Innocence
The Unexpected
The I Ching hexagram of Innocence, advising spontaneous, honest action aligned with truth rather than calculating gain.
Wu Wang is formed of Qian, the creative, heaven, above Zhen, the arousing, thunder, so its image is heaven over thunder: movement that follows the course of heaven without deviation. The name is usually rendered Innocence, though it carries the sense of being without falsity and without ulterior expectation, which is why Wilhelm added the subtitle The Unexpected. The Judgement grants supreme success to what is upright, and warns that one who is not as he should be meets misfortune and should undertake nothing. The Image has the kings of old nourishing all beings in harmony with the season.
Light
Stands for sincerity, spontaneity, and action taken in accord with the natural course rather than for advantage; conduct so free of calculation that it requires no justification.
Shadow
The lines also record undeserved misfortune, such as the tethered cow led off by a passer-by. Innocence loses its force when it is feigned, or when it is made the excuse for undertaking what one should not.
