Library
The 64 Gates
Each gate stands for a theme that is lived out in six lines. Here you will find all 64 with their lines.
Gate 1: The Gate of Self-ExpressionGate 1 stands for a creative force that wants to be expressed. It follows its own path and comes out of your inner process.Gate 2: The Gate of Higher KnowledgeGate 2 stands for the inner alignment that gives your life its direction.Gate 3: The Gate of OrderingGate 3 stands at the start of something new. A fresh beginning runs into obstacles and resistance at first.Gate 4: The Gate of FormulizationGate 4 lets your mind formulate answers. An open question puts it under pressure, and it wants to resolve it.Gate 5: The Gate of Fixed RhythmsWith Gate 5, fixed rhythms take center stage. This is a pattern that stays in tune with natural processes.Gate 6: The Gate of FrictionGate 6 is about emotional friction and how you deal with conflict. The hexagram is named “Conflict,” because growth here needs friction.Gate 7: The Gate of the Role of the SelfWho gives others direction? Gate 7 stands for this kind of leadership.Gate 8: The Gate of Contributing and SupportingGate 8 is about what you contribute and the possibilities it reveals. You show others the way forward, and your new approach can run into resistance.Gate 9: The Gate of FocusGathering your attention and devoting yourself to the details: that is the heart of Gate 9.Gate 10: The Gate of the Behavior of the SelfGate 10 is about the behavior of the self, meaning how you move through life and express yourself along the way.Gate 11: The Gate of IdeasGate 11 centers on ideas and a rich imagination. Your ideas are possibilities, not facts, and they grow out of what you have lived through and processed.Gate 12: The Gate of CautionGate 12 is about how carefully you express yourself. You weigh whether and when to say something, and with the wider public you tend to stay reserved.Gate 13: The Gate of the ListenersListening is the theme of Gate 13. Part of this theme is that others confide their experiences in you, sometimes even things they would otherwise keep to themselves.Gate 14: The Gate of Skillfully Handling PowerGate 14 stands for strength and skill in handling abundance and possessions.Gate 15: The Gate of ExtremesGate 15 stands for a life of extremes: sometimes a lot and sometimes a little, sometimes long sleep and sometimes short, sometimes eating early and sometimes late.Gate 16: The Gate of SkillsSkills and enthusiasm are the theme of Gate 16. Here, ability matures through repetition: through trying things out and practicing, driven by a critical eye, until it looks easy.Gate 17: The Gate of Opinions and AttitudesGate 17 is the gate of opinion. You want your view of things to be soundly reasoned and to hold up under scrutiny.Gate 18: The Gate of CorrectionGate 18 is the gate of correction: through it, you notice what no longer works, and you want to make it better.Gate 19: The Gate of WantingBeing wanted and having a place in the community: this wish belongs to Gate 19.Gate 20: The Gate of the NowBeing fully in the present moment, in the now: that is what Gate 20 stands for.Gate 21: The Gate of the HunterWho has control over money, possessions, and the way a living gets earned?Gate 22: The Gate of OpennessGrace in how you deal with people is the quality of Gate 22. How it comes across depends on your emotional state.Gate 23: The Gate of AssimilationPutting an insight into words so that others can understand it: that is assimilation, and it belongs to Gate 23.Gate 24: The Gate of RationalizationYour thoughts circle the same theme until it takes on a sensible shape.Gate 25: The Gate of the Spiritual Attitude of the SelfAn unaffected attitude toward life that holds up even in hard times: that is innocence, the theme of Gate 25.Gate 26: The Gate of the EgoistGate 26 puts the strength of the ego at the center; it is also called the Gate of the Egoist and the Gate of the Trickster.Gate 27: The Gate of Tending, Nourishing and CaringNothing thrives without care and attention, and that is one way to describe the caring of Gate 27.Gate 28: The Gate of the PlayerIs this fight worth it? Gate 28 stands for the search for meaning. It is about the question of whether a fight is worth it, and about finding a path of your own that makes life worth living.Gate 29: The Gate of Saying YesSaying yes, committing yourself, and getting involved in something: that is the theme of Gate 29.Gate 30: The Gate of Recognizing FeelingsGate 30 carries a powerful desire that comes from feeling: the fire of longing.Gate 31: The Gate of LeadingLeading through influence is the theme of Gate 31. Your influence works mainly through the spoken word rather than