Hexagram 27.5 — Nourishing (Fifth Line)

Original Text & Translation

「拂经，居贞吉。不可涉大川。」 — Turning away from the constant path; dwelling in correctness brings good fortune. Not suitable for crossing the great river.

The image is of someone who recognizes that the usual methods of nourishment—the "constant path" or established way—are inadequate or even harmful in the present circumstance. The counsel is to deviate with integrity: remain in your center, hold to what is correct, and do not attempt major undertakings that require conventional support structures. This is a time for principled refusal, not ambitious expansion.

Core Meaning

Line five sits in the upper trigram, the position of authority and influence within the hexagram of nourishment. Normally, this line would be expected to follow established protocols for sustaining others—organizational norms, cultural expectations, traditional methods. Yet this particular line acknowledges a deeper truth: sometimes the conventional path depletes rather than nourishes.

The wisdom here is discernment between rebellion and integrity. This is not about rejecting structure out of ego or convenience. It is about recognizing when following the usual way would betray the essential purpose of nourishment itself. A leader who turns away from harmful policies to protect their team, a parent who refuses conventional pressure to honor a child's true needs, a practitioner who declines lucrative but misaligned work—all embody this line's teaching.

The caution against "crossing the great river" reinforces that this is not a moment for bold ventures or public campaigns. Your strength lies in quiet steadfastness, in maintaining your position of correctness without seeking to transform the entire landscape. Influence will come through example and integrity, not through force or expansion.

Symbolism & Imagery

The fifth line of Yi evokes the image of a guardian who refuses to feed poison, even when it is presented as medicine. In ancient contexts, this line was understood to address situations where those in positions of care—rulers, physicians, teachers, parents—must choose between popular approval and genuine nourishment. The "constant path" represents what is expected, customary, or politically expedient. Turning away from it requires both courage and clarity.

The instruction to "dwell in correctness" suggests rootedness rather than movement. Picture a tree that refuses to bend toward contaminated soil, even when neighboring trees do so. It draws nourishment from deeper sources, maintaining its integrity while others compromise. This is not isolation—it is selective engagement, a refusal to participate in patterns that would ultimately starve what you are meant to sustain.

The prohibition on crossing the great river adds a crucial boundary. Great rivers represent major transitions, ambitious projects, or public undertakings that require broad support and conventional resources. When you have turned away from the established path, you cannot simultaneously rely on its infrastructure. Your power in this moment is preservation and presence, not conquest or transformation.

Action Guidance

Career & Business

• Identify what truly nourishes: audit your projects, clients, and commitments. Which ones feed genuine growth and which ones merely appear productive while draining vitality?
• Practice principled refusal: decline opportunities that compromise your core values or the well-being of your team, even if they are lucrative or prestigious.
• Communicate your position clearly: when you turn away from expected paths, explain your reasoning in terms of long-term sustainability and integrity, not personal preference.
• Avoid major launches: this is not the time to roll out ambitious initiatives that depend on conventional support systems. Consolidate, refine, and protect what you have built.
• Seek alternative nourishment: if traditional funding, partnerships, or markets are misaligned, explore smaller-scale, values-aligned alternatives that can sustain your work.
• Document your standards: create clear criteria for what you will and will not participate in. This prevents decision fatigue and reinforces your commitment to correctness.

Love & Relationships

• Honor genuine needs over social scripts: if conventional relationship milestones or family expectations do not serve the true nourishment of your bond, have the courage to follow a different timeline or structure.
• Protect the relationship from toxic patterns: refuse to participate in dynamics that deplete—whether that is enabling behavior, maintaining appearances, or following advice that contradicts your lived experience.
• Stay grounded in your values: when others pressure you to compromise what nourishes your partnership, remain steadfast. Your integrity will ultimately strengthen the relationship more than conformity would.
• Communicate your boundaries: explain why you are choosing a different path, framing it in terms of care and long-term health rather than rejection or defiance.
• Avoid dramatic gestures: this is not the moment for grand romantic initiatives or major relationship transitions. Focus on daily presence and consistent integrity.
• Seek supportive community: find friends, mentors, or groups who understand and affirm your commitment to genuine nourishment, even when it looks unconventional.

