Keep the casting context
Numbers, time, or a noticed scene can provide input. Once chosen, do not switch methods until a preferable hexagram appears. Save the question, input method, and casting time so the later review remains tied to the original chart.
The primary hexagram frames the present
Read the image formed by the upper and lower trigrams, then locate the moving line. The hexagram names the broad structure; the moving line identifies where that structure is shifting. At this point you should be able to describe the present difficulty in ordinary language.
Mutual is process; changed is direction
The mutual hexagram recombines the middle lines and is used to observe the inner process. The changed hexagram follows from the moving line and shows the form after movement. Together they form one path, not three independent forecasts.
- Primary: the present pattern
- Moving line: the start of change
- Mutual: the internal process
- Changed: the resulting form
Return body and use to the question
Body and use often distinguish the person from the matter, but their roles must be assigned from the question. Generation or control alone cannot settle the result. Name the roles first, then compare resources, resistance, and timing in the real situation.