A Study of the Structure, Philosophical Principles, and Philosophy of Hexagram Huo Tian Da You (Fire over Heaven, Great Possession)
This article systematically investigates the fourteenth hexagram of the Yijing, 'Fire over Heaven — Great Possession' (Huo Tian Da You), analyzing its trigram structure of Li above Qian below, elucidating the rich connotations of 'Great Possession,' and drawing upon pre-Qin literature to expound the principle of 'one yielding line in the place of honor, five firm lines responding to it' — the way of grand virtue and great enterprise — revealing its profound significance in ancient political philosophy.
Chapter One: The Structural Image and Etymological Origin of Hexagram Da You
Section 1: The Hexagram Lines and Form
The hexagram Da You (Great Possession, ䷍) has Li (☲) as its upper trigram and Qian (☰) as its lower trigram. Reading its six lines from bottom to top: Initial Nine, Nine in the Second Place, Nine in the Third Place, Nine in the Fourth Place, Six in the Fifth Place, and Top Nine.
The most distinctive feature of this hexagram is that among its six lines, only Six in the Fifth Place is yin; the remaining five are all yang. This is the configuration known as "one yielding line in the place of honor, five firm lines responding to it." Six in the Fifth Place occupies the central position of the upper trigram and also the sovereign's seat of the entire hexagram. A single yin governing five yang lines is precisely like a wise sovereign holding court with all worthy ministers gathered, the four quarters coming in allegiance — hence the name "Great Possession."
How can a single yin in the place of honor govern five yang lines$6 This must be explained through the principle of yin and yang. Yang represents firmness, vigor, and enterprise; yin represents yielding, receptivity, and capaciousness. Were there five yang lines with no yin at all, there would be untempered rigidity with nothing to restrain it — excess leading to regret. But when a single yin occupies the most exalted position, it can use the way of yielding to govern the many firm lines, giving firmness a home to which it may attach, a measure by which it may be restrained, and a vessel through which it may achieve. This is like the Pole Star dwelling in its place while all the other stars revolve about it; like a wise sovereign sitting in composed dignity while all officials attend to their duties.
The Xici Shangzhuan (Great Commentary, Upper Section) says: "The alternation of yin and yang — this is called the Dao." And again: "The unfathomable workings of yin and yang — this is called spirit." Da You, with one yin dwelling among five yang lines, perfectly accords with the Way of yin and yang complementing each other, firmness and yielding completing each other.
Section 2: The Significance of Li Above, Qian Below
Qian is Heaven; Li is Fire. Fire resting above Heaven — this is Great Possession.
Why does fire above heaven signify Great Possession$7 This may be explained on several levels.
First, Heaven is the most exalted, and fire is the most luminous; what is both exalted and luminous illuminates all without exception.
The Shuogua Zhuan (Discussion of the Trigrams) says: "Qian is Heaven." "Li means 'clinging.'" "Li is fire and the sun." Heaven stands above all things; fire is brilliant illumination. Fire above heaven is like the sun suspended at the zenith, shining universally in all directions, leaving no darkness unilluminated, no distance unreached. When all things receive its radiance, each fulfills its life, each achieves its form — this is why it signifies "Great Possession."
The Shangshu — Yao Dian (Canon of Yao) records the virtue of Emperor Yao: "His radiance covered the four quarters and reached to heaven above and earth below." This is precisely the image of Great Possession. When sun and moon shine upon all, nothing under heaven fails to receive their beneficent grace — hence the ability to possess all under heaven greatly.
Second, Heaven moves with vigor and fire flames upward; both move in the same direction and complete each other.
The virtue of Qian is strength; its image is Heaven — Heaven moves ceaselessly, ever strengthening itself. The virtue of Li is brightness; its image is fire — fire's nature is to flame upward, radiating light in all directions. Heaven's ceaseless movement and fire's upward flaming unite in one virtue: firmness wedded to brilliance, self-strengthening adorned with radiance. This is the essential nature of the virtue of Great Possession.
Third, Li is the sun and Qian is Heaven; the sun above Heaven is the image of high noon.
The sun travels across the sky, rising in the east, passing through the south, setting in the west. In the course of a single day, at noon the sun stands at the very center of the sky, its brilliance at its fullest, its illumination at its widest. The image of the Da You hexagram is precisely the scene of the sun at the zenith: all things fully illuminated, abundance and great possession.
Yet when the sun reaches its zenith it must decline; when the moon waxes full it must wane. This too is what those who enjoy Great Possession must guard against with vigilance. Thus although Da You is a hexagram of flourishing, it inherently contains the meaning of cautious watchfulness — a point to be discussed in detail later.
Fourth, fire's nature is to rise upward and unite with heaven, symbolizing virtue ascending on high.
