Hexagram 17, Lake over Thunder: Following (Sui), is the 17th of the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching. It has Dui (lake) above and Zhen (thunder) below, an image of thunder hidden inside a lake, and it teaches the craft of following: how to choose whom and what to follow, and how to be someone others are willing to follow.

Hexagram 17 (Sui) at a Glance

Attribute	Detail
Number	17 of 64
Name	Lake over Thunder: Following (Sui)
Image	☱ over ☳ (lake over thunder)
Inner (lower) trigram	Zhen ☳, thunder
Outer (upper) trigram	Dui ☱, lake
Element	Metal
Overall tone	Supreme success: the four virtues, and no fault
Yang lines	3 of 6
Reversed hexagram (also every line flipped)	Hexagram 18, Mountain over Wind: Decay (Gu)

The Original Text and Its Meaning

This part gives the classical wording of Hexagram 17 in English, with a plain explanation. If you only care about how the hexagram applies to daily life, feel free to skim it and jump to the later sections.

The Judgment

Following: great beginnings, success, benefit and perseverance. No fault.

In plain words: Following means going along with something or someone. This is one of the few hexagrams that carries all four virtues (beginning, success, benefit and perseverance), and it adds "no fault" on top. That stresses that following is not a bad thing. It is an important way of living, as long as you follow the right thing. Following people of integrity tends to bring smooth progress, following a worthy cause tends to bring results, and staying steady over time means nobody can blame you. In the I Ching, following is an art, not blind obedience.

The Image

Thunder in the middle of the lake: this is Following. A noble person, when it grows dark, goes indoors to rest.

In autumn and winter, thunder pulls back and sinks into the lake, neither crashing nor shaking. A noble person follows this pattern: work by day, go home and rest at night. The Image points to a very everyday principle. Following starts with following the rhythm of heaven and earth: knowing when to go out and when to come in, when to move and when to be still. Someone who knows how to rest is someone who knows how to follow.

The Six Lines

The six lines of Following describe six situations on the path of following, from the first change of direction to a life lived beside people of integrity. Read from the bottom up: Line 1 is the lowest line and Line 6 is the highest.

Line	Classical wording	Plain meaning
Line 1 (nine at the start)	The post changes. Perseverance brings good fortune. Going out the gate to mix with people brings merit.	Your role shifts; staying steady is good, and meeting people outside your circle pays off
Line 2 (six in the second place)	Clinging to the small one, you lose the strong one.	Holding on to a lesser person, you lose the chance to be near someone of real stature
Line 3 (six in the third place)	Clinging to the strong one, you lose the small one. Following, you find what you seek. It is favorable to stay steady.	Following a person of stature and letting go of the small circle, you get what you look for; staying steady is what helps
Line 4 (nine in the fourth place)	Following brings gain, but persisting is unlucky. With sincerity on the right path and clear intentions, what fault could there be?	You gain from being followed, but clinging to that position is risky; with sincerity and openness, nothing is wrong
Line 5 (nine in the fifth place)	Sincerity toward the excellent. Good fortune.	Trust placed in what is truly good brings good fortune
Line 6 (six at the top)	It is bound fast and then tied again. The king offers a sacrifice on the Western Mountain.	A bond held firmly and then reinforced; a ruler holds a ritual on the Western Mountain

Reading the Six Lines in Everyday Terms

The six lines of Hexagram 17 are a map of six situations on the path of following, from the moment of changing direction to a deep attachment to someone worthy. Here is each line in everyday language.

Line 1: A change of post. This is the starting point of Following. Your position shifts, the work in your hands turns in a new direction, or you decide to adjust your path yourself. The line gives two pieces of advice: keep your inner honesty steady, and step out the door to meet new people. In daily life this is the stage of changing jobs, moving to another department, or starting a different project. Do not shut yourself in and work alone. Go out, meet people, widen your circle, take things in and learn as you go, and it may bring merit.

If you would like to cast a hexagram of your own and read the matching explanation, you can try it in HOROS.

Line 2: Clinging to the small one, losing the strong one. This is the first warning of the hexagram. When you follow someone, choosing the wrong target, such as sticking to people who are smaller than you in vision or to a petty clique, may cost you the chance to be near someone with real stature. In daily life, think of a young person who picks the easygoing friend group over the demanding teacher, an employee who picks the gossip circle over an experienced senior colleague, or a worker who picks the party crowd over a strict boss. Whom you choose to follow shapes who you become. Clinging to the small makes it hard to grow.

