Hexagram 21.5 — Biting Through (Fifth Line)

Original Text & Translation

「噬乾肉,得黃金,貞厲,無咎。」 — Biting through dried meat, one receives yellow gold. Persistence in the face of danger brings no blame.

The imagery is precise and layered. Dried meat is tougher than fresh—it has been hardened by time, preserved against decay, resistant to easy penetration. This represents obstacles that have become entrenched, problems that have calcified, or people who have grown rigid in their positions. Yellow gold symbolizes genuine value, central virtue, and proper reward. The warning of danger (厲) acknowledges real risk in the process, while "no blame" confirms that righteous persistence through difficulty is the correct path.

Core Meaning

Line five sits in the position of authority within the upper trigram, the place of the judge or decision-maker. In Biting Through, this is the line that must actually execute judgment on difficult cases—not simple, obvious matters, but those that have hardened into complexity. The dried meat represents situations where time has made resolution more difficult: long-standing disputes, entrenched behaviors, organizational calcification, or personal patterns that have become rigid.

The challenge is dual: first, the obstacle itself is genuinely tough and requires sustained effort to penetrate; second, the process carries inherent danger. Forcing too hard can break your tools (or yourself); applying too little pressure accomplishes nothing. The yellow gold—central, valuable, genuine—represents both the reward for correct action and the quality of mind required: balanced, authentic, neither excessive nor weak.

This line teaches that some obstacles cannot be dissolved with cleverness or avoided with diplomacy. They must be bitten through. But the biting must be done with awareness of risk, persistence in principle, and expectation of genuine reward rather than hollow victory.

Symbolism & Imagery

Dried meat as metaphor is remarkably apt for modern challenges. Consider legacy systems in organizations—code, processes, or hierarchies that have ossified over time. They once served a purpose (preservation), but now they resist change and require significant force to alter. Or consider long-held beliefs, either personal or cultural, that have hardened into dogma. They don't yield to gentle persuasion; they require determined, sustained pressure to break through.

Yellow in Chinese cosmology represents the center, earth, balance, and authenticity. Gold represents value that endures. Together, "yellow gold" suggests reward that is both genuine and central to your purpose—not peripheral gains or false prizes. The imagery promises that if you persist through the difficulty with proper intent, what you receive will be truly valuable, not merely impressive.

The warning of danger is honest. Biting through dried meat can damage teeth. Forcing through hardened obstacles can exhaust resources, create backlash, or cause collateral harm. The line acknowledges this reality while affirming that the action is still necessary and, if done with persistence and care, will bring no ultimate blame.

Action Guidance

Career & Business

• Tackle the hardened problem: identify the legacy issue, entrenched resistance, or calcified process that everyone knows needs addressing but avoids because it's difficult. This is your dried meat.
• Prepare for sustained effort: quick fixes won't work. Allocate time, resources, and political capital for a campaign, not a battle. Document your rationale and build support.
• Use proper tools: don't force with brute strength alone. Employ the right frameworks, bring in expertise, leverage data, and structure your approach methodically.
• Acknowledge the danger: be clear-eyed about risks—resistance from stakeholders, resource drain, potential failure. Mitigate where possible, accept where necessary.
• Expect real reward: if you succeed in breaking through genuine obstacles with integrity, the value you create (and receive) will be substantial and lasting, not cosmetic.
• Stay central in your approach: avoid extremes. Don't become vindictive or reckless in your persistence; maintain balance and principle throughout.

Love & Relationships

• Address the hardened pattern: if there's a long-standing issue that has calcified—a recurring argument, an unspoken resentment, a rigid dynamic—this line says it's time to bite through it.
• Prepare for difficulty: these conversations or changes won't be easy. The pattern exists because it's been reinforced over time. Expect resistance, including from yourself.
• Persist with care: forcing too hard can damage the relationship; avoiding the issue perpetuates the problem. Find the middle path of firm, sustained, loving pressure.
• Seek genuine resolution: the "yellow gold" here is authentic intimacy, real trust, or renewed connection—not just surface peace or temporary truce.
• Accept the risk: breaking through old patterns can feel dangerous. There's vulnerability in it. The line affirms this is the right path despite the fear.
• No blame in honesty: if you approach the difficulty with genuine intent and persistent care, even if the process is uncomfortable, you act without fault.

