire.
Structure
卦辭 The Judgment
鼎：元吉，亨。Ting gives the intimation of great progress and success.
鼎，象也。以木巽火，亨飪也。聖人亨以享上帝，而大亨以養聖賢。巽而耳目聰明，柔進而上行，得中而應乎剛，是以元亨。In Ting we have (symbolically) the figure of a caldron. (We see) the (symbol of) wood entering into that of fire, which suggests the idea of cooking. The sages cooked their offerings in order to present them to God, and made great feasts to nourish their wise and able (ministers). We have (the symbol of) flexible obedience, and that (which denotes) ears quick of hearing and eyes clear-sighted. (We have also) the weak (line) advanced and acting above, in the central place, and responded to by the strong (line below). All these things give the idea of 'great progress and success.'
木上有火，鼎；君子以正位凝命。(The trigram representing) wood and above it that for fire form Ting. The superior man, in accordance with this, keeps his every position correct, and maintains secure the appointment (of Heaven).
爻辭 The six lines
When one line moves, the hexagram becomes another:
- 上九Nine at the top
鼎玉鉉，大吉，无不利。
The sixth line, undivided, shows the caldron with rings of jade. There will be great good fortune, and all action taken will be in every way advantageous.
Its symbolism 玉鉉在上，剛柔節也。
'The rings of jade' are at the very top:—the strong and the weak meet in their due proportions.
- 六五Six in the fifth place
鼎黃耳，金鉉，利貞。
The fifth line, divided, shows the caldron with yellow ears and rings of metal in them. There will be advantage through being firm and correct.
Its symbolism 鼎黃耳，中以為實也。
'The caldron has yellow ears:'—the central position (of the line) is taken as (a proof of) the solid (virtue of its subject).
- 九四Nine in the fourth place
鼎折足，覆公餗，其形渥，凶。
The fourth line, undivided, shows the caldron with its feet broken; and its contents, designed for the ruler's use, overturned and spilt. Its Subject will be made to blush for shame. There will be evil.
Its symbolism 覆公餗，信如何也。
'The contents designed for the ruler's use are overturned and spilt:'—how can (the subject of the line) be trusted?
- 九三Nine in the third place
鼎耳革，其行塞，雉膏不食，方雨虧悔，終吉。
The third line, undivided, shows the caldron with (the places of) its ears changed. The progress (of its subject) is (thus) stopped. The fat flesh of the pheasant (which is in the caldron) will not be eaten. But the (genial) rain will come, and the grounds for repentance will disappear. There will be good fortune in the end.
Its symbolism 鼎耳革，失其義也。
'There is the caldron with (the places for) its ears changed:'—(its subject) has failed in what was required of him (in his situation).
- 九二Nine in the second place
鼎有實，我仇有疾，不我能即，吉。
The second line, undivided, shows the caldron with the things (to be cooked) in it. (If its subject can say), 'My enemy dislikes me, but he cannot approach me,' there will be good fortune.
Its symbolism 鼎有實，慎所之也。我仇有疾，終无尤也。
'There is the caldron with the things (to be cooked) in it:'—let (the subject of the line) be careful where he goes. 'My enemy dislikes me:'—but there will in the end be no fault (to which he can point).
- 初六Six at the beginning
鼎顛趾，利出否，得妾以其子，无咎。
The first line, divided, shows the caldron overthrown and its feet turned up. (But) there will be advantage in its getting rid of what was bad in it. (Or it shows us) the concubine (whose position is improved) by means of her son. There will be no error.
Its symbolism 鼎顛趾，未悖也。利出否，以從貴也。
'The caldron is overturned, and its feet turned upwards:'—but this is not (all) contrary (to what is right). 'There will be advantage in getting rid of what was bad:'—thereby (the subject of the line) will follow the more noble (subject of the fourth line).
Shown in the classical Chinese with James Legge's English (1882).
Read 鼎 Cauldron for a question about
古籍
From the classics
Two of the Ten Wings speak of every hexagram: the Sequence (Xù Guà) says why it follows the one before, the Miscellany (Zá Guà) sums it up in a phrase. Here is what they say of 鼎 dǐng · Cauldron.
革物者莫若鼎，故受之以鼎。For transforming things nothing compares with the cauldron; therefore Dǐng follows.
iching.tools translation (from the Chinese)
革去故也，鼎取新也。Gé removes the old; Dǐng takes up the new.
iching.tools translation (from the Chinese)
The classical Chinese is the authoritative text. Translations are iching.tools' own from the Chinese unless another translator is named; several attributions are traditional rather than historical (託名).
Questions about this hexagram
- What does Hexagram 50, Cauldron, mean?
- Fire over wood: the cauldron that cooks the offering. Supreme success — the vessel that turns raw into cooked, nourishing the wise and settling the new order after a revolution.
- Which trigrams form Cauldron?
- 離 above 巽 — fire over wind. Its nuclear hexagram (lines 2–5) is 夬 Decisiveness.
- What happens when a line of Cauldron changes?
- A moving line turns the hexagram into another one; the list above shows all six. With several moving lines, the guide to changing lines explains which text to read.
- How do I get Cauldron in a reading?
- Build six lines from the bottom up with three coins or yarrow stalks; the pattern - - — — — - - — is Cauldron. You can also cast a reading here — the lines are decided by code, the text is this page's.
Chinese text: the received Zhouyi (Wuyingdian lineage). English: James Legge, The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East XVI, 1882 (public domain).