Hexagram 27, Mountain over Thunder: Nourishment (Yi), is the 27th of the 64 hexagrams of the I Ching. It is made of Gen (mountain) above and Zhen (thunder) below. Its shape looks like an open mouth, and it speaks about how a person feeds themselves and others, in body and in mind.

Hexagram 27 (Yi) at a Glance

Attribute	Detail
Number	27 of 64
Name	Mountain over Thunder: Nourishment (Yi)
Image	☶ over ☳ (mountain over thunder)
Inner (lower) trigram	Zhen ☳, thunder
Outer (upper) trigram	Gen ☶, mountain
Element	Upper trigram Gen is Earth, lower trigram Zhen is Wood
Overall tone	Good fortune through staying on the right path, with attention to how people are nourished
Key phrase	Observe the jaws, and what one seeks to fill one's own mouth
Yang lines	2 of 6
Opposite hexagram (every line flipped)	Hexagram 28, Lake over Wind: Great Excess (Da Guo)
Reversed hexagram (turned upside down)	Itself (turned upside down, the shape stays the same)

The Original Text and Its Meaning

This part gives the classical wording of Hexagram 27 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

Nourishment: steadfastness brings good fortune. Observe the jaws, and what one seeks to fill one's own mouth.

In plain words: Yi means the jaw, and also nourishment. The whole hexagram pictures an open mouth. The Judgment is short but deep: staying on the right path brings good fortune. Look at how people feed themselves and feed others, and look at what each person seeks to fill their own mouth with, which means earning your own living and not leaning on others. Few hexagrams put so much weight on something as ordinary as eating and being fed.

The Image

At the foot of the mountain there is thunder: Nourishment. In the same way, the noble person is careful with words and moderate in eating and drinking.

In plain words: the mouth does two jobs, taking in and sending out. Both can cause trouble when left unchecked. Eating too much wears a person down, and saying too much may cost them the people they love and even their work. The noble person reads this hexagram as a reminder that keeping a quiet smile can be a form of caring for yourself.

The Six Lines

The six lines of Yi describe six ways a person looks for nourishment, from healthy to off course, and from caring for oneself to caring for many others. Read from the bottom up: Line 1 is at the bottom and Line 6 is at the top.

Line	Classical text	Plain meaning
Line 1 (nine at the beginning)	You let go of your magic tortoise and watch me with jaws hanging; misfortune.	Dropping what you already have to crave what someone else has leads to trouble
Line 2 (six in the second place)	Turning to the lower for nourishment, against the norm, seeking it from the hill; to advance brings misfortune.	Looking for support in the wrong place, against the natural order, goes badly
Line 3 (six in the third place)	Rejecting nourishment; steadfastness brings misfortune; for ten years do not act, nothing is favorable.	Going against the way of nourishment brings trouble, even if you hold on
Line 4 (six in the fourth place)	Turning to the lower for nourishment, good fortune; a tiger's gaze, eager pursuit of desires, no fault.	Seeking help from below, with care and sincerity, is good
Line 5 (six in the fifth place)	Against the norm; staying steadfast brings good fortune; do not cross the great river.	Doing things unusually, stay put and hold firm, and do not take on big journeys yet
Line 6 (nine at the top)	The source of nourishment; danger, good fortune; favorable to cross the great river.	Being the source that feeds many calls for care, and then favors big undertakings

Reading the Six Lines in Everyday Terms

The six lines of Hexagram 27 are a map of six ways a person looks for what sustains them, or plays the part of the one who sustains others. Here is each line in everyday language.

Line 1: Dropping your own treasure to crave someone else's bite. This is the starting line and a costly lesson. The magic tortoise stands for your own ability, talent and potential. Dropping it to stare hungrily at what others have is going the wrong way. In daily life this is the person who has a skill in hand but leaves it to chase whatever trade is trending, or who is so envious of another that they forget what they already have. The hexagram sums it up in one word: misfortune. Taking care of yourself starts with knowing what you have.

Line 2: Nourishment running the wrong way. This line is about seeking support in a way that goes against the natural order: a strong person asking a weaker one to carry them, a grown adult still expecting aging parents to handle every meal, a skilled person looking for guidance from a source that does not suit them. The wording is heavy: to advance brings misfortune. Whatever nourishes you has to fit you.

