Hexagram 12: Standstill

天地否 · Pǐ

Hexagram 12, Standstill (Pǐ, 否), is formed of the upper trigram Heaven (乾) over the lower trigram Earth (坤). Below is the classical judgment, the six line texts, and how to read this hexagram in a reading.

The Judgment

Standstill — the wrong people prevail. Not favorable for the noble one's persistence. The great departs, the small arrives.
否之匪人,不利君子贞,大往小来。

Trigrams

Upper · Heaven 乾
the creative, strength
Lower · Earth 坤
the receptive, devotion

The outer (upper) trigram Heaven describes the situation as it meets the world; the inner (lower) trigram Earth describes its inner disposition. Together they set the theme of Standstill.

The Six Lines

Reading Hexagram 12 for Your Question

When Standstill appears without changing lines, the judgment above stands as the whole answer. When you cast changing lines (a 6 or a 9), read those line texts first — they are the most specific guidance — then look to the relating hexagram they form for where the situation is heading. For love, career, or a decision, apply the theme of Standstill to your own circumstances rather than reading it as a fixed prediction.

Ask the oracle your own question and see whether Standstill answers.

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