Hexagram 61 of the I Ching: Zhong Fu (中孚), Inner Truth — meaning and lines
Hexagram 61 of the I Ching, Zhong Fu (中孚): Inner Truth. Dui beneath Xun, the judgment, six lines, a careful reading.
Key points
| Number | 61 of 64 (King Wen sequence) |
|---|---|
| Chinese name | Zhong Fu (中孚) |
| French name | Zhong Fu, Inner Truth |
| Lower trigram | ☱ Dui, Lake |
| Upper trigram | ☴ Xun, Wind |
| Image | Wind over the lake: sincerity that ripples the surface without a sound |
| Twin hexagram | No. 62, Xiao Guo, Preponderance of the Small |
| Nature of the text | A book of wisdom and divination, a tool for reflection, not a prediction |
Zhong Fu: what is it about?
Hexagram 61, Zhong Fu (中孚, roughly pronounced “chong foo”), is the hexagram of inner truth, sincerity at the centre. The word fu means trust and good faith; according to an often-cited etymology, the character also evokes a bird sitting on its eggs. According to the commentary on the sequence of the hexagrams, it follows Limitation: once a frame is in place, one can rely on it.
The two trigrams
The first three lines (at the bottom) form the lower trigram, the last three the upper one. Here, the Lake (Dui) lies beneath the Wind (Xun).
| Position | Trigram | Image |
|---|---|---|
| Upper (top) | ☴ Xun, Wind | Wind |
| Lower (bottom) | ☱ Dui, Lake | Lake |
Wind above the Lake: a light breath that ripples the surface without disturbing it. In the figure of the hexagram, the two broken lines at the centre form an empty heart: one reads openness, availability, and a sincerity that makes room for the other.
The judgment in brief
The judgment is striking: “piglets and fishes: good fortune”; it is favorable to cross the great river, and perseverance too. Ancient commentators read these humble animals as an image of a trust able to reach even the simplest beings; some recent scholars see a specific animal (a porpoise or a pufferfish), so the reading is debated. The Image adds that the noble one examines legal cases with care and postpones executions, out of mercy.
General meaning
Zhong Fu speaks of mutual trust: being sincere at heart, without calculation, and meeting the same availability in the other. The lines illustrate different faces of this trust: calm, resonance, wavering, detachment, fidelity, and its hollow excess.
The six lines, from bottom to top
Each line is summarised in my own words; the ancient text is very elliptical, and commentators complete it in different ways.
- Line 1, at the bottom (yang). Staying calm and settled: good. If you open yourself to another attachment, the calm is lost.
- Line 2 (yang). A crane calls in the shade, and its young answers it; I have a fine cup, and I will share it with you. A sincere resonance.
- Line 3 (yin). You meet an opponent: at times you beat the drum, at times you stop, at times you weep, at times you sing. One's moods depend on others.
- Line 4 (yin). The moon is nearly full; one loses a horse from the team: no blame. Detaching from one's peers in order to rise higher.
- Line 5 (yang). A sincerity that binds hearts: no blame. Fidelity.
- Line 6, at the top (yang). The rooster's crow rises to heaven: persevering brings misfortune. Much noise, little substance.
Changing lines
A “changing” line is about to turn into its opposite. One reads its text, then the hexagram that results from the change, taken as the direction the situation is taking; the schools diverge when several lines are changing.
| Changing line | Change | Resulting hexagram |
|---|---|---|
| Line 1 | yang becomes yin | No. 59, Huan, Dissolution |
| Line 2 | yang becomes yin | No. 42, Yi, Increase |
| Line 3 | yin becomes yang | No. 9, Xiao Chu, The Taming Power of the Small |
| Line 4 | yin becomes yang | No. 10, Lü, Treading |
| Line 5 | yang becomes yin | No. 41, Sun, Decrease |
| Line 6 | yang becomes yin | No. 60, Jie, Limitation |
Changing all six lines together would give No. 62 (Xiao Guo, Preponderance of the Small). Line 2 (the crane) and line 5 (fidelity) are the supports of the hexagram; line 6, which denounces noise without substance, is its counterpoint.
A careful modern reading
Zhong Fu is read in relation to trust, authenticity, and the bonds in which we are true to one another. Modern readings see in it an invitation to inner availability and to consistency between words and deeds. The last line is a warning: proclaiming one's sincerity does not prove it. No legal or financial agreement rests on a hexagram.
Questions for reflection
- To whom can I offer my trust without calculation?
- Are my words equal to my deeds?
- What resonance, like that of the crane and its young, have I experienced?
- What do I do mainly for show?
Mistakes to avoid
- Taking sincerity for gullibility: the trust in the text rests on the centre.
- Quoting the hexagram to ask the other person to “believe”.
- Taking hexagram 61 as a prediction or as medical, financial, legal or safety advice: the I Ching is a tool for reflection, and such decisions belong to a professional.
Other names and other translations
The name “Zhong Fu, Inner Truth” follows one translation tradition among others; in Chinese, Zhong Fu (中孚). Other translations speak of sincerity at the centre, good faith or trust, and English-language books use “Inner Truth”, “Central Truthfulness” or “Centre Returning”.
In the King Wen sequence, it forms a pair with No. 62 (Xiao Guo, Preponderance of the Small), whose figure is the reverse of its own (all lines changed). Full list: all 64 hexagrams of the I Ching.
Frequently asked questions
What does hexagram 61 of the I Ching mean?
Zhong Fu, Inner Truth: the sincerity at the centre of oneself, which makes mutual trust possible.
Which trigrams make up hexagram 61?
Dui, Lake, below, and Xun, Wind, above.
What do “piglets and fishes” mean?
Humble animals: for ancient commentators, sincere trust reaches even them. Some scholars see a specific animal; the reading is debated.
Why does the last line speak of the rooster?
The image of a crow rising to heaven stands for words that rise above deeds. The text warns that persisting in mere noise leads to failure.
What happens when a line of hexagram 61 is changing?
It turns into its opposite and gives rise to a second hexagram, read as the direction the situation is taking. The table on the page gives the resulting hexagram for each of the six lines.
Can I rely on hexagram 61 to make a decision?
It can feed your reflection, but it never replaces the advice of a professional. For health, money, law or safety, consult the competent person; in distress, call 3114 in France, or 112 (the emergency number throughout the European Union).
Also read
The meanings mentioned belong to tradition and symbolism. They are neither promises of results nor medical advice. Back to The 64 hexagrams of the Yi King.