Health & Inner Work

• Question conventional health advice: if standard recommendations are not serving your body's actual needs, seek practitioners who will listen to your experience and customize approaches.
• Refuse depleting obligations: turn away from commitments, social patterns, or even "healthy" practices that leave you exhausted rather than nourished.
• Honor your unique constitution: what nourishes others may not nourish you. Dwell in correctness by following what your body and psyche genuinely need, not what is trendy or expected.
• Establish non-negotiable practices: identify the few practices that truly sustain you—sleep boundaries, specific foods, particular forms of movement—and protect them fiercely.
• Avoid aggressive interventions: this is not the time for dramatic health overhauls or extreme protocols. Focus on gentle, consistent nourishment and the removal of what harms.
• Trust your inner knowing: if something feels wrong despite expert endorsement, honor that signal. Your body's wisdom is a valid form of correctness.

Finance & Strategy

• Audit your income sources: which revenue streams genuinely sustain your mission and which ones compromise it? Be willing to turn away from the latter, even if they are substantial.
• Resist pressure to scale prematurely: if growth would require adopting practices that violate your principles, remain at your current size and focus on depth and quality.
• Diversify toward alignment: if your primary income depends on systems you have turned away from, gradually build alternative streams that align with your values.
• Communicate your standards to stakeholders: if you are declining conventional opportunities, help investors, partners, or clients understand your long-term vision and the integrity it requires.
• Avoid major financial commitments: do not take on debt, make large investments, or enter partnerships that assume conventional support structures will be available to you.
• Build reserves: since you are not following the usual path, create extra financial cushion to sustain you through periods when unconventional choices limit immediate income.

Timing, Signals, and Readiness

How do you know when to turn away from the path versus when to work within existing structures? Look for these signals: (1) following the conventional route produces a visceral sense of wrongness or depletion, not just inconvenience; (2) you have clarity about what constitutes correctness in your situation—you know what genuine nourishment looks like; (3) you have sufficient resources and support to sustain yourself outside the usual channels, at least for a meaningful period; and (4) your motivation is preservation of integrity, not avoidance of difficulty.

If you feel restless but unclear about what is correct, that is a sign to investigate further before turning away. If you feel calm certainty about what must be protected, even in the face of external pressure, that is a sign this line's teaching applies to you. The key is that your deviation serves nourishment, not ego or convenience.

Watch for the moment when staying on the conventional path would require you to compromise something essential. That is when "turning away" becomes not rebellion but responsibility. And remember: this line counsels dwelling in correctness, which means you do not need to convince everyone else or transform the entire system. You need only to maintain your position with steadiness and clarity.

When This Line Moves

A moving fifth line in Hexagram 27 often signals a transition from principled resistance into a new form of sustainable nourishment. The reading suggests that your choice to turn away from conventional paths, while maintaining correctness, will eventually create space for a different kind of support structure to emerge. The resultant hexagram (which depends on your specific casting) will show the nature of that new configuration.

Practical takeaway: your act of turning away is not the end of the story but a necessary middle chapter. By refusing to compromise what truly nourishes, you create conditions for something more aligned to develop. Do not rush this process. Dwell in correctness, maintain your boundaries, and allow the new forms of sustenance to reveal themselves organically. Your integrity is the seed from which future nourishment will grow.

If the line moves, pay attention to how others respond to your steadfastness. Some will be confused or critical, but others—those who share your commitment to genuine nourishment—will recognize and support your position. These allies are part of the emerging structure that will sustain you beyond the conventional path.

Concise Summary

Hexagram 27.5 teaches the art of principled deviation. When conventional methods of nourishment compromise what truly sustains, you must turn away—not in rebellion, but in fidelity to correctness. Dwell steadfastly in what is right, refuse to participate in depleting patterns, and avoid ambitious undertakings that would require the very systems you have turned from. Your power lies in integrity and presence, not expansion. By protecting the source of genuine nourishment, you create space for new, aligned forms of sustenance to emerge.