Hexagram 54: The Marrying Maiden
Gui Mei · 歸妹
The Judgment
Undertakings bring misfortune. Nothing that would further. A girl taken into the family but not as the chief wife must behave with special caution and reserve. She must not take it upon herself to supplant the mistress of the house—that would mean disorder and untenable relationships. While legally regulated relationships evince a fixed connection between duties and rights, relationships based on personal inclination depend entirely on tactful reserve. Affection as the principle of relatedness is of the greatest importance in all relationships.
The Image
Thunder over the lake. Understand the transitory in the light of the eternity of the end. Thunder stirs the water of the lake, which follows it in shimmering waves—symbolizing the girl who follows the man of her choice. But every relationship bears the danger of wrong turns leading to endless misunderstandings. Constantly remain mindful of the end. If we drift along, we come together and are parted as the day determines. But if you fix your mind on an end that endures, you succeed in avoiding the reefs that confront closer relationships.
「澤上有雷，歸妹。」雷震動湖水，水波跟隨它閃爍——象徵女子跟隨她選擇的男子。但每一段關係都潛藏著走錯方向的危險，導致無盡的誤解。象辭說君子「永終知敝」——時刻記住結局，才能理解破敗。如果隨波逐流，聚散由天。如果心裡有一個持久的目標，就能避開親密關係中的暗礁。
The Six Lines
The marrying maiden as a concubine. A lame man who is able to tread. Undertakings bring good fortune. A girl entering a family with the consent of the wife will not rank outwardly as her equal but will withdraw modestly into the background. If she understands how to fit herself into the pattern of things, her position will be entirely satisfactory. Though hampered by this status, as if lame, she can nevertheless accomplish something through kindliness of nature.
A one-eyed man who is able to see. The perseverance of a solitary one furthers. A girl married to a man who has disappointed her. Man and wife ought to work together like a pair of eyes. Here the girl is left behind in loneliness; the man of her choice has become unfaithful or has died. But she does not lose the inner light of loyalty. Though the other eye is gone, she maintains her loyalty even in loneliness.
The marrying maiden as a slave. She marries as a concubine. A girl in a lowly position who finds no husband may still win shelter as a concubine. This pictures a person who longs too much for joys that cannot be obtained in the usual way. They enter a situation not altogether compatible with self-esteem. Neither judgment nor warning—merely laying bare the actual situation for everyone to draw a lesson.
The marrying maiden draws out the allotted time. A late marriage comes in due course. The girl is virtuous. She does not wish to throw herself away and allows the customary time for marriage to slip by. There is no harm in this; she is rewarded for her purity and, even though belatedly, finds the husband intended for her.
The sovereign I gave his daughter in marriage. The embroidered garments of the princess were not as gorgeous as those of the serving maid. The moon that is nearly full brings good fortune. A girl of aristocratic birth who marries a man of modest circumstances and understands how to adapt with grace. Free of vanity of outer adornment, forgetting her rank, she takes a place below her husband, just as the moon before it is quite full does not directly face the sun.
The woman holds the basket, but there are no fruits in it. The man stabs the sheep, but no blood flows. Nothing that acts to further. The ritual is only superficially fulfilled—an empty basket, a sheep already dead. Solely to preserve forms. This impious, irreverent attitude bodes no good for a marriage.
Artwork & Treatise
Olympia
Édouard Manet, 1863
Édouard Manet's 1863 work depicts a reclining nude woman gazing directly at the viewer while a servant presents flowers from a client. The painting scandalized the Paris Salon by presenting transactional intimacy without romantic idealization. The woman, likely a courtesan, wears only a ribbon at her throat and a single shoe. Olympia, the title suggests—named after a common courtesan pseudonym, not the classical mountain. Behind her, the Black servant extends a lavish bouquet wrapped in paper. The woman's direct stare acknowledges the exchange openly: flowers for favors, money for access, a relationship built on unequal terms.
This is Guī Mèi (歸妹), the Chinese hexagram of The Marrying Maiden. The phrase literally means "returning younger sister," referring to the ancient practice where a younger sister accompanied the bride as secondary wife or concubine. Ancient diviners saw this configuration when Thunder (Zhèn) sits above Lake (Dui): the eldest son above the youngest daughter, vigorous movement pressing upon yielding joy. The structural imbalance reveals itself immediately—this relationship lacks the reciprocity needed for lasting union. Manet's painting makes visible what polite society concealed: relationships built on subordinate positions and economic necessity rather than mutual standing.
{artwork_reasoning}
The Judgment warns directly: "The Marrying Maiden. Undertakings bring misfortune. Nothing that would further." The ancient text offers no encouraging interpretation—this hexagram signals improper foundation. In Zhou Dynasty marriage protocol, the primary wife maintained ritual authority and family standing. The marrying maiden occupied a necessary but subordinate position, lacking independent status. Her children ranked below the first wife's, her voice carried less weight, her situation depended entirely on others' favor. Manet's Olympia embodies this precarious position—she receives flowers today, but the relationship contains no promise of tomorrow. Classical I-Ching commentaries use this hexagram to discuss what happens when desire overrides structural considerations.
The Image Text states: "Thunder over the lake: the image of The Marrying Maiden. Thus the superior man understands the transitory in the light of the eternity of the end." Thunder stirs the lake's surface, creating temporary waves that vanish quickly. The trigram configuration shows enthusiasm without foundation, movement without proper ground. In the hexagram sequence, The Marrying Maiden follows Development: after gradual, proper advancement comes the warning against shortcuts that bypass necessary stages. Manet's direct gaze challenges the viewer to acknowledge uncomfortable truths about relationships built on unequal terms.
Yilin Verse
堅冰黃裳，鳥哀悲愁。不見白粒，但覩藜蒿。數驚鷙鳥，為我心憂。
Jiao Yanshou's Forest of Changes (焦氏易林) — Unchanging verse for 歸妹 (Guī Mèi)
Character-by-Character Breakdown
Classical Chinese text with pinyin and English meanings