Your current situation can be depicted as "Following" transforming into "Grace".
In front of you lies "Lake" which transforms into "Mountain". That means that joy, pleasure, and attraction are being transformed into stillness and obstruction. Behind you lies "Thunder" which transforms into "Fire". That means that movement, initiative, and action are being transformed into brightness and warmth.
The Situation
17. Sui - Following Above (in front): Tui - The Joyous (Lake) Below (behind): Chên - The Arousing (Thunder)
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
The trigram Tui, the Joyous, whose attribute is gladness, is above; Chên, the Arousing, which has the attribute of movement, is below. Joy in movement induces following. The Joyous is the youngest daughter, while the Arousing is the eldest son. An older man defers to a young girl and shows her consideration. By this he moves her to follow him.
The Judgement for the Current Situation
Following has supreme success. Perseverance furthers. No blame.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
In order to obtain a following one must first know how to adapt oneself. If a man would rule he must first learn to serve, for only in this way does he secure from those below him the joyous assent that is necessary if they are to follow him. If he has to obtain a following by force or cunning, by conspiracy or by creating factions, he invariably arouses resistance, which obstructs willing adherence. But even joyous movement can lead to evil consequences, hence the added stipulation, "Perseverance furthers"–that is, consistency in doing right–together with "No blame. " Just as we should not ask others to follow us unless this condition is fulfilled, so it is only under this condition that we can in turn follow others without coming to harm. The thought of obtaining a following through adaptation to the demands of the time is a great and significant idea; this is why the appended judgment is so favorable.
The Image for the Current Situation
Thunder in the middle of the lake: The image of Following. Thus the superior man at nightfall Goes indoors for rest and recuperation.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
In the autumn electricity withdraws into the earth again and rests. Here it is the thunder in the middle of the lake that serves as the image–thunder in its winter rest, not thunder in motion. The idea of following in the sense of adaptation to the demands of the time grows out of this image. Thunder in the middle of the lake indicates times of darkness and rest. Similarly, a superior man, after being tirelessly active all day, allows himself rest and recuperation at night. No situation can become favorable until one is able to adapt to it and does not wear himself out with mistaken resistance.
Interpretation of the Changing Line(s)
Line 3: If one clings to the strong man, One loses the little boy. Through following one finds what one seeks. It furthers one to remain persevering.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
When the right connection with distinguished people has been found, a certain loss naturally ensues. A man must part company with the inferior and superficial. But in his heart he will feel satisfied, because he seeks and needs for the development of his personality. The important thing is to remain firm. He must know what he wants and not be led astray by momentary inclinations.
Line 4: Following creates success. Perseverance brings misfortune. To go one's own way with sincerity brings clarity. How could there be blame in this?
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
It often happens, when a man exerts a certain amount of influence, that he obtains a following by condescension toward inferiors. But the people who attach themselves to him are not honest in their intentions. They seek personal advantage and try to make themselves indispensable through flattery and subservience. If one becomes accustomed to such satellites and cannot do without them, it brings misfortune. Only when a man is completely free from his ego, and intent, by conviction, upon what is right and essential, does he acquire the clarity that enables him to see through such people, and become free of blame.
Line 5: Sincere in the good. Good fortune.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
Every man must have something he follows–something that serves him as a lodestar. He who follows with conviction the beautiful and the good may feel himself strengthened by this saying.
Line 6: He meets with firm allegiance And is still further bound. The king introduces him To the Western Mountain.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
This refers to a man, an exalted sage, who has already put the turmoil of the world behind him. But a follower appears who understands him and is not to be put off. So the sage comes back into the world and aids the other in his work. Thus there develops an eternal tie between the two. The allegory is chosen from the annals of the Chou dynasty. The rulers of this dynasty honored men who had served them well by awarding them a place in the royal family's temple of ancestors on the Western Mountain. In this way they were regarded as sharing in the destiny of the ruling family.
The Future
22. Pi - Grace Above (in front): Kên - Keeping Still (Mountain) Below (behind): Li - The Clinging (Fire)
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
This hexagram shows a fire that breaks out of the secret depths of the earth and, blazing up, illuminates and beautifies the mountain, the heavenly heights. Grace–beauty of form–is necessary in any union if it is to be well ordered and pleasing rather than disordered and chaotic.
The Judgement for the Future
Grace has success. In small matters It is favorable to undertake something.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
Grace brings success. However, it is not the essential or fundamental thing; it is only the ornament and must therefore be used sparingly and only in little things. In the lower trigram of fire a yielding line comes between two strong lines and makes them beautiful, but the strong lines are the essential content and the weak line is the beautifying form. In the upper trigram of the mountain, the strong line takes the lead, so that here again the strong element must be regarded as the decisive factor. In nature we see in the sky the strong light of the sun; the life of the world depends on it. But this strong, essential thing is changed and given pleasing variety by the moon and the stars. In human affairs, aesthetic form comes into being when traditions exist that, strong and abiding like mountains, are made pleasing by a lucid beauty. By contemplating the forms existing in the heavens we come to understand time and its changing demands. Through contemplation of the forms existing in human society it becomes possible to shape the world.
The Image for the Future
Fire at the foot of the mountain: The image of Grace. Thus does the superior man proceed When clearing up current affairs. But he dare not decide controversial issues in this way.
Comment by Richard Wilhelm:
The fire, whose light illuminates the mountain and makes it pleasing, does not shine far; in the same way, beautiful form suffices to brighten and to throw light upon matters of lesser moment, but important questions cannot be decided in this way. They require greater earnestness.
17. Sui - Following
22. Pi - Grace