17
Hexagram 17, Sui — “Following.” It is about following: a person, the times, the circumstances.
The image of the hexagram
Below is the trigram Zhen (thunder), above is Dui (lake). The lake over thunder: movement below, joy above — going after what attracts you.
General meaning
The answer is favorable if you're willing not to be first. Sui speaks of rightly yielding to the course of events — not out of weakness but by calculation: right now it pays more to join a movement than to set your own. An important condition in the classical text is to follow someone worthy; whom you follow matters more here than how.
In love and at work
In relationships — readiness to follow your partner, adapt, accept their pace; a good sign for a new acquaintance. At work — joining someone else's project, the market, an established practice. For defending your own line the hexagram is unsuitable.
What to do
Choose whom you follow, and follow without haggling. Half a step behind is worse than a full step.