Hexagram 40 · 雷水解

Deliverance

Wood · Zhen palace

Release from tension; finish what remains quickly.

Meaning

Thunder and water: the storm breaking. Deliverance describes the release that follows a period of tension or danger.

Decision Framework

Resolve what remains, then move on promptly.

Decision Guidance

Deliverance is a favourable reading that follows difficulty. It appears when the pressure lifts—the crisis passes, the conflict eases, the decision finally resolves—and energy returns to the situation.

The instruction is to use the release well. There is usually unfinished business left behind by the difficult period, and the hexagram recommends clearing it promptly rather than leaving loose ends to be discovered later. Once it is resolved, move forward without lingering over what happened. Early departure from a finished difficulty is its own kind of wisdom.

Judgment — Classical Text

利西南，无所往，其来复吉。

EN The southwest furthers. If there is nowhere to go, returning brings good fortune.

The Six Lines — Classical Text

初六：无咎。
EN Initial six: no blame.
九二：田获三狐，得黄矢。
EN Nine in the second: hunting and taking three foxes, gaining a yellow arrow — perseverance brings good fortune.
六三：负且乘，致寇至。
EN Six in the third: carrying a burden on one's back and riding in a carriage invites robbers — perseverance brings regret.
九四：解而拇，朋至斯孚。
EN Nine in the fourth: untie your thumbs, and friends arrive in sincerity.
六五：君子维有解，吉，有孚于小人。
EN Six in the fifth: the noble one can release — good fortune; there is sincerity even towards petty people.
上六：公用射隼于高墉之上，获之，无不利。
EN Topmost six: the lord shoots a falcon on the high wall and takes it — nothing unfavourable.

Keywords

I Ching hexagram 40, Deliverance hexagram, Jie hexagram meaning, hexagram for relief