Hexagram 31 — Conjoining
King Wen #31 · plain-language meaning, the Image, and the classical text
Mutual attraction. Influence flows both ways; meet the other with sincerity.
What Hexagram 31 Means 白话解读
Hexagram 31 places mountain (艮) beneath lake (兑) — stillness holding its ground below, joy lifting what it touches above. This is why the tradition reads it as “Conjoining”: mutual attraction. Influence flows both ways; meet the other with sincerity. Whenever you cast this figure, the classical reading points back to that turning of forces.
The Image 象傳
山上有澤，咸；君子以虛受人。
(The trigram representing) a mountain and above it that for (the waters of) a marsh form Hsien. The superior man, in accordance with this, keeps his mind free from pre-occupation, and open to receive (the influences of) others.— The I Ching, trans. James Legge, 1899 (public domain)1
A marsh on the mountain top: influence. The wise receive others with an open, empty vessel.— plain-English rendering by The Hexagrams2
Hexagram 31 in Real Questions 實問實答
With money and work
Conjoining describes mutual attraction. Influence flows both ways; meet the other with sincerity — and that is the posture the tradition recommends for practical matters under this figure: stillness holding its ground, held inside a larger setting of joy lifting what it touches. It names a shape of timing, not a sum.
For a decision
If you cast Conjoining about a choice, the figure's counsel is the same movement it pictures: mutual attraction. Influence flows both ways; meet the other with sincerity. When lines move in your cast, read them against this base — the moving lines show which part of the figure is awake for you, and the changed hexagram shows where it is heading.
Questions About Hexagram 31
What does 咸 (xián) mean?
Hexagram 31 of the I Ching is named 咸 (xián), usually rendered "Conjoining" in English editions. Its figure is built from mountain (艮) below and lake (兑) above — stillness holding its ground beneath joy lifting what it touches.
Is hexagram 31 a good omen?
The received text of hexagram 31 is warm: it contains 3 occurrences of 吉 (good fortune), 1 of 凶 (misfortune). The classical verdict is broadly favourable — with the lines' own conditions attached (the text notes possible regret 悔 where the moment is mishandled).
What does hexagram 31 mean in love?
In a relationship reading, Conjoining points to mutual attraction. Influence flows both ways; meet the other with sincerity. The figure pairs mountain (艮) beneath lake (兑) — stillness holding its ground meeting joy lifting what it touches — which is the traditional picture of how this energy behaves between two people. For how to phrase a love question before casting, see our guide to asking the I Ching about love.
What does hexagram 31 mean for career and money?
Career and money questions read Conjoining through the figure itself: mountain (艮) below, lake (兑) above — stillness holding its ground held inside joy lifting what it touches. The plain reading: Mutual attraction. Influence flows both ways; meet the other with sincerity. The text carries 3 mentions of 吉 (good fortune) and 1 of 凶 (misfortune), so it is read as workable — provided the conduct the lines describe is kept.
What do the changing lines of hexagram 31 mean?
A cast of hexagram 31 can produce moving lines. Each of the six lines has its own statement (爻辭) in the classical text below, read from the bottom up, and a moving line is read as the part of the figure that is awake for your question. When a line moves it turns into its opposite, and the whole figure becomes a second hexagram: changing every line of 31 gives hexagram 41, 損 (Diminishing). Every line also has a page of its own on this site — Line 1 through Line 6 under this hexagram — with the classical Chinese and Legge's translation side by side.
How is hexagram 31 related to the other hexagrams?
Changing every line of hexagram 31 gives hexagram 41 — 損 (Diminishing). Turned upside down it becomes hexagram 32 — 恆 (Persevering). Its nuclear hexagram — the inner pattern of lines 2 through 5 — is hexagram 44 — 姤 (Coupling).
Cast it yourself
Shake the tube, watch your own coins fall.
- The hexagram's classical meaning — judgment and all six lines
- Moving lines marked — but not read for you
- No account, no email, nothing to pay
Get the reading, not just the text
Same cast, read all the way through:
- Every line read for you — what each moving line means inside your question
- The changed hexagram — where your situation is heading, and how to read the turn
- A closing that answers you directly — act, wait, or say it out loud
New to casting? How it works · All 64 hexagrams
Related Hexagrams 錯綜互
The Classical Text 經文
亨，利貞。取女吉。
Xian indicates that, (on the fulfilment of the conditions implied in it), there will be free course and success. Its advantageousness will depend on the being firm and correct, (as) in marrying a young lady. There will be good fortune.— The I Ching, trans. James Legge, 1899 (public domain)1
The Six Lines 爻辞
咸其拇。
The first six, divided, shows one moving his great toes.
咸其腓，凶；居吉。
The second SIX, divided, shows one moving the calves of his leg. There will be evil. If he abide (quiet in his place), there will be good fortune.
咸其股，執其隨，往吝。
The third NINE, undivided, shows one moving his thighs, and keeping close hold of those whom he follows. Going forward (in this way) will cause regret.
貞吉，悔亡，憧憧往來，朋從爾思。
The fourth NINE, undivided, shows that firm correctness whi.ch will lead to good fortune, and prevent all occasion for repentance. If its subject be unsettled in his movements, (only) his friends will follow his purpose.
咸其脢，無悔。
The fifth NINE, undivided, shows one moving the flesh along the spine above the heart. There will be no occasion for repentance.
咸其輔頰舌。
The sixth six, divided, shows one moving his jaws and tongue.
Line by Line 逐爻细读
1 Legge, James. The Yi King, Sacred Books of the East vol. XVI (1899), public domain. Classical Chinese from the received Zhouyi text.2 The Image (象傳) is an ancient text in the public domain; its plain-English gloss here is original to The Hexagrams, not a quotation from any copyrighted edition. · For reflection and entertainment — not financial, medical, or life advice.