Hexagram 56 · Line 6
The Traveler — 上六
Lu Traveler · Shang Liu
上六 · Shang Liu
The Line
The bird's nest burns. The wanderer first laughs, then must they lament and weep. They lose the cow through frivolity. Misfortune!
Interpretation
The image of the bird whose nest burns shows the loss of the place of rest. If the bird was frivolous and incautious in the building of its nest, this misfortune can befall it. So too with the wanderer. If they let themself go in jest and laughter and no longer think that they are a wanderer, they will later have cause to weep and lament. For if in frivolity one loses one's cow, that is, one's modest adaptability, this is evil.