The Eight Trigrams

八卦 · Ba Gua

八卦 · Ba Gua

The Eight Trigrams

Eight three-line figures. The building blocks of the I Ching.

06
乾

Ch'ien

Qian

Family
Father
Element
Metal
Direction
Northwest
02
坤

K'un

Kun

Family
Mother
Element
Earth
Direction
Southwest
03
震

Chên

Zhen

Family
Eldest Son
Element
Wood
Direction
East
01
坎

K'an

Kan

Family
Middle Son
Element
Water
Direction
North
08
艮

Kên

Gen

Family
Youngest Son
Element
Earth
Direction
Northeast
04
巽

Sun

Xun

Family
Eldest Daughter
Element
Wood
Direction
Southeast
09
離

Li

Li

Family
Middle Daughter
Element
Fire
Direction
South
07
兌

Tui

Dui

Family
Youngest Daughter
Element
Metal
Direction
West
Ba Gua

The Two Arrangements

Fu Xi · 伏羲

Earlier Heaven

Attributed to Fu Xi. Pairs opposites — a cosmological map.

  1. 01 Ch'ien Metal
  2. 02 Tui Metal
  3. 03 Li Fire
  4. 04 Chên Wood
  5. 05 Sun Wood
  6. 06 K'an Water
  7. 07 Kên Earth
  8. 08 K'un Earth
King Wen · 文王

Later Heaven

Attributed to King Wen. Follows the seasonal cycle of change.

  1. 01 Li Summer
  2. 02 K'un Late Summer
  3. 03 Tui Autumn
  4. 04 Ch'ien Late Autumn
  5. 05 K'an Winter
  6. 06 Kên Early Winter
  7. 07 Chên Spring
  8. 08 Sun Early Summer