否 → 屯
Hexagram 12: Standstill → Hexagram 3: Difficulty at the Beginning
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 4, 6).
Line 1
初六 拔茅茹。以其彙。貞吉。亨。
Six at the beginning means: When ribbon grass is pulled up, the sod comes with it. Each according to his kind. Perseverance brings good fortune and success.
Line 4
九四 有命无咎。疇離祉。
Nine in the fourth place means: He who acts at the command of the highest Remains without blame. Those of like mind partake of the blessing.
Line 6
上九 傾否。先否後喜。
Nine at the top means: The standstill comes to an end. First standstill, then good fortune.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
名成德就，項領不試；景公耋老，尼父逝去。
The merit stele's characters are overgrown with moss; the gold seal is dust-sealed in its box. The hero in old age watches autumn leaves — one by one, they drift with the wind.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Heaven and earth stand apart as fame fades and old age arrives. The original verse names Duke Jing of Qi, who grew old upon the throne, and Confucius, 'Father Ni,' who passed away — achievements complete, virtue established, yet their collars never bore the signs of real trial. Duke Jing wept on Mount Niu, lamenting his mortality; Confucius died in Lu after failing to see his Way implemented. From Standstill to Difficulty at the Beginning, the sealed world of Pi opens into the turbulent birth-struggle of Zhun, clouds and thunder churning. The verse laments the tragic irony: great men whose work is done face not renewal but the raw chaos of a world that no longer needs them — accomplishment fading into the storm of what comes next.
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