Health & Inner Work

• Confront the stubborn habit: identify the behavior, thought pattern, or physical habit that has become entrenched and resistant to change. This is your dried meat.
• Commit to the long game: changing hardened patterns requires sustained effort over time. One-off interventions won't suffice; you need consistent, patient pressure.
• Use appropriate methods: match your tools to the challenge. Therapy for psychological patterns, physical therapy for chronic issues, structured practice for mental habits.
• Recognize the difficulty: don't underestimate how hard it is to change long-standing patterns. Prepare mentally for setbacks and resistance (internal and external).
• Value the real prize: the reward is genuine transformation—not just feeling better temporarily, but actual structural change in how you function.
• Stay balanced: avoid swinging between harsh self-discipline and total permissiveness. The "yellow gold" approach is centered, consistent, and kind.

Finance & Strategy

• Address the structural problem: if there's a systemic issue in your financial life—chronic overspending, avoidance of planning, entrenched poor investment habits—this line calls for direct action.
• Prepare for sustained effort: restructuring finances or investment approaches that have calcified over years requires time and discipline. Set realistic timelines.
• Use proper frameworks: employ budgeting tools, financial advisors, automated systems, or accountability structures that match the difficulty of the problem.
• Acknowledge the risk: changing financial patterns can feel threatening. There may be short-term discomfort or exposure of uncomfortable truths. Proceed anyway.
• Expect genuine value: the payoff for breaking through financial obstacles with integrity is real wealth—not just numbers, but security, freedom, and peace of mind.
• Maintain ethical center: as you work through difficult financial decisions, keep your methods honest and balanced. Shortcuts or extremes undermine the "yellow gold" quality of the outcome.

Timing, Signals, and Readiness

This line often appears when you've been circling a difficult issue, knowing it needs addressing but hesitating because of its toughness. The signal that it's time to act is when avoidance has become more costly than engagement—when the dried meat is blocking progress and can no longer be worked around.

Readiness indicators include: (1) you have the resources and support to sustain effort over time; (2) you've clarified your genuine intent and can articulate why this matters; (3) you've assessed the risks honestly and accepted them; (4) you have appropriate tools or methods, not just willpower; and (5) you're prepared for the process to be difficult without abandoning it prematurely.

The "yellow gold" outcome doesn't arrive immediately. It comes after persistent, careful work through resistance. If you're looking for quick wins or easy solutions, this isn't the right moment. If you're ready for the long, valuable work of breaking through genuine obstacles, the time is now.

When This Line Moves

A moving fifth line in Biting Through typically signals a transition from the difficult work of penetrating hardened obstacles to a new state where that obstacle has been cleared. The transformation often involves moving from active struggle to integration of the lesson or reward. Depending on your divination method, consult the resulting hexagram to understand the specific nature of the change.

Practical takeaway: when this line moves, it suggests that your persistent effort through difficulty is reaching a turning point. The dried meat is being bitten through; the yellow gold is being received. Prepare to shift from the grinding work of penetration to the consolidation and integration of what you've gained. Don't abandon the effort at the last moment, and don't cling to the struggle once it's complete.

Concise Summary

Hexagram 21.5 addresses the challenge of breaking through hardened, entrenched obstacles that cannot be avoided or dissolved easily. It calls for sustained, careful effort in the face of genuine difficulty and danger. The promise is that persistence with proper tools, balanced approach, and righteous intent will yield real, valuable reward—the yellow gold of authentic achievement. This is not easy work, but it is necessary work, and when done with awareness and integrity, it brings no blame and substantial benefit.