I Ching Reading

Hexagram 32: Duration

恆 · Héng · Thunder over Wind

enduranceconstancycommitmentstability

Duration (恆, Héng) is hexagram 32 of the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching, in the traditional King Wen order. It is made of Thunder (☳) above Wind (☴).

Meaning of hexagram 32

Lasting things keep moving within a stable framework. Constancy does not mean rigidity: it means holding to a direction while adapting.

Advice

Commit to the long run, keep your purpose steady and adapt the means.

The two trigrams

Duration places ☳ Thunder (Zhèn), arousing, sudden and energetic, above ☴ Wind (Xùn), gentle, gradual and penetrating. The lower trigram is the inner side of the situation and the upper one its outer side.

Hexagram
32. Duration
Chinese name
恆 Héng
Upper trigram
☳ Thunder (Zhèn)
Lower trigram
☴ Wind (Xùn)
Lines
3 yang (solid) and 3 yin (broken)
Place in the sequence
32 of 64 (King Wen order)

The six lines of Duration

A hexagram is read from the bottom line up. In a reading, a changing line (a 6 or a 9 in the three-coin method) draws attention to its position.

  1. First line (yin, broken): the beginning. The root of the matter: early stirrings, foundations, and what has not yet shown itself.
  2. Second line (yang, solid): the inner circle. Your immediate surroundings and steady supports: how things work at close range.
  3. Third line (yang, solid): the threshold. A point of tension between inner and outer, often a test or a restless push forward.
  4. Fourth line (yang, solid): the approach. Stepping into wider circles or nearer to authority; caution and good relationships matter here.
  5. Fifth line (yin, broken): the center of power. The place of influence and clear leadership: where the situation is most fully expressed.
  6. Sixth line (yin, broken): the culmination. The far edge of the situation: completion, overreach, or letting go.

Related hexagrams