Hexagram 55: 豐
fēng — abundance, prosperity, proliferation, plenty
Upper TrigramThunder
Lower TrigramFire
Judgment
豐fēngabundance, prosperity, proliferation, plenty
亨hēngfulfillment, success, consummation, triumph
王wángthe sovereign, king, ruler
假jiǎcomes, draws near to; approaches, attains
之zhīit, this; such; his [abundance, zenith]
勿wùdo not
憂yōube anxious, discouraged; worry, grieve
宜yíadjust, adapt to; it befits, suits, is meet, right
日rìthe sun
中zhōngto be at mid(day), noon, its zenith
Abundance has success. The king attains abundance. Be not sad. Be like the sun at midday. Only those inwardly free of sorrow and care can lead in times of abundance. Illuminate everything, but know this condition is temporary.
Image
雷léithe thunder
電diànand the lightning
皆jiētogether, as one, at once
至zhìarrive, approach, come
豐fēngabundance
君jūnthe noble, worthy, honored
子zǐyoung one, heir, disciple
以yǐaccordingly, therefore, thus
折zhéexecute, decide, judge, dispatch, expedite
獄yùjustice, legal process, force of law; disputes
致zhìand carries out, brings, calls for, invokes
刑xíngsanction, punishment, penalty, judgment
Both thunder and lightning come: the image of abundance. Thus the superior man decides lawsuits and carries out punishments. Use the clarity to investigate exactly, use the shock to enforce precisely. This is the time for decisive action, not hesitation.
Digital Artifact
The Dot-Com Peak
Silicon Valley Collective Delusion (2000)
March 10, 2000. NASDAQ hits 5,048. Pets.com has a Super Bowl commercial. Every business plan ends with 'on the internet' and gets funded. Clarity within (we understand technology, network effects) and movement without (explosive growth, IPOs, expansion). This is abundance. Everyone's a genius. The king illuminates everything under heaven. But this extraordinary condition cannot be maintained permanently. Peak suggests decline must follow—not because the internet was fake but because abundance reached unsustainable levels. Fire below, Thunder above—the sun at midday is as high as it gets. By 2002, most dot-coms were dead. Those who understood abundance as temporary, who built real infrastructure—Amazon, Google, eBay—survived. Thunder and lightning together: abundance, but also necessity of clear judgment.
Historical Context
- Period
- Zhou Dynasty
- Oracle Bone Etymology
- Fire (☲) sits below, Thunder (☳) sits above—clarity within, movement without.
- Traditional Use
- Wilhelm describes abundance as the peak of civilization—advanced culture, great achievement. But he immediately warns: this condition is brief. The sage might feel sad about inevitable decline but must not let that sadness dominate. Be like the sun at midday.
Lines
Line 1: 遇其配主雖旬無咎往有尚
遇yùmeet with, encounter, find, engage
其qíone's own, another; one who is
配pèiequal, peer, match, counterpart, coequal, colleague
主zhǔand, or better, superior, master, leader
雖suīeven if, for, though; although it, this be
旬xúnten days, a long week [an ancient ten-day week]
無wúno; this is not; nothing
咎jiùblame; is wrong; a mistake; harm
往wǎngto go ahead, proceed, continue
有yǒuis, will be; has, holds, will have
尚shàngworth, merit; honor, value, able
Line 2: 豐其蔀日中見斗往得疑疾有孚發若吉
豐fēngso abundant, prolific, plentiful, ample
其qíare one's; the, these, those; their
蔀bùwoven screens, curtains, partitions
日rìthe day
中zhōngat mid-; in the middle of; at noon
見jiànone may see, watch, look at, observe
斗dǒuthe bushel constellation; big dipper
往wǎnggoing ahead, proceeding, continuing on
得définds, brings, encounters, acquires, results in
疑yídoubt, uncertainty, suspicion; dis-, mistrust
疾jíand anxiety, distress, affliction, pressure
有yǒuto be, stay; have, find; remember
孚fútrue, sincere; confidence; to trust
發fāand manifest, express, show, deliver on
若ruòthis; the same, as much
吉jíis promising, auspicious, opportune, timely
Line 3: 豐其沛日中見沬折其右肱無咎
豐fēngso abundant, prolific, plentiful, ample, rich
其qíare one's; the, these, those; their
沛pèiflowing banners, pennants
日rìthe day
