Hexagram 19:

lín taking charge, commitment, accession

By Augustin Chan · Last updated 2025

Upper TrigramEarth
Lower TrigramLake

Judgment

líntaking charge, commitment, accession
yuánfirst-rate, supreme, priority, the finest
hēngfulfillment, satisfaction, success, offering
worth, the harvest of; merits, rewards
zhēnpersistence, determination, resolve, loyalty
zhìto arrive, approach, come, near; arrival
in, at, during, by
the eighth
yuèmonth, moon
yǒuis; will, would, could be
xiōngunfortunate, inauspicious, disappointing

Approach has supreme success. Perseverance furthers. When the eighth month comes, there will be misfortune. Use spring energy wisely—document, share, build systems. The garage won't stay open forever.

Image

lake, pool, pond, marsh
shàngabove, over, atop, across, on top of
yǒuis, there is
earth, ground, land, soil
líntaking charge
jūnnoble, worthy, honored
young one, heir, disciple
accordingly, therefore, thus
jiāoinstructs, teaches, directs, guides
thinks, ponders, reflects, plans, considers
without, with no, regardless of
qióngexhaustion, frustration; being diminished
róngaccept, receive, tolerate, bear with
bǎoprotect, safeguard, secure
mínthe people, public, multitude; humanity
without, with no, regardless of
jiāngboundaries, borders, limits, lines

The earth above the lake: the image of Approach. Thus the superior man is inexhaustible in his will to teach and without limits in his tolerance and protection of the people. The open-source maintainer, the garage mentor, the newsletter writer who says 'come build with us'—this is the pattern.

Countercultural Tech Movement

Hexagram 19 digital artifact

Homebrew Computer Club — First Meeting in Gordon French's Garage

Gordon French & Fred Moore (1975)

March 5, 1975: Gordon French opens his garage in Menlo Park. Thirty-two people show up—engineers, students, hobbyists—to see an Altair 8800 kit computer. Fred Moore writes the newsletter: "Are you building your own computer? If so, you might like to come." This is lin rendered in silicon: approach without condescension. No credentials required, no tuition, no gatekeeping. Lake below (joyous communication), Earth above (boundless receptivity). The club didn't teach from on high—it met people where they were, shared schematics freely, debugged together. Two yang lines rising from below. Steve Jobs attended. Steve Wozniak showed the Apple I there. But also: Tom Pittman, Lee Felsenstein, ordinary people building extraordinary things. The energy was spring—light returning after institutional winter, knowledge approaching those who'd been locked out. The eighth month came. By 1986, the club dissolved. Personal computers went commercial, garages became corporations, free sharing became proprietary. Nothing lasts. But while it lasted: the homebrew ethic seeded everything.

Historical Context

Period
Zhou Dynasty
Oracle Bone Etymology
Lake (☱) below, Earth (☷) above—joyous waters rising through receptive soil.
Traditional Use
Lin means approach, becoming great. Two strong lines grow from below—light-giving power expands. Linked to the twelfth month when, after winter solstice, light begins to ascend. But the text warns: by the eighth month, there will be misfortune. Growth has seasons.

Lines

Line 1: 咸臨貞吉

xiánunited, joined in; shared, collective; full
líntaking charge, commitment, accession
zhēnpersistence, determination, resolve, focus
promising, auspicious, opportune, timely

Line 2: 咸臨吉無不利

xiánunited, joined in; shared, collective; full
líntaking charge, commitment, accession
promising, auspicious, opportune, timely
without; there is nothing
doubt; that is not; which cannot be
worthwhile, turned to advantage

Line 3: 甘臨無攸利既憂之無咎

gānsweet, too easy; complacent, indulgent
líntaking charge, commitment, accession
this is no, not; this lacks, has no
yōudirection, purpose; an aim, orientation
with merit, of value, with rewards
when finished, complete; following; after
yōuindulge in, worry about; being concerned
zhīthis, that, it, such, thus; about this
no; nothing; is no, not; avoids
jiùblame; is wrong; a mistake, an error

Line 4: 至臨無咎

zhìcomplete, fulfilled, thorough, accomplished
líntaking charge, commitment, accession
no; not; nothing; without, with no
jiùblame; is wrong; a mistake, an error

Line 5: 知臨大君之宜吉

zhīinformed, knowing, aware, prudent
líntaking charge, commitment, accession
great, mature, important, successful
jūnnoble, chief, leader, ruler
zhī...'s; resorts to, has this; in, for, to this
necessity; is adjusted, suited, fitted
promising, auspicious, opportune, timely

Line 6: 敦臨吉無咎

dūnauthentic, honest, genuine, earnest, solid
líntaking charge, commitment, accession
promising, auspicious, opportune, timely
no; not; nothing; without, with no
jiùis wrong; a mistake, an error

Practical Guidance

You're in spring. The energy is moving your direction—people are showing up, ideas are clicking, the thing you're building has momentum. Good. This is the time. But here's what Homebrew Computer Club teaches: spring doesn't last. That garage dissolved eleven years later. Not because it failed—because its season ended. Personal computers went from kits to products, from sharing to selling, from garage to Cupertino. The people who succeeded long-term weren't the ones who ignored this. They were the ones who used spring energy to build infrastructure that survived past spring. Wozniak documented his designs. Jobs built a company. Felsenstein created the Community Memory project. They knew: capture the knowledge while people remember why they came together. Your job during lin: be inexhaustible in teaching, without limits in tolerance. The newcomers who show up now—they're not distractions from the real work. They are the real work. Meet them where they are. Share freely. Debug together. Build the culture of generosity that survives when the original energy fades. But also: plan for the eighth month. This growth phase will end. The question isn't whether—it's whether you've used the time well. Document now. Train your replacement now. Set up systems that don't depend on your personal spring energy lasting forever. The garage closes. What you build in it either persists or it doesn't. That's not pessimism—that's how seasons work.

Transformations

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