Line 3: Following the strong one, letting go of the small one. This is the reverse of Line 2. Here you have made the right decision: you leave the petty group and follow someone of stature. The price is that some old relationships are lost. But what you gain is much larger: you find what you look for, because you are walking the right road. The line stresses "it is favorable to stay steady." Choosing right once is not the end of it; you have to stay faithful all the way. In daily life this is someone who dropped an old habit to follow a new teacher, or who left a sloppy team for a team that does honest work. Following this way over the long run tends to pay off.

Line 4: Being followed, gaining, and sliding toward trouble. By Line 4, you are in a position where other people follow you. You have standing and some authority, and people begin to lean on you. The warning is blunt: if you use their following to enrich yourself, then even if that position lasts, it is unlucky. There is only one way to stay free of fault: keep your trust in the right path and make everything transparent. In daily life this is someone who has just become a manager and is surrounded by people. If the position is used for private gain, a bad reputation tends to follow. With openness and fairness, the people who follow you can stay with you for a long time.

Line 5: Sincerity toward the excellent. This is the finest line of the hexagram. At the highest place on the path of following, a noble person puts trust in what is good, right and beautiful. They do not follow someone because of status, but because they see that person is upright. They do not chase trends; they follow lasting values. The text is only one word long: "good fortune." In daily life this is a leader who chooses a decent partner even when it costs more, a person who picks a workplace with good culture even when the pay is a little lower, or someone who pursues a craft because they love it. Following what is good is what lets you go far.

Line 6: Bound fast, a sacrifice on the Western Mountain. The last line uses an old story: a ruler binds himself to the Way and then performs a ritual on the mountain in the west. It is an image of the deepest attachment to a path you have chosen. It is no longer a question of following someone; it is about becoming one with the road you walk. In daily life this is a person who has stayed with one career for many years, who married the right partner and stayed together for life, or who built an organization from start to finish. The highest level of Following is when the person and the path can no longer be pulled apart.

What Hexagram 17 May Say About Daily Life

Love

Casting Following in a love question often signals a relationship with a clear "following" quality. A single person may be at a stage of readiness for something new, and the person who appears often has a guiding role, more life experience, or a steadier position at work. For a couple, the hexagram recalls Line 5: follow each other for what is good, not out of convenience or pressure. Avoid the mistake of Line 2: clinging to what is easy and letting go of what is worthy. Loving someone means choosing the road they walk, so choose a person who walks the road you want to walk.

Career

In career matters, Following often shows up for people at a point of changing direction: a new job, a new field, a new boss, a new partner. The hexagram says this is a favorable time for change, on the condition that you choose the right person to follow. Lines 2 and 3 are two sides of one lesson: following someone of stature pays off, while clinging to petty circles costs you. For someone in a leadership position, Line 4 is a deep warning: being supported by others and then using that support for private ends tends to bring trouble. Transparency, integrity and working by principle are how a team is kept for the long run. Follow the right person, stand in the right place, and a career moves upward.

Money

For money, Following leans toward income that comes from agreement and cooperation: joining a good project, investing in someone with a good reputation, or pooling funds with a decent partner. This is not a time for lone gambles; it is a time to pick the right current before stepping in. The big warning of the hexagram sits in Line 4: when money arrives through a position where people trust and follow you, be careful of anything unclear. Hidden commissions, under-the-table deals and abusing a partner's trust are the fastest road to losing both money and reputation. The wealth of Following belongs to those who follow an honest stream.

Health

For health, Following belongs to the element Metal, which traditionally relates to the lungs, the breathing system, and the muscles and bones. Casting it when asking about health often points to a stage that calls for going along with the body's rhythm. Sleep when you are sleepy, eat when you are hungry, rest when you are tired, and do not push against it. The Image says it clearly: "when it grows dark, go indoors to rest." In modern terms, avoid staying up late, avoid late-night meals, and avoid scrolling on your phone past midnight. If you are in treatment, the hexagram suggests following the plan your doctor gives and not changing medication on the strength of word-of-mouth advice. Following the natural rhythm is the root of lasting stamina.

Final Thoughts: Choose Well, Stay Upright, Rest on Time

The I Ching places Following right after Hexagram 16, Thunder over Earth: Enthusiasm, as if to say that after joy you have to learn how to follow, and that following is no small matter. Following the right people, the right work and the right rhythm of heaven and earth tends to bring smooth progress with nobody to blame. One wrong step, though, may turn a whole life in the wrong direction. Knowing whom to follow, staying upright when others follow you, and resting when it grows dark: these three rhythms are the way of Following.