Hexagram 25
Innocence
無妄 · 무망
Heaven over Thunder
The Judgment
Innocence is the integrity of a heart not divided against the order of Heaven. From such sincerity, action can prosper, provided it remains upright. Innocence does not mean that every impulse deserves obedience: a movement born of private craving departs from the true and brings trouble. Before undertaking anything, examine whether the purpose is clear of contrivance. What belongs to the moment may be done freely; what requires falsifying oneself should be left undone.
The Image
Thunder stirs beneath heaven, awakening the many creatures to their several lives. The noble one takes this impartial stirring as a pattern, caring for each being according to its nature and season. Good government does not impose one shape upon everything; it helps the inherent order become manifest.
In the light of the Dao
The uncontrived heart moves without adding a second, grasping purpose to its movement. This is not heedlessness, but intimacy with what is naturally so. Return to the uncarved simplicity beneath calculation, and let action arise where it is needed, without demanding that the world reward it.
The two trigrams
Upper · outer
☰Heaven
Creative, strong · Father
Lower · inner
☳Thunder
Arousing, movement · Eldest son
The six lines
Read from the bottom up. A line speaks only when it moves — when the cast gives it as 6 or 9.
First line · the beginning · yang, nine
At the beginning, sincerity is still fresh and has not become entangled in anxious schemes. Moving from this undivided place brings good fortune. Take the necessary step plainly, neither decorating your purpose nor borrowing another person's ambition as your own.
Second line · the inner centre · yin, six
Attend to the work without making imagined profit its hidden master. Cultivation and clearing need not become bargains struck with the future. When effort is free from acquisitive design, there is advantage in proceeding, for the task itself supplies a trustworthy direction.
Third line · the threshold · yin, six
An undeserved loss may fall upon someone who has done nothing wrong. A tethered animal is taken by a traveler, while those nearby bear the consequences. Do not mistake every misfortune for a moral verdict; innocence cannot prevent all accidental injury.
Fourth line · the minister · yang, nine
Here the proper course is to remain faithful to what is sound within you. There is no need to invent a new direction merely because circumstances are uncertain. Steadiness without ulterior purpose preserves innocence and leaves no grounds for blame.
Fifth line · the ruler · yang, nine
An affliction comes that was not produced by your misconduct. Anxious remedies may disturb what would otherwise recover of itself. Do not meddle merely to demonstrate concern; when the underlying nature remains sound, patient noninterference allows health to return.
Top line · the end · yang, nine
Innocence alone does not make every advance timely. At the far limit of this situation, further movement brings distress and yields no advantage. Even a sincere person must recognize completion; refrain from pushing beyond the place where Heaven has given room.