In love
In a relationship, Zhong Fu points to deep trust: speak truthfully, do not play a role, and answer the other person’s sincerity with your own.
Hexagram 61
I Ching hexagram 61: Inner Truth (Zhong fu)
Zhong Fu, Inner Truth, is the hexagram of deep sincerity: a heart free of calculation reaches even the most resistant.
- sincerity
- trust
- openness
The essentials
Zhong fu at a glance
For you, Zhong Fu invites you to act from a sincerity without calculation: it is what builds trust, more than any strategy.
A strength
A deep loyalty, free of calculation, that creates trust and makes undertakings easier.
Something to watch
A sincerity that depends on others: changing moods, or a voice that rises higher than what it carries.
- What it advises
- Return to your inner truth, act without hidden calculation, and let trust settle in rather than demanding it.
- Its opposite
- 62. Preponderance of the Small (Xiao guo)
The situation
Zhong Fu denotes inner sincerity, trust in its deepest sense. The ancient text says it reaches even pigs and fishes: even the most resistant beings respond to it. It associates it with good fortune, crossing the great river, and upright perseverance.
The figure draws an open heart: two broken lines at the center between solid lines that surround them. The ancient commentaries see a mind free of preoccupations, surrounded by solid virtue. The lines show the path: resting in yourself, resonating with another, then living through the fluctuation of moods, before arriving at complete loyalty.
Zhong Fu invites you to return to what is true in you, and to build relationships on that basis. At the top, the text warns against grand speeches without substance.
The image: Wind above the Lake
- AboveWind: gentleness that penetrates
- BelowLake: joy that is shared
Wind above the Lake: the breath grazes the water and makes it tremble. The ancient commentary reads in it careful examination of disputes and a measure of leniency in penalties.
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) · solidResting within yourself: good fortune. Seeking rest elsewhere would not give it to you.
- 2nd line · solidA crane calling from its retreat, its young answer: “I have a good cup, let us share it.” A resonance between two people of the same nature.
- 3rd line · brokenFinding your counterpart again: now you beat the drum, now you stop, now you weep, now you sing. Your mood depends on the other.
- 4th line · brokenThe nearly full moon, a horse whose companion has vanished: no fault. You detach from an old support to join a surer bond.
- 5th line · solidA complete sincerity that binds others to you in a close union: no fault.
- 6th line (top) · solidThe rooster’s crow that would climb to heaven: even with integrity, a bad outcome. Grand words with no substance do not carry.
Zhong fu in your life
At work
At work, the hexagram favors loyalty and transparency: honest agreements, promises kept, relationships founded on trust.
The I Ching helps you reflect on how to act: it does not say what is coming.
How is it built?
- Character
- 中孚 (zhōng fú)
- Number
- 61 in the King Wen sequence
- Trigrams
- Wind (巽) above, Lake (兌) below
- Inner hexagram
- 27. The Corners of the Mouth (Yi) (lines 2 to 4 and 3 to 5)
- Read upside down
- 61. Inner Truth (Zhong fu)
- Symbol
- ䷼ (U+4DFC)
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 61
What does hexagram 61 of the I Ching mean?
Hexagram 61, Zhong Fu, means inner truth: a deep sincerity, free of calculation, that creates trust and reaches even the most resistant.
Which hexagram is the neighbor of Zhong Fu?
Hexagram 62, Xiao Guo, Preponderance of the Small: measure in the details. Zhong Fu speaks of the heart, Xiao Guo of modesty in your gestures.