Hexagram 14: Possession in Great Measure
䷍ 大有 Dà Yǒu – The Book of Changes
The Judgment
Possession in Great Measure indicates great progress and success.
The Image
Fire above heaven: the image of Possession in Great Measure. Thus the superior man represses what is evil and gives distinction to what is good, in sympathy with the excellent will of Heaven in conferring his nature.
Description
Possession in Great Measure (Da You) shows fire high in the heavens, lighting up everything below. Wealth, influence and success are available in abundance. Great possession, however, demands modesty and generosity, and asks you to use what you have to promote what is good.
The six lines
A line's place shapes its role: 1 the beginning, 2 the center of the inner world, 3 the threshold to the outside, 4 close to power, 5 the ruler's place, 6 the end and the excess. Keep this grid in mind and the line texts become much easier to read. More in the guide →
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Line 1: Old Yang (bottom)
Abundance shines. Favorable — wealth of spirit and resources align; share generously.
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Line 2: Old Yang
The great person possesses without pride. Favorable — power held with humility uplifts all.
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Line 3: Old Yang
Possession with arrogance. Danger — abundance without wisdom leads to downfall.
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Line 4: Old Yang
Possession with clarity. Favorable — knowing what truly matters brings peace.
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Line 5: Old Yin
Possession with purpose. Favorable — use your gifts to serve the greater good.
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Line 6: Old Yang (top)
Possession fades. Danger — attachment to abundance breeds fear; release and renew.
Reading by area of life
❤️ What does hexagram 14 mean for relationships and private life?
Abundance shows up in your private life: affection, support, perhaps material comfort as well. Share it freely. Generosity, warmth and genuine attention keep good fortune from turning into complacency or pride. Be careful that success elsewhere doesn't make you careless with the people closest to you. Let others shine too; a relationship flourishes when both people feel rich in it.
💼 What does hexagram 14 mean for work and money?
Results are strong and resources plentiful. Profits, recognition or a successful launch may be on the way. Manage them with humility and good judgment: reward the right people, reinvest wisely, and keep away from ventures that flatter your ego more than they serve the business. Influence brings responsibility. Use your position to support quality and fairness, not merely to accumulate.
🌌 What does hexagram 14 mean for your personal path and spirituality?
Clarity and a sense of being blessed mark this time. Gratitude is the right response, along with the conscious choice to strengthen what is good in yourself and to restrain what isn't. Possessions, talents and insights are entrusted to you rather than owned. The more openly you let that light shine for others, the brighter it stays.
Nuclear hexagram
Lines 2, 3 and 4 form the lower trigram, lines 3, 4 and 5 the upper one. Leaving out the beginning and the end reveals the core of the situation, what is at work out of sight. It is a secondary aspect, not a second verdict. If it seems to contradict the main hexagram, that happens and is not an error. More in the guide →
Lines 2, 3, 4 and 3, 4, 5 form nuclear hexagram 43, Breakthrough (Resoluteness). It shows what is at work beneath the surface – an inner tendency, not a verdict on the situation itself.
Hexagram 43 – Breakthrough (Resoluteness)
Breakthrough requires the exhibition of the culprit's guilt in the royal court, and a sincere and earnest appeal for sympathy and support, with a consciousness of the peril involved. He should also make announcement in his own city, and show that it will not be well to have recourse at once to arms. In this way there will be advantage in whatever he shall go forward to.
The two trigrams
- Upper, outer: Li – Fire
- The Clinging (Middle Daughter). Within, it is clarity, inner vision and passion; without, a light that guides and connects through beauty and meaning.
- Lower, inner: Qian – Heaven
- The Creative (Father). Within, it shows itself as will, resolve and the drive to act; without, as an ordering force that gives direction and structure.