55. Abundance
Abundance is hexagram 55 of the 64 in the I Ching, also known as the Book of Changes (in Chinese Fēng, 豐).
Abundance lights much at once, and for that very reason one must not go blind on its fullness.
Core image
This hexagram is a moment at full flood: much is visible, possible, or at work all at once. That carries real power, but it casts a shadow too — where the light stands harshest, edges turn rigid and stillness drains away. Abundance is not only a richness of situation; it is also a load on the eye.
Tension
The tension is that the peak does not last. One wants to hold the fullness as though it could become an ordinary state. But this hexagram knows that abundance asks for measure at the very height of itself, since otherwise it tips into confusion, blindness, or exhaustion.
Distortion
Abundance distorts when someone worships the peak and ignores every limit of time, rhythm, and clarity. Then fullness blurs into one undivided glare. You hold much in hand and see less for it.
Stance
Use the clarity of this moment and do not flinch at its size, but keep the ordering sharp. Not everything that lights up has to be held at once. Handling abundance well asks for command over measure in the thick of plenty.
Closing line
Whoever can still order things at the peak is not swallowed by what they were given.
Plain-language entrances.
Derived addresses for this hexagram. They help search and recognition, but do not change the source meaning.
hexagram 55 overvloed en hoogtepunt
Hexagram 55 gaat over overvloed: een hoogtepunt met veel licht, veel informatie en ook verantwoordelijkheid.
Changing lines of hexagram 55
- Line 1. At the start there is strong contact and a great deal of movement. This is favorable as long as you do not lose your center in the fullness right away. A large beginning is borne only by someone who does not get drunk on intensity at once.
- Line 2. Here the view is already partly blocked by density, noise, or excess. You must listen all the harder for what is still clear. Abundance now asks for precision in what you take in.
- Line 3. At this point the fullness turns murky and loud. You see less despite all the light. The line warns against a clamor that darkens the heart of the matter.
- Line 4. Here, right in the crowded situation, someone or something can be found that restores a straight direction. That makes the abundance bearable again. Not everything has to be cut back first before clarity can return.
- Line 5. This line shows the right place in the midst of plenty. There is standing, visibility, and weight, yet without any loss of measure. Because of that, abundance becomes governable instead of intoxicating.
- Line 6. When you shut yourself inside your own fullness at the peak, what finally remains is emptiness and desertion. Then you live in abundance as in a sealed room. This line is severe toward self-darkening.
Related hexagrams
Frequently asked questions about hexagram 55
What does hexagram 55, Abundance, mean in the I Ching?
Abundance lights much at once, and for that very reason one must not go blind on its fullness. This hexagram is a moment at full flood: much is visible, possible, or at work all at once. That carries real power, but it casts a shadow too — where the light stands harshest, edges turn rigid and stillness drains away. Abundance is not only a richness of situation; it is also a load on the eye.
What does hexagram 55 (Abundance) ask of you?
The tension is that the peak does not last. One wants to hold the fullness as though it could become an ordinary state. But this hexagram knows that abundance asks for measure at the very height of itself, since otherwise it tips into confusion, blindness, or exhaustion.
Read what is in motion in your situation.
A hexagram only takes on meaning in relation to your own question. Ask one and read what appears.