益

Augmentation in both quantitative (adding) and qualitative (improvement) senses. This encompasses material profit, utilitarian advantage, and moral or corrective rectification.

Verb: to increase, augment, or benefit; Noun: a profit, advantage, or benefit; Modifier: beneficial, advantageous, or additive.

Compared to lì (利), which emphasizes utility or personal gain, yì suggests a broader process of growth or positive expansion. Compared to zēng (增), which is often a neutral quantitative addition, yì typically carries a positive value judgment.

Semantic variant: U+FA17.

In divinatory or cosmological contexts (e.g., Hexagram 42 of the Yi Jing), the term may specifically denote a directional vector of distribution—moving resources from abundance to deficiency ("adding to the lower")—rather than simple accumulation.