Da Guo 澤風大過
A time when the load is too heavy
You are under a heavy burden. If you overdo it you will snap, so ask for help or set some of it down.
What does I Ching hexagram 28 (Great Excess) mean?
The ridgepole bending under a heavy load. It calls for extraordinary resolve, but you must check what you can actually bear.
- Great Excess in love
- Feelings overheat easily, so don’t overreach.
- Great Excess at work and with money
- You are carrying a lot. Ask for help.
- Advice
- Share the heavy load instead of carrying it alone.
The judgment and the image
Judgment · Great Excess
Auspicious“The ridgepole sags. It is fitting to undertake something. Success.”
The Image: The lake submerges the trees: great excess. The noble person stands alone without fear and withdraws from the world without regret.
原文 · 棟橈，利有攸往，亨。 / 澤滅木，大過。君子以獨立不懼，遯世无悶。
The six lines of hexagram 28
Lines are read from the bottom up. When you cast a reading and a line is changing, its statement becomes the key message.
Line 1 · 初六
No blame“Spreading white rushes underneath; no blame.”
Extra caution at the start makes you safe.
原文 · 藉用白茅，无咎。
Line 2 · 九二
Auspicious“A withered willow sprouts shoots; an old man gets a young wife: nothing is unfavorable.”
New life arises in an unexpected place. A fresh start.
原文 · 枯楊生稊，老夫得其女妻，无不利。
Line 3 · 九三
Misfortune“The ridgepole sags: misfortune.”
The load is too much and the structure breaks. Don’t be stubborn.
原文 · 棟橈，凶。
Line 4 · 九四
No blame“The ridgepole is propped up: good fortune. If anything else is added, humiliation.”
Real support makes you stable. Don’t overbuild.
原文 · 棟隆，吉。有它吝。
Line 5 · 九五
No blame“A withered willow blooms; an old woman gets a young husband: no blame, no praise.”
A brief flowering that isn’t lasting. Don’t put much weight on it.
原文 · 枯楊生華，老婦得其士夫，无咎无譽。
Line 6 · 上六
Misfortune“Wading through, the water goes over the head: misfortune, but no blame.”
You take a deadly risk for a principle. It ends badly but is not shameful.
原文 · 過涉滅頂，凶，无咎。
Related hexagrams
- Opposite hexagram (every line flipped): 27. Yi (Nourishment)
The classical text is in the public domain; the English translations and readings are our own, for reflection and entertainment.