Hexagram 18 of 64
Work on What Has Been Spoiled
蠱 (Gǔ)
Decay (gǔ) — tending and restoring what has been spoiled
RepairAs shown in classical I Ching texts
Composition
Upper Trigram
Still, keeping, meditative — the power of not-moving
Outer situation / environment
Lower Trigram
Gentle, penetrating, persistent — gradual influence that goes everywhere
Inner situation / your state
Interaction
Mountain above Wind — peak meeting breeze. The outer energy of mountain shapes the inner disposition of wind.
Meaning
Decay must be faced and remedied. What has been corrupted by neglect can be restored with effort.
Classical Judgment
“Work on what has been spoiled has supreme success. It furthers one to cross the great water.”
The classical judgment is the original oracle text — the answer the I Ching gives when this hexagram appears.
The Image
The wind blows low on the mountain. The superior one stirs up the people and strengthens their spirit.
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.
#54 — Hidden within
The Marrying Maiden
歸妹 (Guī Mèi) · Transition
In a Reading
When hexagram 18 appears in your reading, the I Ching is drawing your attention to the quality of repair. Sit with the Image — “The wind blows low on the mountain” — 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.
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