I CHING HEXAGRAM 48

Hexagram 48: The Well / 水风井

Meaning & Interpretation

QUICK ORIENTATION

What this pattern asks of you

Maintain access, improve the vessel, and make sure a valuable source can actually be used by those who need it.

LOWER TRIGRAMWind (Xun)

The inner condition and the way the situation begins.

UPPER TRIGRAMWater (Kan)

The surrounding field and the way the pattern develops.

THE TRADITIONAL IMAGE

Water (Kan) above Wind (Xun)

Water stands above wood, recalling the structure used to draw from a well. A lasting source serves people only when the vessel, access, and shared responsibility are properly maintained.

Core Meaning

The Well concerns shared resources and the enduring source that sustains a community even while people and structures change.

Maintain access, improve the vessel, and make sure a valuable source can actually be used by those who need it. In a Liu Yao reading, this general pattern is only the starting point: moving lines, Self and Other, Six Relatives, and seasonal strength determine how it applies to a specific question.

In Love & Relationships

A deep bond needs practical ways to draw nourishment from it. Good feeling is not enough if communication and care remain inaccessible.

In Career & Work

Invest in infrastructure, knowledge, and institutional memory. A resource has little value when the system for reaching it is broken.

Changing Lines

1
A neglected source cannot nourish anyone.
2
A damaged vessel wastes what could be useful.
3
Cleaning the well is not enough if no one draws.
4
Repairing the lining prepares dependable use.
5
Clear water becomes available through good maintenance.
6
An open well becomes a trusted public resource.

Questions for Reflection

01
Where is the pattern of the well already visible in the situation you are asking about?
02
Which part of this guidance is within your control now: Maintain access, improve the vessel, and make sure a valuable source can actually be used by those who need it.
03
What observable change would show that the situation is becoming more workable—or less so?

READ THE CHART, NOT ONLY THE NAME

Put this hexagram in context

Understand changing lines →See the Liu Yao method →