Hexagram 18

Gu, Can of worms

Gua Poem:
Decay. Eminent - expansion. Harvest wading the great river. Before Jia three days, after Jia three days.

The great image says: At the foot of the mountain the wind blows: decay. The noble one inspires the people to raise virtue.

Gu: the ideogram and the story (NEW). What does it mean for your question?
This hexagram is complementary to hex.17.

Top 9: Not serving king or lord. Honoring one's affairs high.
Everyone's spirit and Dao is unique, as long as it serves anyone else it is not true to itself. But.. there is also a danger here. If you don't serve your lord, then who do you serve? Your own affairs? Your own ambitions to climb the 46-ladder?
(Changes to hex.46) Mirror

6 at 5: Stem-father's decay. Use praise.
Yang decay is decay of the mind. It is possible to make yourself unhappy with thoughts. But making yourself happy can be done with not only thoughts - good ones - but also with acts and openness. Be nice to yourself or others and be careful with criticism.
(Changes to hex.57) Mirror

6 at 4: Tolerating stem-father's decay. To proceed sees distress.
One learns about laws in childhood. Without this knowledge one cannot build up a solid life. For every decision, power, intuition, insight, one has to draw on this inner source. So if they failed to teach you then learn about them. If you tolerate your own lack of rules, you are no better than the one who didn't teach you.
(Changes to hex.50) Mirror

9 at 3: Stem-father's decay. There is some regret. Without big fault.
Fighting decay and weakness will only succeed if one exaggerates a bit. Straightening something bent needs a little bending in the other direction.
(Changes to hex.4) Mirror

9 at 2: Stem-mother's decay. No divination possible.
Do not answer to demands which go against your sense of righteousness, beauty or love, even if they are commonly accepted as being good and nice. Many 'nice' gestures are demeaning for the recipient, taking away strength or self-confidence.
(Changes to hex.52) Mirror

Initial 6: Stem-father's decay. There is a son. The deceased father is without fault. Danger. Completion is auspicious.
Some things have to be done. It is not your choice, but it is your fate or position. So do them the best you can, do not fight this obligation, which is essentially someone else's. You just happen to be the one who has to do it.
(Changes to hex.26) Mirror

No lines changing: you can try to do things, but they may fail or even backfire. If there's nothing that should (or can) be done, then this might be a good time to relax and refuel. The Poem and the Image are guides that show you the best way to do that.

The Trigrams offer possibilities that the hexagram-texts don't show.

More about the lines and their characters