Fire by nature flames upward; its light moves upward rather than downward. This symbolizes how human virtue should ascend and elevate itself to accord with the Way of Heaven. Qian represents the Way of Heaven; Li represents the virtue of civilized brightness. To ascend with the virtue of civilized brightness to accord with the Way of Heaven — this is the true meaning of Great Possession.
The Shijing — Da Ya — Wen Wang says: "King Wen is on high; oh, he shines in Heaven. Though Zhou was an ancient state, its mandate was new." King Wen's virtue — civilized brightness ascending to reach Heaven — perfectly accords with the image of Fire over Heaven, Great Possession.
Section 3: An Analysis of the Meaning of the Name "Da You"
The two characters "Da You" (Great Possession) in the hexagram name of the Yijing are rich in meaning, and interpretations have long been various. Let us attempt to analyze them from several angles.
First, what does "Da" (Great) mean$8
The character "Da" is used in many ways throughout the Yijing. Sometimes it refers to magnitude, as in Da Xu (Great Accumulation) or Da Zhuang (Great Vigor); sometimes to the greatness of virtue, as in Da Guo (Great Excess); sometimes to the greatness of effect, as in Da You (Great Possession).
In the case of hexagram Da You, "Da" carries at least three layers of meaning:
First, greatness of scale. "Great Possession" means possessing much and broadly — as when a state possesses all under heaven, rich in the four seas.
Second, greatness of quality. "Great Possession" is not small or partial possession, but the possession that comes with grand virtue and great enterprise. The Xici Shangzhuan says: "How supreme are grand virtue and great enterprise! To be rich in possession — this is called great enterprise. Daily renewal — this is called grand virtue." Here "rich possession" glosses "great enterprise," corresponding precisely to the meaning of Da You.
Third, greatness of spiritual level. "Great Possession" is not the possession of one thing or one affair, but the level at which all is possessed, nothing excluded. Heaven covers all things and overlooks none; the sun illuminates all quarters without partiality — this is the spiritual level of Great Possession.
Second, what does "You" (Possession) mean$9
The character "You" carries rich meanings in pre-Qin texts.
The Erya — Shigu says: "You means 'to take.'" The Shuowen Jiezi says: "You means 'what should not be had.'" Duan Yucai's commentary considers the original meaning of "You" to be "to hold."
But in the Yijing's hexagram Da You, how should "You" be understood$10
First, possession and ownership. This is the most direct meaning. Great Possession means possessing greatly, having in abundance.
Second, preservation and retention. After possessing, whether one can preserve it long — this is the key. The deeper meaning of Da You lies not merely in "gaining possession" but even more in "preserving possession."
Third, richness and abundance. "You" is cognate with "rich"; Da You means great richness. Yet this "richness" refers not only to material wealth, but also to richness of virtue, richness of talented people, and richness of achievement.
Fourth, existence and manifestation. All things existing, each in its proper place, each fulfilling its nature, everything under heaven finding its rightful position — this is the highest meaning of Great Possession.
Third, "Da You" considered as a whole.
Taken together, "Da You" means: to possess the broadest enterprise through the grandest virtue; to govern the greatest multitude from the highest position; all under heaven returning in allegiance, all things flourishing — the utmost of abundance and possession.
The Xugua Zhuan (Commentary on the Sequence of Hexagrams) says: "Those who share common cause with others will inevitably have things return to them; hence Great Possession follows." This explains the origin of Da You. Hexagram Tong Ren (Fellowship with Others) precedes Da You. Tong Ren means sharing common purpose and virtue with others. When one can share purpose and virtue with others, all things under heaven will inevitably attach themselves — hence Great Possession becomes possible. The logic of this hexagram sequence is most apt.
Why is it that "those who share common cause with others will inevitably have things return to them"$11 Because what all hearts share in common is where heavenly principle resides. When one shares purpose with others, all people will gladly return to one; when one shares virtue with others, all things will respond in resonance. Like water flowing downward, like fire seeking dryness — it is natural principle. In the Lunyu — Yan Yuan, the Master said: "The virtue of the noble person is like wind; the virtue of the common person is like grass. When wind blows over grass, it must bend." Such is the power of moral influence.
Therefore the naming of Da You actually encompasses both meanings of "possessing what is great" and "making one's possession great." "Possessing what is great" — what one possesses is vast. "Making one's possession great" — the manner of one's possession is grand. Not seizing by force, but winning allegiance through virtue; not hoarding privately, but sharing publicly; not claiming partially, but encompassing broadly. This is why Great Possession is truly Great Possession.
Section 4: The Position of Da You Among the Sixty-Four Hexagrams
The Da You hexagram occupies the fourteenth position among the sixty-four hexagrams — a placement that is by no means accidental.
