Hexagram 4 of 64
Youthful Folly
蒙 (Méng)
Covered (méng) — the unclouded beginner's mind
InexperienceAs shown in classical I Ching texts
Composition
Upper Trigram
Still, keeping, meditative — the power of not-moving
Outer situation / environment
Lower Trigram
Deep, flowing, dangerous — penetrating through persistence
Inner situation / your state
Interaction
Mountain above Water — peak meeting rain & rivers. The outer energy of mountain shapes the inner disposition of water.
Meaning
The student who must seek the teacher, not the reverse. Embrace beginner's mind and openness to learning.
Classical Judgment
“Youthful Folly has success. It is not I who seek the young fool; the young fool seeks me.”
The classical judgment is the original oracle text — the answer the I Ching gives when this hexagram appears.
The Image
A spring wells up at the foot of the mountain. The superior one fosters character through decisive action.
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.
#24 — Hidden within
Return
復 (Fù) · Renewal
In a Reading
When hexagram 4 appears in your reading, the I Ching is drawing your attention to the quality of inexperience. Sit with the Image — “A spring wells up at the foot of 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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