Hexagram 27
Yi / The Corners of the Mouth (Providing Nourishment)
䷚
頤 · Yí
Upper: Mountain (Gen) · Lower: Thunder (Zhen)
The Corners of the Mouth (Providing Nourishment) — mountain above thunder, the open mouth waiting to be filled. Care in what is taken in; the practice of right nourishment for body and mind.
Core theme
Nourishment; what we take in physically and mentally; care in providing for self and others
Overview
Yi depicts the situation of nourishment — physical feeding and the broader work of providing for self and others. The hexagram's structure shows the open mouth: two yang lines (top and bottom) representing the lips, with yin lines between them representing the open mouth waiting to be filled. The image extends to broader nourishment: what we take in (food, ideas, company, influences) shapes who we become.
The hexagram has dual application. First, attention to what we take in — the practitioner who is careless about nourishment becomes shaped by whatever they consume; the practitioner who attends carefully nourishes themselves into who they want to be. Second, attention to how we provide for others — leaders, parents, teachers all face the question of what to feed those who depend on them.
The Wilhelm/Baynes commentary emphasizes the distinction between being nourished and being self-nourishing. The wise practitioner sources nourishment appropriately rather than passively receiving whatever is offered.
The Judgment
Nourishment. Perseverance brings good fortune. Pay heed to the providing of nourishment and to what a person seeks to fill their own mouth with.
The Image
At the foot of the mountain, thunder: the image of Providing Nourishment. Thus the superior person is careful of their words and temperate in eating and drinking.
Meaning
Yi teaches the wisdom of careful nourishment. The Judgment's instruction is precise: pay heed both to providing nourishment (the responsibility) and to what the practitioner seeks to fill their own mouth with (the personal practice). Both directions matter.
The Image's instruction extends the principle. "Careful of words" — what comes out of the mouth matters as much as what goes in. "Temperate in eating and drinking" — physical nourishment requires moderation, not just attention to quality. The dual practice of careful intake and careful output forms the complete nourishment work.
For practitioners: Yi favors situations involving nourishment in any form — physical, mental, emotional, relational. The hexagram counsels attention to what is being taken in and what is being given out.
Application — when this hexagram appears
When this hexagram appears: the situation involves nourishment (physical or broader). Attend carefully to what is being taken in and what is being given out.
The practitioner should: (1) examine sources of nourishment carefully — physical food, ideas, company, influences; (2) take in what genuinely nourishes; avoid what doesn't; (3) attend to what they put out (words, actions, what they feed others); (4) practice moderation alongside discrimination; (5) recognize the responsibility of providing nourishment to those who depend on them.
For specific questions: Yi favors thoughtful attention to nourishment patterns; unfavorable for careless consumption or careless providing.
The six lines (changing-line commentary)
Line 1 (bottom)
You let your magic tortoise go and look at me with the corners of your mouth drooping. Misfortune. Releasing one's own genuine source of nourishment (the magic tortoise — the inner self-sufficient capacity) and instead looking outward for what others have. Misfortune from this dependence-orientation. The line warns against abandoning one's own nourishment for jealous attention to others'.
Line 2
Turning to the summit for nourishment, deviating from the path to seek nourishment from the hill. Continuing to do this brings misfortune. Seeking nourishment from inappropriate sources. The natural sources are below; turning to high places (or to inappropriate alternatives) for nourishment produces misfortune. Source nourishment appropriately.
Line 3
Turning away from nourishment. Perseverance brings misfortune. Do not act thus for ten years. Nothing serves to further. Refusing nourishment entirely. The line's wisdom: rejecting nourishment is not the answer. The practitioner needs nourishment; the work is to take it in well, not to reject it. Persisting in refusal produces long misfortune.
Line 4
Turning to the summit for provision of nourishment brings good fortune. Spying about with sharp eyes like a tiger with insatiable craving. No blame. Active careful sourcing of nourishment. The 'spying like a tiger' represents fierce attention to what truly nourishes. The active practice produces good fortune; no blame attaches to the active discrimination.
Line 5
Turning away from the path. To remain persevering brings good fortune. One should not cross the great water. The practitioner has deviated from the proper path of nourishment. Perseverance in returning to the right path brings good fortune. But don't undertake major work during the recovery; cross the great water only after the nourishment is restored.
Line 6 (top)
The source of nourishment. Awareness of danger brings good fortune. It furthers one to cross the great water. The most expansive realization: becoming the source of nourishment for others. Awareness of the responsibility this entails brings good fortune. Major work is favored from this position.
Timing
Always relevant; particularly during periods of needing to attend to physical or mental health, dietary work, raising children, teaching, or other nourishment-focused work.
FAQ
Is this just about food?
Food is one application; the principle extends broadly. What we take in mentally, emotionally, relationally — all of this is nourishment in the hexagram's sense. Bad mental diet produces bad mental state just as bad physical diet produces bad physical state. The wisdom transfers across nourishment forms.
Should I be careful about my diet?
If Yi appears around physical health questions, yes — the hexagram favors thoughtful attention to physical nourishment. The Image specifically mentions temperance in eating and drinking. Discrimination plus moderation; both matter.
What about feeding others?
Major aspect of the hexagram. Leaders, parents, teachers face the question of what to feed those who depend on them. Yi counsels careful attention to this responsibility — what they take in shapes who they become; what we feed them is part of what we make them. Take the responsibility seriously.
What if I'm not getting enough nourishment?
Examine sourcing. Line 1's warning: don't release your own genuine sources to envy others'. Line 4's wisdom: actively seek what truly nourishes. Some failures of nourishment come from poor sourcing; others from poor digestion; others from rejecting what's available. Identify which is happening.
What's the magic tortoise?
Line 1's image. The tortoise represents one's own inner self-sufficient capacity — the genuine source of nourishment available within. Releasing this in favor of envious attention to what others have is the failure mode the line warns against. Stay connected to your own inner sources rather than constantly looking outside for what nourishes.
Astrological correspondence
Elements
earth, wood
Mountain (Gen) above Thunder (Zhen) — the trigram pair carries Chinese five-phase (wuxing) elemental correspondences that anchor the hexagram in elemental cycles.