The judgment
巽:小亨,利攸往,利見大人。
The gentle. Small success. It is favorable to go somewhere and to see a great person: penetration works through persistence, not force.
Received text; plain English after the Chinese. Source: 周易經傳 (public-domain). Passage: hex57.judgment.
The image
象曰:隨風,巽。君子以申命行事。
Wind following wind: the gentle. A capable person repeats the order and then acts: clarity before command.
Received text; plain English after the Chinese. Source: 周易經傳 (public-domain). Passage: hex57.image.
What is gentle and repeated gets into places force cannot.
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.
初六 進退,利武人之貞。 Advancing and retreating. It is favorable for a warrior to stay true: hesitation needs a firm hand on the self.
Advancing and retreating. It is favorable for a warrior to stay true: hesitation needs a firm hand on the self.
九二 巽在床下,用史巫紛若,吉無咎。 Penetrating under the bed; the priests and shamans are busy. Good fortune, no blame: go deep and use every channel.
Penetrating under the bed; the priests and shamans are busy. Good fortune, no blame: go deep and use every channel.
九三 頻巽,吝。 Repeated gentle pushing. Regret: too many soft attempts start to look like nagging.
Repeated gentle pushing. Regret: too many soft attempts start to look like nagging.
六四 悔亡,田獲三品。 Regret disappears. Hunting brings three kinds of game: the work yields more than one result.
Regret disappears. Hunting brings three kinds of game: the work yields more than one result.
九五 貞吉悔亡,無不利。 無初有終,先庚三日,後庚三日,吉。 Stay true, regret disappears, nothing unfavorable. No good beginning but a good end: three days before the change and three days after, good fortune.
Stay true, regret disappears, nothing unfavorable. No good beginning but a good end: three days before the change and three days after, good fortune.
上九 巽在床下,喪其資斧,貞凶。 Penetrating under the bed, losing the means to act. Even staying true is bad: you went too deep and lost your tools.
Penetrating under the bed, losing the means to act. Even staying true is bad: you went too deep and lost your tools.