Your current situation can be depicted as "Holding Together (Union)" transforming into "Increase".
In front of you lies "Water" which transforms into "Wind". That means that danger and the unknown are being transformed into penetration and following. Behind you lies "Earth" which transforms into "Thunder". That means that docility and receptivity are being transformed into movement, initiative, and action.
The Situation
8. Pi - Holding Together (Union) Above (in front): K'an - The Abysmal (Water) Below (behind): K'un - The Receptive (Earth)
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
The waters on the surface of the earth flow together wherever they can, as for example in the ocean, where all the rivers come together. Symbolically this connotes holding together and the laws that regulate it. The same idea is suggested by the fact that all the lines of the hexagram except the fifth, the place of the ruler, are yielding. The yielding lines hold together because they are influenced by a man of strong will in the leading position, a man who is their center of union. Moreover, this strong and guiding personality in turn holds together with the others, finding in them the complement of his own nature.
The Judgement for the Current Situation
Holding Together brings good fortune. Inquire of the oracle once again Whether you possess sublimity, constancy, and perseverance; Then there is no blame. Those who are uncertain gradually join. Whoever comes too late Meets with misfortune.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
What is required is that we unite with others, in order that all may complement and aid one another through holding together. But such holding together calls for a central figure around whom other persons may unite. To become a center of influence holding people together is a grave matter and fraught with great responsibility. It requires greatness of spirit, consistency, and strength. Therefore let him who wishes to gather others about him ask himself whether he is equal to the undertaking, for anyone attempting the task without a real calling for it only makes confusion worse than if no union at all had taken place. But when there is a real rallying point, those who at first are hesitant or uncertain gradually come in of their own accord. Late-comers must suffer the consequences, for in holding together the question of the right time is also important. Relationships are formed and firmly established according to definite inner laws. Common experiences strengthen these ties, and he who comes too late to share in these basic experiences must suffer for it if, as a straggler, he finds the door locked. If a man has recognized the necessity for union and does not feel strong enough to function as the center, it is his duty to become a member of some other organic fellowship.
The Image for the Current Situation
On the earth is water: The image of Holding Together. Thus the kings of antiquity Bestowed the different states as fiefs And cultivated friendly relations With the feudal lords.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
Water fills up all the empty places on the earth and clings fast to it. The social organization of ancient China was based on this principle of the holding together of dependents and rulers. Water flows to unite with water, because all parts of it are subject to the same laws. So too should human society hold together through a community of interests that allows each individual to feel himself a member of a whole. The central power of a social organization must see to it that every member finds that his true interest lies in holding together with it, as was the case in the paternal relationship between king and vassals in ancient China.
Interpretation of the Changing Line(s)
Line 1: Hold to him in truth and loyalty; This is without blame. Truth, like a full earthen bowl: Thus in the end Good fortune comes from without.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
Fundamental sincerity is the only proper basis for forming relationships. This attitude, symbolized by a full earthen bowl, in which the content is everything and the empty form nothing, shows itself not in clever words but through the strength of what lies within the speaker. This strength is so great that it has power to attract good fortune to itself from without.
Line 6: He finds no head for holding together. Misfortune.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
The head is the beginning. If the beginning is not right, there is no hope of a right ending. If we have missed the right moment for union and go on hesitating to give complete and full devotion, we shall regret the error when it is too late.
The Future
42. I - Increase Above (in front): Sun - The Gentle (Wind) Below (behind): Chên - The Arousing (Thunder)
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
The idea of increase is expressed in the fact that the strong lowest line of the upper trigram has sunk down and taken its place under the lower trigram. This conception also expresses the fundamental idea on which the Book of Changes is based. To rule truly is to serve. A sacrifice of the higher element that produces an increase of the lower is called an out-and-out increase: it indicates the spirit that alone has power to help the world.
The Judgement for the Future
Increase. It furthers one To undertake something. It furthers one to cross the great water.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
Sacrifice on the part of those above for the increase of those below fills the people with a sense of joy and gratitude that is extremely valuable for the flowering of the commonwealth. When people are thus devoted to their leaders, undertakings are possible, and even difficult and dangerous enterprises will succeed. Therefore in such times of progress and successful development it is necessary to work and make the best use of the time. This time resembles that of the marriage of heaven and earth, when the earth partakes of the creative power of heaven, forming and bringing forth living beings. The time of INCREASE does not endure, therefore it must be utilized while it lasts.
The Image for the Future
Wind and thunder: the image of Increase. Thus the superior man: If he sees good, he imitates it; If he has faults, he rids himself of them.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
While observing how thunder and wind increase and strengthen each other, a man can note the way to self-increase and self-improvement. When he discovers good in others, he should imitate it and thus make everything on earth his own. If he perceives something bad in himself, let him rid himself of it. In this way he becomes free of evil. This ethical change represents the most important increase of personality.
8. Pi - Holding Together (Union)
42. I - Increase