Hexagram 17 of 64 · King Wen sequence

Following

随 · suí

Above: Lake
Below: Thunder

Lake above thunder: the movement below and the joy above in accord — choosing what to follow, and what that choice makes of you.

Thunder stirs, the lake answers: this is the hexagram of following — attaching your movement to something worth moving with. Its counsel cuts both ways: what you follow shapes you, so follow deliberately; and if you want followers, give them something real to follow.

The text adds an uncommon caution: to keep the whole, lose a partial attachment. Following means endings — an old identity, a loud obligation, a comfortable way of being wrong. Name what you are leaving when you commit.

Questions this hexagram asks

What am I following right now, and who did that make me this month?
What partial attachment must end for the whole to hold?
If others followed my example, where would it lead them?

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