Beginning from the two hexagrams Qian and Kun, passing through Zhun, Meng, Xu, Song, Shi, Bi, Xiao Xu, Lu, Tai, Pi, and Tong Ren to arrive at Da You — fourteen hexagrams in all. This sequence of fourteen hexagrams constitutes a complete developmental progression.
Qian and Kun are the beginning of heaven and earth, the root of all things. Zhun is the difficulty of things first coming into being. Meng is the obscurity of things in their infancy. Xu is the nourishment needed for growth. Song is the arising of human disputes. Shi is the deployment of armies. Bi is the way of alliance and attachment. Xiao Xu is the modest gathering of the yielding and small. Lu is the practice of propriety in conduct. Tai is the free communication of heaven and earth. Pi is the blockage of heaven and earth failing to communicate. Tong Ren is the harmony of all hearts united.
From Tong Ren to Da You is the progression from "harmony" to "possession." Once hearts are united, collective strength converges, all things attach themselves, and Great Possession becomes possible. This is like saying: first win hearts, then win the realm.
The Xugua Zhuan states plainly: "Those who share common cause with others will inevitably have things return to them; hence Great Possession follows." And further: "Those who possess greatly cannot remain full to overflowing; hence Modesty follows." This teaches that after Great Possession one must guard oneself with the virtue of modesty, never becoming arrogant. The connection between Da You and Qian (Modesty) likewise holds deep philosophical significance.
Viewing the upper canon as a whole: hexagrams Tai and Pi concern the communication or blockage of heaven and earth, relating to the cosmic trend of openness or obstruction; hexagrams Tong Ren and Da You concern the harmony and possession of human affairs, relating to the rise and fall of human governance. Tai and Pi speak of the opening and closing of the Way of Heaven; Tong Ren and Da You speak of the gains and losses of the Way of Humanity. The two pairs depend upon and complete each other, forming a critical juncture in the upper canon.
Furthermore, from the principle of hexagram inversion: the inverted hexagram (comprehensive hexagram) of Da You is Tong Ren. Da You has Li above and Qian below; inverted it becomes Qian above and Li below — which is Tong Ren. This demonstrates that Da You and Tong Ren are two sides of one coin: Tong Ren is the foundation of Da You, and Da You is the fruition of Tong Ren. To achieve Great Possession, one must first achieve Fellowship; having achieved Great Possession, one must never forget the Way of Fellowship.
Section 5: The Nuclear and Complementary Hexagrams of Da You
Analysis of the Nuclear Hexagram:
The nuclear hexagram of Da You is formed by taking lines 2-3-4 as the lower trigram and lines 3-4-5 as the upper trigram. The six lines of Da You are: Initial Nine, Nine in the Second, Nine in the Third, Nine in the Fourth, Six in the Fifth, Top Nine. Lines 2-3-4 are Nine in the Second, Nine in the Third, Nine in the Fourth — all yang, forming the lower nuclear trigram Qian (☰). Lines 3-4-5 are Nine in the Third, Nine in the Fourth, Six in the Fifth — forming the upper nuclear trigram Dui (☱).
Thus the nuclear hexagram of Da You is Ze Tian Guai (Lake over Heaven — Breakthrough). Guai means "to decide," the firm deciding upon the yielding. That Guai is contained within Da You implies that within Great Possession there lies latent the meaning of firm decisiveness. Though Da You represents flourishing abundance, it must be maintained and protected through resolute firmness; otherwise abundance easily breeds complacency, leading ultimately to loss.
Analysis of the Complementary Hexagram:
The complementary hexagram of Da You (each line changed to its opposite): Initial Nine becomes Initial Six, Nine in the Second becomes Six in the Second, Nine in the Third becomes Six in the Third, Nine in the Fourth becomes Six in the Fourth, Six in the Fifth becomes Nine in the Fifth, Top Nine becomes Top Six — yielding: Kan above Kun below, which is hexagram Bi (Water over Earth — Alliance).
Bi means attachment and mutual support. That Da You's complement is Bi makes for a most meaningful contrast. Da You — all things returning to oneself, abundance and possession; Bi — attaching to others, supporting those above. The two are exactly two sides of one coin: to achieve Great Possession, one must first be able to form alliances with others, causing others to attach to oneself; and after Great Possession, one must maintain hearts through the virtue of alliance, never becoming arrogant on account of one's great possessions.
This accords with what the Shangshu — Da Yu Mo says: "Fullness invites diminishment; modesty receives increase — such is the Way of Heaven." The flourishing of Great Possession, if not guarded with the virtue of modesty and alliance, will ultimately invite diminishment and loss.