Hexagram 4 · Meng 蒙
Learning starts with an honest question
Meng places Mountain above Water. Water emerges beneath an obstacle: there is movement, but the way is not yet clear. The image points toward learning through inquiry, guidance, and practice.
Short answer
Read Meng as a call to name what you do not know, seek useful instruction, and apply it. Repeating a question in search of a more pleasing answer can obscure the lesson already available.
- Upper
- Gen · Mountain
- Lower
- Kan · Water
Pattern
Mountain above Water
- Chinese
- 蒙
- Upper trigram
- Gen · Mountain
- Lower trigram
- Kan · Water
- Lines
- Yang at the second and sixth positions
Classical text
Ask sincerely, then work with the answer
蒙：亨。匪我求童蒙，童蒙求我。初筮告，再三瀆，瀆則不告。利貞。— Zhouyi, Hexagram 4
The text describes the learner seeking instruction. The first consultation receives an answer; repeated questioning can become careless. Its point is not that a beginner must already know the way, but that a real question deserves attention and follow-through.
The Image says “山下出泉，蒙；君子以果行育德”: a spring comes out below the mountain, while decisive action and cultivated character accompany learning. This page treats that as a prompt for practice, not a guarantee that one answer resolves every uncertainty.
When it helps
Turn uncertainty into learning
Where is a specific question more useful than another guess? What teacher, source, or small experiment could clarify the next step?
What to watch
Avoid asking for reassurance alone
If you keep recasting or rephrasing until an answer feels agreeable, pause. Identify what you have already heard and what evidence would genuinely change your understanding.
Questions for reflection
- What exactly do I need to learn before deciding?
- Whose guidance is relevant, and how will I test it?
- What action would show I have taken the first answer seriously?
If you have cast changing lines, read them with the original question and method. This general page cannot replace that context. See how changing lines are displayed.
Sources
Check the original text
This page paraphrases the classical material rather than reproducing a modern copyrighted translation.