In love
In a relationship, Ge points to a renewal: talk about it openly, give the other person time to adjust, and change together rather than alone.
Hexagram 49
I Ching hexagram 49: Revolution (Ge)
Ge, Revolution, is the hexagram of ripened change: you renew what needs renewing once you have earned people’s trust.
- transformation
- trust
- right moment
The essentials
Ge at a glance
For you, Ge signals that a change is becoming possible: lay out the reasons, wait for the right moment, then act with integrity.
A strength
A change grounded in a recognized need and in the trust of those it affects.
Something to watch
Changing too soon or out of impatience: the ancient text says people believe in a change only once it is done.
- What it advises
- Prepare the change, explain it, wait for the right moment, then carry it out with integrity and without abruptness.
- Its opposite
- 4. Youthful Folly (Meng)
The situation
Ge means molting, the renewal of an animal’s skin. The judgment states that people believe in change only after it has been accomplished: beforehand, it stirs mistrust and resistance. Hence the importance of not rushing it.
Three conditions recur: a recognized necessity, the trust of those you carry along, and steady integrity. Together they make the change something great and well received; without them, it turns against whoever starts it.
Ge invites you to examine your own transformations: are you ready to explain, to discuss several times, to wait for the moment? Only then does acting open a lasting path.
The image: the Lake above Fire
- AboveLake: joy that is shared
- BelowFire: clarity that clings
The Lake above Fire: water and flame confront each other and transform. The commentaries read here a model of seasonal adjustment: the calendar is corrected so that it follows the sky.
Consult the I Ching
Throw three coins six times: your hexagram, the lines that change, and the direction they point to.
Free, no account · nothing is sent · no predictions
The six lines
- 1st line (bottom) · solidBound in the hide of a yellow ox: it is too early to move. The time for change has not yet come.
- 2nd line · brokenThe change takes place once the time has passed: acting then is judged favorable, without blame.
- 3rd line · solidActing now would go badly, even with integrity: the position is perilous. If the plan has been discussed three times, people will believe in it.
- 4th line · solidGrounds for regret fade: if trust has been won, changing the established rules is judged favorable.
- 5th line · solidThe person of worth changes as the tiger changes its stripes: brilliant and plain to see. Trust was theirs even before they decided.
- 6th line (top) · brokenThe wise person changes as the leopard changes its spots, and others fall into line: pushing further would be a mistake, holding your ground is favorable.
Ge in your life
At work
On the professional side, Ge favors a well-prepared reorganization: clear reasons, team buy-in, a realistic timeline, and implementation without haste.
The I Ching helps you reflect on how to act: it does not say what is coming.
How is it built?
- Character
- 革 (gé)
- Number
- 49 in the King Wen sequence
- Trigrams
- Lake (兌) above, Fire (離) below
- Inner hexagram
- 44. Coming to Meet (Gou) (lines 2 to 4 and 3 to 5)
- Read upside down
- 50. The Cauldron (Ding)
- Symbol
- ䷰ (U+4DF0)
The English names are the usual renderings of the Chinese characters; the texts rely on the Chinese and on early public-domain translations (Legge, 1882; Philastre, 1885–1893).
Sources
- Wikipedia (English), “List of hexagrams of the I Ching,” read on October 15, 2026: numbers, characters, pinyin, lower and upper trigrams.
- Wikipedia (English), “Bagua,” read on October 15, 2026: lines of the eight trigrams, from bottom to top.
- James Legge (1815–1897), The Yî King, Sacred Books of the East, vol. XVI, 1882 (Wikisource): public domain.
- Paul-Louis-Félix Philastre (1837–1902), Le Yi King ou Livre des changements de la dynastie des Tsheou, Annales du Musée Guimet, 1885–1893: public domain (the author died more than 70 years ago).
Frequently asked questions about hexagram 49
What does hexagram 49 of the I Ching mean?
Hexagram 49, Ge, means revolution, literally molting: a necessary change, ripened, explained, and carried out with integrity, which is believed only once it is accomplished.
Should you act fast with Ge?
Quite the opposite. The ancient text insists on timing: the change must have been discussed and prepared. The first lines recommend waiting.