Feng Hexagram & Lü Hexagram: One at the Peak, One on the Road — Plan Your Exit When Things Are Most Booming

The Abundance (Feng) Hexagram and The Wanderer (Lü) Hexagram are the 55th and 56th hexagrams in the I Ching (Book of Changes). One speaks of prosperity, the other of drifting.

These two hexagrams sit side by side because they often mark the before and after of the same event.

Two years ago, I met a chain store boss in his early 40s who had expanded to over 30 locations.

Back then, he was a celebrity in the local business circle. Industry forums invited him to speak, the chamber of commerce asked him to be a director, and media outlets came to interview him.

Over dinner, he told me he planned to open 50 more stores, hit 100 locations in three years, and then prepare for an IPO.

I asked him, "Can you keep clear accounts for each individual store right now?"

He said, "I can keep track of the big-picture numbers."

I said, "A chain that only tracks the big picture usually has half its stores losing money."

He laughed and said that's just how the industry works.

Then came that wave of consumption downgrade, and he shrank down to only 9 stores left.

He told me the hardest part wasn't closing stores—it was realizing, when he started shutting them down, that out of 30-plus locations, only 6 were actually profitable.

The other 20-something stores had been propped up the whole time by cash from new openings.

That's exactly what the Abundance Hexagram talks about.

Feng is Lei Huo Feng (Abundance). Above is Zhen / The Arousing, below is Li / The Clinging—thunder and lightning arrive together.

Thunder and lightning coming at once, massive and overwhelming—that's the scene of prosperity.

The Xiang Commentary says: "Thunder and lightning both arrive—this is Abundance. The Junzi (Superior Person) settles lawsuits and imposes penalties accordingly."

"Settling lawsuits and imposing penalties" means hearing cases and handing down punishments.

Placed in the context of the Abundance Hexagram, this line has a very special meaning: the more power you have, the more carefully you should use it.

Because when you have great power, it's easy to cut corners on process. "I'm in charge anyway, I've got enough money anyway, no one can stop me anyway."

The Hexagram Judgment of the Abundance Hexagram also has a line: "The king approaches it. Do not worry. It is fitting to be like the sun at midday."

"It is fitting to be like the sun at midday." When the sun reaches noon, it's the brightest time of day.

But once the sun hits noon, its next step is to tilt west.

The I Ching puts it politely, but it's really a warning: the brightness you have right now has an expiration date.

So the real question the Abundance Hexagram asks isn't how you get big—it's how you don't collapse after getting big.

I've seen far too many people run into trouble when they're at their peak.

They aren't defeated by competitors—they spread themselves too thin to keep control.

You can manage 10 stores, but not 30, because for those 20 in between, you don't have reliable people, and you don't have replicable standards.

Money flows in, but people don't keep up, standards don't keep up, and in the end the money turns into a black hole.

The Wanderer Hexagram picks up right where this situation leaves off.

Lü is Huo Shan Lü (The Wanderer). Above is Li / The Clinging, below is Gen / Keeping Still—fire on the mountain.

Fire burns on the mountain, consuming one patch, moving on to the next, never staying put.

The Xiang Commentary says: "Fire on the mountain—this is The Wanderer. The Junzi (Superior Person) is clear and cautious in applying penalties, and does not let lawsuits linger."

"Does not let lawsuits linger" means not letting cases pile up unresolved.

This line is also making one point: don't drag things out.

The Hexagram Judgment of the Wanderer Hexagram is only six characters: "Small success. Perseverance in wandering brings good fortune."

"Small success." On a journey, you can only have small, steady progress.

This line is so down-to-earth. When you're away from home, on someone else's turf, living under others' roofs, you can't expect huge gains.

If you can stay safe, make a little income, and get a foothold—that counts as success.

But so many people these days go out to make their fortune and want to go all out in the first year.

Move to a new city? Rent a big office first. Break into a new industry? Hire a whole team first. Join a new platform? Set a huge goal first.

That's not taking a risk—that's asking for trouble.

There's one line in the Wanderer Hexagram that stuck with me deeply. Nine in the Third Place: "The wanderer's shelter burns, he loses his servant. Perseverance brings danger."

Mid-journey, the place you're staying burns down, and the people with you leave too.

Why does it burn? Because you're too flashy on someone else's turf.

The whole logic of the Wanderer Hexagram is: you're away from home, you're a guest. Guests have to follow guest rules.

Lay low, be cautious, don't steal the host's spotlight, don't touch the host's interests.

This isn't cowardice—it's survival.

So Abundance and Wanderer are an exceptionally clear-eyed pair of hexagrams.

Abundance says: when you're prosperous, remember decline is coming.

Wanderer says: when you're away from home, know your place.

Put together, it boils down to this: whether you're at the top or far from home, the most common mistake people make is the same—thinking too highly of themselves.

Going back to that chain store boss.

After shrinking down to 9 stores, he did something pretty remarkable.

He went through the books of all 9 stores one by one, broke down the cost structure of each location, and set a rule: new stores have to support themselves, no subsidies from the company.

Three years later, he's expanded to 15 stores, and every single one is profitable.

He told me things aren't as lively as they used to be.

I said, "Liveliness is Abundance. Making steady money is Wanderer. You're in the Wanderer phase right now—don't rush to get back to Abundance."

He laughed and said the line didn't feel good to hear, but it was true.

The top line of the Abundance Hexagram says: "He enlarges his house, he screens off his family. He peers through the door—silence, no one there. For three years he sees no one. Misfortune."

The house is built huge, shielding the whole family. Peek through the crack in the door, and it's dead quiet, no one inside. No one is seen for three years.

This is one of the coldest images in the I Ching.

A huge house, but the people are gone.

So getting big isn't the goal in itself. After you get big, if the people are still there, the business is still there, the money is still there—that's when it counts as success.

One last way to judge for yourself.

Take your current operation—if your revenue got cut by 30%, could you still keep running?

If yes, your prosperity has a solid foundation.

If no, your prosperity is just propped up by new money. That's not Abundance—that's the Wanderer phase that hasn't even started yet.