Tai Hexagram Nine in Second Place: People with Big Vision All Know This Truth — Never Push Others to the Wall

Have you ever met someone like this around you?

They’re extremely shrewd and never take the slightest loss. When dealing with others, they calculate every last cent down to the penny; if someone crosses them, they’ll almost certainly get even; they stick close to whoever is useful to them, and quickly distance themselves from anyone who no longer serves a purpose.

You might say they’re not really in the wrong—after all, everyone looks out for themselves, right? But you just can’t feel comfortable dealing with them, and you’ll never truly trust them.

On the flip side, there’s another type of person. They seem a little "silly" at first glance, not minding taking small losses; if someone offends them, they don’t hold a grudge; they’re willing to lend a hand to anyone in trouble, regardless of whether the other person can repay them.

Yet these are the people who end up with more friends, broader paths in life, and others willing to help them no matter what they do.

Why is that? The second line of the Tai (Peace) Hexagram in the I Ching (Book of Changes) explains exactly this principle. It reads: "包荒，用冯河，不遐遗，朋亡，得尚于中行。" (Encompassing the wild, fording the river on foot, neglecting no one far away, letting go of cliques, one gains honor by walking the middle path.)

Encompassing the Wild: People with Great Vision Can Accommodate What Is Different

What does "encompassing the wild" mean? "Encompassing" means tolerance and inclusion. "Wild" refers to what is distant, uncultivated, different, or unappealing to the eye.

Put together, it means: You must be able to hold in your heart things you look down on, people who are different from you, and opinions that seem unrefined.

Why can the Nine in the Second Place "encompass the wild"? Because it is the second line of the Tai Hexagram: a Yang Line (solid —) in a Yin position, holding the central and proper place, and serving as the main line of the inner trigram. Its position is not low, but nor is it the highest—it is exactly the key role connecting those above and below.

What flaw do people in this position most easily fall into? They tend to look down on those below them and refuse to listen to different opinions. Because they are more capable than their subordinates, they think they are always right.

But the Nine in the Second Place is not like this. It "encompasses the wild"—it can accommodate those "wild" things, those people and matters that seem unremarkable or unrefined.

Wen Laoshi often says: "When water is too clear, there are no fish; when a person is too critical, they have no followers. If you find fault with everything and nitpick every detail, you’ll end up with no one by your side."

Look at people who truly achieve great things—none of them are perfectionists with obsessive standards. Liu Bang had all kinds of people under his command: Zhang Liang, who came from a noble family; Xiao He, a low-ranking civil servant; Fan Kuai, a dog butcher; Han Xin, who once endured the humiliation of crawling between a bully’s legs; and Chen Ping, who was rumored to have an affair with his sister-in-law. These people came from all walks of life, with all kinds of backgrounds and flaws. But Liu Bang could use them because he "encompassed the wild"—he didn’t demand that everyone be perfect; he only asked that each person have one useful skill.

Xiang Yu was different. Xiang Yu was a nobleman and a hero himself. He looked down on this person and scorned that one, so one by one, the talented people under him left to join Liu Bang. What happened in the end? He bid farewell to his concubine Lady Yu and took his own life by the Wu River.

Would you say Xiang Yu lacked ability? He was far more capable than Liu Bang. But where did he lose? He lost in vision, in not being able to "encompass the wild"—he couldn’t tolerate people who were different from him.

Fording the River on Foot: Tolerance Alone Is Not Enough—You Need Courage to Forge Ahead

What does "fording the river on foot" mean? It refers to crossing a river on foot, wading through barefoot—describing someone with courage who dares to take risks and act boldly.

Put together, it means: Tolerance alone is not enough; you must also have行动力 and the drive to forge ahead.

Why are these two ideas paired together? Because many people have a misconception: they think having a great vision means being a people-pleaser, tolerating and accepting everything, being soft and meek.

That’s not right. True great vision is firmness within gentleness. Tolerance is gentleness; daring to forge ahead is firmness. "Encompassing the wild" is gentleness; "fording the river" is firmness. Gentleness without firmness is weakness; firmness without gentleness is tyranny.

The Nine in the Second Place is a perfect example of firmness within gentleness. It occupies a Yin position, so it can be tolerant; it is a Yang Line, so it has the drive to forge ahead. Having both is what makes it truly powerful.