through your own actions.Gate 32: The Gate of ContinuityWhat holds up over the long run? A feel for that, continuity, belongs to Gate 32.Gate 33: The Gate of PrivacyA time of distance, when what you have lived through gets processed: Gate 33 stands for retreat.Gate 34: The Gate of PowerA power that belongs to the individual: that is one way to sum up Gate 34.Gate 35: The Gate of ChangeGate 35 is about the hunger for new experience and change. Its voice says something like “I feel,” usually in the sense of: it's time for something new.Gate 36: The Gate of CrisisGate 36 is about emotional crises that can come back again and again and leave you deeply unsettled.Gate 37: The Gate of FriendshipGate 37 is about friendship, family and community, which means supporting others, taking them in and giving them a sense of belonging.Gate 38: The Gate of the FighterTaking on challenges and sticking with them stubbornly: this drive is called fighting spirit, and it belongs to Gate 38.Gate 39: The Gate of ProvocationNudging and challenging others so that what lies within them comes to light: that is the theme of Gate 39, and it is called provocation.Gate 40: The Gate of AlonenessAloneness, and a willpower that puts itself to work for others: that is what Gate 40 is about.Gate 41: The Gate of ContractionGate 41 sits at the start of new experiences and provides the push to experience something.Gate 42: The Gate of GrowthBuilding on the potential that is already there and making room for growth: this is the increase of Gate 42.Gate 43: The Gate of InsightAn individual insight that shifts how things look: Gate 43 stands for insight and breakthrough.Gate 44: The Gate of AlertnessAlertness to patterns is part of Gate 44. An instinct picks up on whatever links the present situation to something experienced before.Gate 45: The Gate of the GathererGate 45, the gate of the king or queen, is about gathering possessions and resources and managing them for the benefit of a group.Gate 46: The Gate of the Determination of the SelfTurning up at just the right moment, in a spot where something of value can be found: this is called a fortunate coincidence and is linked with Gate 46.Gate 47: The Gate of RealizationA puzzle resolves the moment the meaning behind it comes into view: realization belongs to Gate 47.Gate 48: The Gate of DepthLike a well that reaches far down, Gate 48 stands for depth and for an inner store of knowledge and understanding that is meant to be shared.Gate 49: The Gate of PrinciplesGate 49 stands for upheaval: it shows when something no longer holds and renewal is due.Gate 50: The Gate of ValuesGate 50 is about values that protect a community and hold it together.Gate 51: The Gate of ShockGate 51 is about shock and whatever jolts people awake: a daring drive whose impact shakes others up.Gate 52: The Gate of Inactivity and RestGate 52 is about keeping still: instead of acting right away, you gather energy and hold it.Gate 53: The Gate of BeginningsGate 53 is about the urge to start something new, again and again. The drive persists even when a fresh start brings upheaval or slow, difficult first steps; it marks the opening of a new cycle of development.Gate 54: The Gate of the Ambitious OneGate 54 is about ambition and drive, the wish to climb higher step by step.Gate 55: The Gate of SpiritGate 55 is about spirit and abundance. Whether a life feels rich or meager comes down to mood and inner attitude, not to how much someone owns.Gate 56: The Gate of StimulationGate 56 is about stimulation: what you experience finds words and gets passed on.Gate 57: The Gate of Intuitive InsightGate 57 stands for intuition in the moment: a sense that sees through a situation as it unfolds, as penetrating as a cool wind that cuts right to the bone.Gate 58: The Gate of Joy in LifeGate 58 brings vitality and joy in life, a strong appetite for simply being alive.Gate 59: The Gate of SexualityGate 59 is about intimacy and the desire for close bonds with others. This gate clears away the barriers between people so that connection becomes possible.Gate 60: The Gate of AcceptanceGate 60 stands for limitation and acceptance: when you accept the limits that exist, you create the basis for growing beyond them.Gate 61: The Gate of MysteryGate 61 is about the inner pressure to reach the truth and to know what is really so.Gate 62: The Gate of Detail WorkGate 62 is about details that get spoken aloud so that others can grasp something.Gate 63: The Gate of DoubtGate 63 is about doubt, a constant pressure to ask whether things add up.Gate 64: The Gate of ConfusionGate 64 is about mental pressure: a restless mind working through a wealth of impressions and possibilities.