初
初九。不遠復、无祗悔、元吉。
Return not far—no regret, great fortune. Correct yourself early.
䷗
Hexagram 24
Return (地雷復)
Chirai-fuku / Fù
Thunder stirs beneath earth—yang returns after the low point. A hopeful restart.
Judgment
復。亨。出入无疾、朋來无咎。反復其道、七日來復。利有攸往。
Return. Success. Going out and coming in without harm; friends come, no blame. Returning to the path within seven days. Favorable to have a direction.
A turning point upward; resume the right path steadily.
Line-by-Line (Yao)
Interpretations if the line changes.
二
六二。休復、吉。
Restful return—good fortune. Calmly resuming brings luck.
三
六三。頻復、厲无咎。
Repeated returns—dangerous but blameless. Many restarts needed; stay alert.
四
六四。中行独復。
Returning alone in the middle path. Quietly correcting yourself.
五
六五。敦復、无悔。
Sincere return—no regret. Earnest re-alignment works.
上
上六。迷復、凶、有災眚。用行師、終有大敗、以其國君、凶、至于十年、不克征。
Lost return—misfortune and disaster. If you send out armies, you end in great defeat; the ruler suffers; ten years without conquest.
Practical Reading: Love, Career, Health & Decisions
When you cast Hexagram 24, Fù (Return), the Book of Changes shows you a situation with Kun (Earth) above and Zhen (Thunder) below. Thunder stirs beneath earth—yang returns after the low point. A hopeful restart. Use the cards below to map that pattern onto your specific question — a love reading, a career decision, a health concern, or a yes/no choice.
Love & Relationships
Good for reconciling or rebuilding; review the past and start fresh. In a love or relationship reading, Hexagram 24 (Fù) describes the meeting point of Kun (earth) above and Zhen (thunder) below: how the outer situation meets your inner state. Ask whether you are forcing the relationship to fit a picture, or letting it move at the rhythm this hexagram suggests. For a partnered question, read the changing lines to see which side — yours or the other person's — is being asked to shift.
Work & Career
Learn from setbacks and relaunch from basics. In work and career, Fù points to whether the outer market or workplace (Kun (earth)) and your inner stance (Zhen (thunder)) are in alignment. If a project, negotiation, or job change is the question, ask what this hexagram says about timing rather than effort: pushing harder rarely changes a Fù situation; reading the configuration usually does.
Health & Wellbeing
Signs of recovery—take it slowly. For a body or wellness reading, treat the lines of Hexagram 24 as descriptions of phases, not diagnoses. Fù usually signals where energy needs to be conserved versus where it is asking to be expressed. Combine the hexagram's advice with concrete medical guidance — the I Ching is a reflective tool, not a substitute for professional care.
Decision-Making
When the question is a yes/no — should I take the offer, move, leave, commit? — read Hexagram 24 (Fù, Return) as a statement about the configuration of your situation rather than the outcome. The summary "Thunder stirs beneath earth—yang returns after the low point. A hopeful restart." is your starting frame. Ask: does this action respect that configuration, or fight it? Changing lines, if any, tell you which specific aspect needs to bend.
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