I know a company boss who is very easy to talk to. He rarely yells at his subordinates when they make mistakes, and always teaches them patiently. But don’t think he’s easy to push around—when it comes to major issues, he is more decisive than anyone. A few years ago, when the industry was struggling and the company faced a transformation, many people advised him to play it safe and not rock the boat. He made the call: "We have to transform. If we don’t, we’re just waiting to die." Then he withstood the pressure and turned the company around in two years.

He often says: "Being kind to people on a daily basis is to build team cohesion; being tough at critical moments is to survive. The two don’t contradict each other."

You see, this is "encompassing the wild" plus "fording the river"—being tolerant and accepting of others in normal times, and daring to make decisions and charge forward when it matters most.

Neglecting No One Far Away, Letting Go of Cliques: Don’t Distance Yourself from Anyone, and Don’t Form Small Circles

The next two lines are even more interesting: "neglecting no one far away, letting go of cliques."

What does "neglecting no one far away" mean? "Far" means distant. "Neglect" means forgetting or leaving out. Put together, it means: Don’t forget or ignore someone just because they are far away or low in status.

What does "letting go of cliques" mean? "Clique" refers to factions or small exclusive circles. "Letting go" means doing away with them. Put together, it means: Don’t form small circles, don’t gang up with others, don’t form factions for personal gain.

These two lines paired together are brilliant. "Neglecting no one far away" means you must treat everyone equally, taking care of both those close to you and those far away. "Letting go of cliques" means you can’t form small groups, only associating with your own people.

This is extremely important in interpersonal relationships and team management.

Many people develop a bad habit after becoming leaders: they favor those close to them. They promote people they are friendly with and who say what they want to hear; they distance themselves from those they are not close to and who dare to voice different opinions. Over time, all they have around them are flatterers. They can no longer hear the truth or see problems, and the company slowly falls apart.

What does a truly wise leader look like? They "neglect no one far away"—they listen to the opinions of frontline employees and value feedback from the ground level. They "let go of cliques"—they don’t form small circles; they promote whoever is capable and listen to whoever makes sense.

I once had a leader who had a habit: every month, he would have a meal with frontline employees from different departments, without their department heads present, just to chat with them directly. He said: "What the department heads tell me is only what they want me to know. If I want to hear the truth, I have to go to the front lines myself."

You see, this is the wisdom of "neglecting no one far away"—don’t ignore someone because of their low status, don’t forget someone because of distance.

Why is "letting go of cliques" also important? Because once you form a small circle, people outside the circle will become alienated from you. They’ll think: "Anyway, I’m not one of your people, it doesn’t matter if I do a good job or bad—so why should I work hard?" That’s how a team loses its fighting spirit.

That’s why the Nine in the Second Place concludes with "gaining honor by walking the middle path"—because you walk the middle way, the right way, an unbiased path, you gain the recognition and respect of everyone.

Final Thoughts

The line from the Nine in the Second Place of the Tai Hexagram—"Encompassing the wild, fording the river on foot, neglecting no one far away, letting go of cliques, one gains honor by walking the middle path"—may seem long, but it really only talks about one thing: People with great vision have the magnanimity to tolerate others, the courage to get things done, the principle of fairness, and the bottom line of not forming cliques.

Why is the Tai Hexagram called "Peace"? Because it represents unobstructed communication between upper and lower, harmony between inside and outside, and the flow of resources. But peace doesn’t fall from the sky—it is created by people. What kind of people? People like the Nine in the Second Place—those who are tolerant, dare to forge ahead, are impartial, and don’t form cliques.

This same principle applies to today’s workplace and interpersonal relationships.

If you want to be popular, you can’t just flatter others—you need to be tolerant, able to accept people who are different from you;

If you want to be a leader, you can’t just rely on tricks—you need the drive to forge ahead, able to take responsibility at critical moments;

If you want to lead a team, you can’t just rely on people close to you—you need to treat everyone equally, giving everyone a chance;

If you want to go far in life, you can’t form small circles—you need to walk the right path, openly and honorably.

This is the power of the "middle path." People who walk the right path may seem slower or a little "silly" in the short term, but over time you’ll find they walk the steadiest, the farthest, and the most solid path.

So if you feel like your path is getting narrower, you have fewer and fewer friends, and your team is getting harder to lead, take a step back and reflect—am I being too critical? Am I not tolerant enough? Am I forming small circles? Have I strayed from the middle path?

Open up your vision, widen your heart, and the path will naturally broaden.