24. Return

The two trigrams

above

☷

Earth

坤 · kūn

the earth

below

☳

Thunder

震 · zhèn

thunder

The Judgement

Return is the hexagram of the winter solstice: after the longest darkness, the light begins to grow again, and a single firm line comes back in from below beneath five yielding ones. The text promises free course and progress: whoever lives this moment finds no one to hinder them in their goings out and comings in, friends come to them, and no error is committed. It is the promise of someone who comes back to their own road after a time of being lost: they return and repeat their proper course, and the return comes in seven days, that is, at the natural completion of a cycle, without forcing. If these days you feel something rekindling in you, the will to work, an affection you thought extinguished, health climbing back, a project set aside, do not hurry and do not be afraid: the push is real, but it is still small, like the sun in December. There will be advantage in whatever direction you move. The practical advice is to go along with this beginning through simple, regular gestures, not grand declarations: take up a good habit again, call the right person back, put one thing at a time in order. The returning light does not need to be pushed, it needs to be protected.

The Image

The image is that of thunder shut up within the earth: a force that is present but still silent, barely making itself felt. The ancient kings, the text says, on the day of the winter solstice shut the gates of the passes, so that merchants did not travel and princes suspended the inspection of their states. The first shoot must be sheltered in stillness, like the resolve to change one's life. If you have just begun something again, a diet, a course of study, a reconciliation, do not expose it at once to the traffic of the world. The practical advice: allow yourself a period of retreat, cut down commitments, do not tell everyone about your new beginning until it has taken root.

First line

The first line shows someone turning back from an error of no great extent, before it becomes something to repent of: great good fortune. It is the finest kind of return, that of someone who notices at once that they have strayed and corrects course without waiting. If you have drifted only a little from what you know to be right, one word too many, a neglected promise, a careless expense, do not wait for the damage to grow. The advice is to make it right this very day, simply: an apology, a gesture, a decision. Whoever corrects early has nothing to regret.

Second line

The second line shows an admirable return: good fortune. It is the return of someone who is not strong on their own but knows how to recognise the good in the person beside them and leans on it. The commentary speaks of condescension towards the virtuous one below: that is, humility, the ability to follow a good example without pride. If someone near you is getting back on track, a friend, a partner, a colleague, let yourself be inspired instead of feeling in competition. The practical advice is to seek good company for your return: two return better than one.

Third line

The third line shows someone who returns and returns again, repeatedly: the position is perilous, but there will be no error. It is the portrait of someone who tries to change, relapses, tries again, relapses once more. It is not a condemnation: the text acknowledges that the road of return is made of relapses too, and that what matters is not to stop getting up. If you are struggling with a habit, an addiction, a relationship you leave and re-enter, do not despise yourself for the inconstancy. The advice is to acknowledge the danger honestly and to make each return a little more solid than the last.

Fourth line

The fourth line shows someone moving right in the midst of others, among people who do not return, and yet returning alone to their own road. It is the line of someone with a true bond to what is right who follows it even when everyone around is heading elsewhere. If you find yourself in an environment where the opposite of what you feel is right is being done, at the office, among friends, in the family, this line tells you that you can go back to your path even without company. The advice is not to wait for others to change before you change: make your choice discreetly and without polemic, and go.

Fifth line

The fifth line shows the noble return: no ground for repentance. It is the return of someone in a position of responsibility who carries it out generously, without excuses and without half measures, striving to perfect themselves in keeping with their role. If you are the one who has wronged someone who depends on you, a child, a collaborator, a partner, the advice is to retrace your steps with dignity and openly: admitting error from a position of authority does not take away authority, it founds it. Whoever leads and knows how to correct themselves will have nothing to reproach themselves with.

Sixth line

The sixth line shows someone completely astray on the matter of returning: there will be evil, calamities and errors. If with such views they set the armies in motion, it would end in a great defeat whose consequences would reach all the way to the ruler; and not even in ten years could they repair the disaster. It is the hexagram's sternest warning: when the time for return has passed and was not seized, pressing on with grand actions brings long ruin. If you have let many chances to correct yourself go by and now want to recover with one forceful stroke, be careful: this is not the time to launch ventures. The advice is to stop, admit that you are lost, and start again from the smallest possible step.

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