Yarrow paired source note · 2026-07-17

Lu and Qian: Read an Opposite Pair Without Ranking It

Compare Hexagram 10 Lu (Treading) with Hexagram 15 Qian (Modesty) as a line-by-line opposite pair, without turning contrast into prediction.

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10 · Lu · Treading

Treading upon the tail of the tiger. It does not bite the man. Success. The Tuan says: Treading. The weak treads upon the strong. With joyousness they respond to the Creative. Therefore, "He treads upon the tail of the tiger; it does not bite him." There is progress and success. The firm is in the central and correct place. He occupies the seat of God and is without distress. His light shines forth. The Image says: Heaven above, the lake below: the image of Treading.

According to the Xugua, it says: "Once things have been accumulated, there must be propriety, therefore it is received by Lü." Cui Jing said: "Lü means propriety.

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15 · Qian · Modesty

Modesty: success. The superior man who holds fast to modesty brings things to a good end. The Tuan says: Modesty creates success. The way of heaven sends its light downward and shines forth; the way of earth lies low, yet its breath rises upward. It is the way of heaven to diminish the full and augment the modest; the way of earth to overthrow the full and replenish the modest; spirits and gods bring harm to the full and bless the modest; it is the way of men to hate the full and love the...

"Reduce what is excessive and increase what is insufficient, weigh things and distribute them evenly" — the thought emphasized in the Qian hexagram reflects the ancient...

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What the structural contrast actually says

The local structured corpus records Hexagram 10's opposite as Hexagram 15, and Hexagram 15's opposite as Hexagram 10. Every line changes polarity across this pair. Use that structural fact to compare conditions, not to label one side good and the other bad.

Two-column comparison practice

Make two columns headed Lu and Qian. Under each, copy one phrase from its reference translation and one observable condition from the situation you are studying. Circle the condition that would have to change before the other column became more relevant. Choose one reversible step and a review date.

Common misread to avoid

An opposite pair is not a before-and-after promise. Lu does not automatically become Qian, and the pair does not decide which person or outcome is correct. It is a disciplined contrast for closer observation.

Source boundary

The two reference translations and context notes come from Yarrow's bundled structured Zhouyi authority layer. The opposite-pair relation comes from the same local corpus. This comparison is not a fresh cast or a forecast.