Revolution
The Moulting Skin
Shed what has outlived its time, but only at the ripe moment; too early and no one believes it.
Li, the Clinging, Fire, stands below Dui, the Joyous, Lake, so the Image is lake over fire. Water and flame set against one another cannot both stay as they are, and one must give way. The Chinese name Ge means the pelt of an animal, the skin moulted when the season turns. The Judgement grants supreme success but ties it to timing, saying "On your own day you are believed", after which remorse disappears. The commentary of the Ten Wings cites the changes of mandate under Tang and Wu as revolutions justified because heaven and the people consented, and the Image has the superior man set the calendar in order so that the seasons are clear.
Light
Sanctioned change at the ripe moment: the removal of what has decayed, reform that carries conviction, and the disappearance of remorse once the new order stands.
Shadow
Revolution attempted too early, or from ambition rather than necessity, forfeits belief. The first line counsels being wrapped in the hide of a yellow cow, which is to say holding still at the outset.
