屯
Zhūn · Difficulty at the Beginning
Everything is new and nothing is settled. Build the base before you move.
The judgment
屯：元，亨，利，貞，勿用，有攸往，利建侯。
Difficulty at the beginning. It succeeds if you stay true. Do not rush to set out; it is better to build a base and gather helpers.
Received text; plain English after the Chinese. Source: 周易經傳 (public-domain). Passage: hex03.judgment.
The image
象曰：雲雷屯，君子以經綸。
Clouds and thunder: the beginning. A capable person untangles the threads and gives them order.
Received text; plain English after the Chinese. Source: 周易經傳 (public-domain). Passage: hex03.image.
At the start, order matters more than speed.
The six lines
Each line is a stage, from the bottom of the hexagram to the top. Open any line to read it in plain English.
初九 磐桓﹔利居貞，利建侯。 You are held back, circling the same ground. Stay put and steady, and use the time to build your base.
You are held back, circling the same ground. Stay put and steady, and use the time to build your base.
六二 屯如邅如，乘馬班如。 匪寇婚媾，女子貞不字，十年乃字。 You are stuck and the horses circle. The one coming is not an enemy but a suitor; wait, and the bond forms in its own time.
You are stuck and the horses circle. The one coming is not an enemy but a suitor; wait, and the bond forms in its own time.
六三 既鹿無虞，惟入于林中，君子幾不如舍，往吝。 You chase the deer without a guide and end up deep in the forest. Better to let it go than to keep chasing.
You chase the deer without a guide and end up deep in the forest. Better to let it go than to keep chasing.
六四 乘馬班如，求婚媾，無不利。 The horses circle again, but this time you are the one seeking the match. Go ahead: nothing is unfavorable.
The horses circle again, but this time you are the one seeking the match. Go ahead: nothing is unfavorable.
九五 屯其膏，小貞吉，大貞凶。 Your resources are gathered but not yet flowing. Small, careful moves are lucky; a big push now is not.
Your resources are gathered but not yet flowing. Small, careful moves are lucky; a big push now is not.
上六 乘馬班如，泣血漣如。 The horses circle and the tears run. This is the grief of a beginning that cannot yet move; let it hurt without forcing it.
The horses circle and the tears run. This is the grief of a beginning that cannot yet move; let it hurt without forcing it.