Looking at the Course of One's Own Life to Advance or Recede

Turning the gaze inward, the third line changes the object of contemplation. Legge's translation shows one looking at the course of his own life in order to advance or recede accordingly, and the Little Symbolism promises that he will not fail in the right course. Every other line of this hexagram looks outward at something to be judged. This one looks at the person doing the judging and treats that as the more decisive question.

The position explains the turn. A yielding stroke occupies an odd place, incorrect by the standard rule, at the top of the lower trigram Kun, the threshold where the inner trigram gives way to the wind of Xun above. Threshold lines are where a movement decides whether to cross, and here the decision is made to depend on an honest reading of one's own record rather than on the attractions of what lies ahead.

Advance and retreat are given equal standing in the text, which is the line's most useful feature. Neither is recommended in advance. What is recommended is the examination, and the assurance in the commentary covers the examination rather than either outcome, so that a person who reads their own course truthfully is promised the right course whichever direction it turns out to be.