中zhōngat mid-; in the middle of; at noon
見jiànone may see, watch, look at, observe
沬mèistardust, star spray; the milky way
折zhéand also break, fracture
其qíone's own, the, that
右yòuright, favorite
肱gōngupper arm
無wúbut no; not; avoid
咎jiùblame; worthy; make mistakes, errors
Line 4: 豐其蔀日中見斗遇其夷主吉
豐fēngso abundant, prolific, plentiful, ample
其qíare one's; the, these, those; their
蔀bùwoven screens, curtains, partitions
日rìthe day
中zhōngat mid-; in the middle of; at noon
見jiànone may see
斗dǒuthe bushel constellation; big dipper
遇yùor meet, encounter, find, happen upon
其qíthe, that; the other's, others'; their
夷yíhidden, covert, obscure, dark, cloaked
主zhǔmaster, leader, superior, ruler
吉jípromising, auspicious, opportune, timely
Line 5: 來章有慶譽吉
來láicoming, emerging, emergent; emerges
章zhānga, an, the order, pattern, composition
有yǒuthere are, will be; this has, holds; bringing
慶qìngreward, congratulation, satisfaction
譽yùand praise, commendation, honor
吉jípromising, auspicious, opportune, timely
Line 6: 豐其屋蔀其家闚其戶閴其無人三歲不覿凶
豐fēngso, such abundant(ce), rich(ness), plenty
其qíare, is in, of one's own; these, their
屋wūchambers, rooms; dwelling, house, home
蔀bùscreen, curtain, partition off, away
其qíone's own; their own
家jiāfamily, household; relatives, kindred
闚kuīpeering, peeking, spying, watching through
其qíone's own; their own
戶hùdoor, doorway, entry, entrance gate
閴qùabandoned, lonely, desolate, deserted, silent
其qíin, with one's; their
無wúhaving no; avoidance, lack, void, want of
人rénthe others, people, humanity, society
三sānand, for three
歲suìyears, harvests
不bùnot; without being; without an
覿díseen face to face; a visitor; encounter
凶xiōngunfortunate, disappointing, sad, miserable
Practical Guidance
Peak conditions. Everything's working. The metrics are good, the funding is there, the team is productive, the market is receptive. This is abundance.
The classical text's warning isn't 'don't celebrate success.' It's 'understand that peaks precede valleys.' March 10, 2000. NASDAQ hits 5,048. Pets.com has a Super Bowl commercial. Every business plan ends with 'on the internet' and gets funded. The dot-com boom was real abundance—genuine technological innovation, actual possibilities opening up. But when people started believing abundance was the new normal, when every stupid idea got funded—that's when the crash became inevitable.
The sun at midday: be inwardly free of sorrow about inevitable decline. This doesn't mean pretend decline won't happen. It means: don't let anxiety about future decline ruin present abundance. Use the clear conditions to build real things. Amazon used the boom to build distribution infrastructure. Google used it to refine search algorithms. They didn't pretend the boom would last forever, but they didn't waste the abundance either.
Here's your task in times of abundance: build foundations that will survive the decline. Use the clear light to see what's actually real versus what's bubble dynamics. Use the energy to accomplish things that matter. The text says: decide lawsuits and carry out punishments. This is the time for decisive action. Use the clarity to investigate exactly. Use the momentum to enforce what you discover.
The danger is arrogance. Line six: screening off your family, peering through the gate and seeing no one. The person who becomes isolated in their own imagined greatness loses everything when conditions change. Pets.com spent millions on Super Bowl ads. Webvan built massive infrastructure for instant grocery delivery. Both crashed because they mistook peak market conditions for sustainable business models. Abundance is temporary. The work you do during abundance can be permanent. Use the resources while you have them. Build the infrastructure that will matter. But don't confuse the extraordinary conditions with normal operations. The sun at midday will move toward afternoon. That's not sad—it's just the pattern. Build accordingly.
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