Kan ☵: yang in the middle, yin outside; the image of water

Kan is the trigram ☵. From bottom to top its lines are yin, yang, yin. The middle line is solid and the outer two are broken, giving the mnemonic “Kan is full in the middle.” Its traditional image is water, with meanings that also include danger or difficulty.

In the usual Later Heaven arrangement, Kan is north. In the Earlier Heaven system transmitted by Shao Yong in the Song dynasty, it is west. The classical idea of danger requires its textual context. Seeing a Kan pattern, drawing its name or buying an object does not predict disaster and is not a reason to demand payment for a supposed remedy.

Introductory cultural reference, not personal fortune-telling, medical or investment advice. Symbolism expresses a wish, not a guaranteed effect.