Enthusiasm

Meaning

Thunder rises from the earth with joyful enthusiasm. Inspire others and set things in motion.

Classical Judgment

“Enthusiasm. It furthers one to install helpers and to set armies marching.”

The classical judgment is the original oracle text — the answer the I Ching gives when this hexagram appears.

The Image

Thunder comes resounding out of the earth. The ancient kings made music to honor merit.

The Image is a nature scene associated with this hexagram — a symbolic picture that distils its essence. In classic texts, meditating on the Image was considered the proper way to absorb the hexagram's teaching.

Nuclear Hexagram

Lines 2–5 of this hexagram form an inner hexagram called the nuclear hexagram. It reveals the hidden seed or underlying dynamic within the situation — what lies at the core beneath the surface.

In a Reading

When hexagram 16 appears in your reading, the I Ching is drawing your attention to the quality of inspiration. Sit with the Image — “Thunder comes resounding out of the earth” — and consider how this pattern is playing out in your current situation. The Judgment offers the oracle’s direct guidance on how to move with this energy rather than against it.