Line 3: Going against the way of nourishment entirely. This is the heaviest line of the lower half. Going against the way of nourishment means feeding yourself in the wrong ways: earning by cheating, eating in self-defeating ways, putting up with habits that wear you down. The line warns that holding on to this path is still unfavorable, and that for ten years nothing is of use. In daily life this is someone who has chosen a lifestyle they know is wrong and tells themselves "it's a habit now, hard to change." The hexagram does not scare. It simply says there is no shortcut in looking after yourself.

Line 4: Nourishment turned the other way, but good. Line 4 is an interesting mirror of Line 2. It is also "turning to the lower for nourishment," but here the person above is seeking out capable people below to help carry the shared work. The line reads well: a tiger's gaze, eager pursuit of desires, no fault. It means that when you look for help, look seriously and choose carefully, not carelessly. In daily life it is the boss who humbly invites an expert in, or the homeowner who takes the trouble to find a truly good craftsperson. Knowing whom to ask is a kind of wise nourishment.

Line 5: Against the norm, so stay put. This line belongs to someone in a high position who faces a situation that calls for an unusual approach. The text advises: stay put, hold firm, and good fortune follows, but it is not yet time for big ventures. In daily life it is a stretch when you are supporting a family, a team, or someone unwell at home, and you have to do it in a different way. This is not the moment to change jobs, make a new investment, or travel far. Keep tending what you have. The hard time will pass, and those who can wait tend to keep what they have.

Line 6: The source that feeds many. The last line is the finest line of the hexagram. You have reached a place where you have become a source of nourishment for many: for a family, for a team, for those who come after. The line says "danger, good fortune; favorable to cross the great river." It means big things are possible, but the more people you feed, the more careful each decision needs to be. In daily life this is the pillar of a large family, the founder of an organization, the teacher of many students. Being able to nourish others is a blessing, and keeping that blessing is what counts.

If you want to cast a hexagram and see its reading, you can try it on HOROS.

What Hexagram 27 May Say About Everyday Life

Love

Casting Yi on a love question often points to a relationship in which the question is quietly "who nourishes whom." Not in terms of money, but in emotional care: who offers comfort, who listens, who keeps the peace in the shared home. Single people may remember Line 1: do not drop your own treasure because you crave what someone else has, and do not chase a romance that looks exciting while forgetting your own worth. In an existing relationship, the Image is a compass: be careful with your words. Love breaks down more often from harsh words than from a lack of money. Love with a mouth that knows how to hold back.

Career

On career, Yi often shows up for people asking whether their work truly sustains them or is wearing them down. It suits a time for looking again at whether the work fits your strength, temperament and values. Line 1 advises: do not drop what you are good at to chase an industry that is hot but not understood. Line 4 advises: if you manage people, take the trouble to find strong people and ask for their help, and let pride go. For steady, honest work over the long haul, the hexagram is favorable. For get-rich-quick plans, Line 3 warns that even ten years may not bring results. Work that sustains you is the work worth keeping.

Money

On money, Yi states the principle of "seeking what fills your own mouth," meaning looking after your own livelihood. This does not seem a time to count on a lottery win, a surprise inheritance, or a big loan for something you do not understand. Money that lasts is money made by your own hands. The hexagram suggests checking both doors: money in and money out. Does the money come in steadily and cleanly? Does the money go out sensibly, or is it leaking through small, unneeded purchases? The Image calls for moderation in both eating and spending. For people supporting many at home, a clear budget is especially valuable. Money in the spirit of Yi feeds many mouths without running dry.

Health

On health, Yi is one of the hexagrams that speak directly about daily eating habits and care of the self. When it appears on a health question, it often points to the rhythm of meals and routines: irregular eating, large portions, long stretches of fast food, too much drinking. The hexagram asks for one thing: moderation. Eat at regular times, serve smaller portions, chew slowly, add more vegetables, and cut back on fried and sugary food. Getting enough sleep is also a way of nourishing yourself. If anything feels off for a long time, a doctor is the right person to ask. The wellbeing of Yi belongs to someone who knows how to guard their mouth.

Closing Thought: Two Mouths to Mind

What stands out about this hexagram is that the I Ching uses one short line in the Image to hold the whole way of nourishment: be careful with words, be moderate with food and drink. Two small things, and only trying them shows how hard they are. Someone who can guard both mouths, the one that eats and the one that speaks, has grasped much of the art of caring for oneself. Feed the body with the right food. Feed the mind with the right words. Feed other people with both.