Hexagram 49 Gé, Skinning Gua Poem: Skinning on Si-day, then truth. Eminent - expansion, harvest - divination. Regrets disappear. The great image says: In the middle of the lake is fire: skinning. A noble one, by regulating the times, makes the seasons clear.

  Gé: the ideogram and the story (NEW). What does it mean for your question?
  This hexagram is complementary to hex.4. In 49 one has ideas how things should or could be, in 4 nothing is clear yet. Don't neglect the other side when you concentrate on one of the two.

Top 6: The noble one changes like a leopard, small men shed the skin of the face. To set things right: pitfall. Settling-down divination: auspicious.
Be content with the results when everybody does what he can do, and give everyone this freedom. Asking for more or different will bring about failure and bad feelings. A change is for the better, not for perfection.
(Changes to hex.13)  Mirror

9 at 5: The great one changes like a tiger. Even before the augury he inspires.
Who acts and reacts open and honest and clearly visible, will find belief. Openness has more power of expression than any explanation. He is the one who can persuade others towards the good changes.
(Changes to hex.55)  Mirror

9 at 4: Regrets disappear. He has truth in changing the mandate. Auspicious.
To bring about something viable and strong, one has to follow one's own belief and motivation. What is accepted from others and does not carry this own inner conviction, weakens the result and prevents it from becoming an organic whole.
(Changes to hex.63)  Mirror

9 at 3: Demand (or effectuate) that things be set right: pitfall. Divination: danger. When talk of skinning has gone round three times, it has truth.
Too soon and too late is both wrong. Don't follow every rumor, but don't tally either. The moment one is sure, one can act, and only then one will find the real participants. There are no fixed rules for changes, one has to feel one’s way.
(Changes to hex.17)  Mirror

6 at 2: On Sì-day, then skinning is correct. Auspicious. No fault.
All things always revolve. Opportunities can be awakened when the time assists and the conditions are right. If one misses this point in a cycle there is no point in forcing anything, but hitting the right moment can make big changes.
(Changes to hex.43)  Mirror

Initial 9: Bound with yellow cattle's hide.
There are always innumerable reasons why one thinks change is impossible. Evaluate them critically - very often they are other people's reasons and one has adopted them too easily. What is common is usually not creative.
(Changes to hex.31)  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