升 → 屯
Hexagram 46: Pushing Upward → Hexagram 3: Difficulty at the Beginning
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 4 changing lines (lines 1, 2, 3, 5).
Line 1
初六 允升大吉。
Six at the beginning means: Pushing upward that meets with confidence Brings great good fortune.
Line 2
九二 孚乃利用禴。无咎。
Nine in the second place means: If one is sincere, It furthers one to bring even a small offering. No blame.
Line 3
九三 升虛邑。
Nine in the third place means: One pushes upward into an empty city.
Line 5
六五 貞吉升階。
Six in the fifth place means: Perseverance brings good fortune. One pushes upward by steps.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
王宜孫喜，張名益有。龍子善行，西得大壽。
The king is fitting, the grandson rejoices; fame is displayed, blessings multiply. The dragon's son walks in virtue; journeying west, he attains great longevity.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Wood grows within the earth as cloud and thunder gather above. The verse speaks of royal joy, spreading fame, and increasing fortune. A dragon's child travels well, gaining great longevity in the west. The language evokes blessings upon a noble lineage: names honored, fortunes multiplied, descendants thriving across the realm. The 'dragon child' suggests a prince or heir whose virtuous conduct secures lasting fortune far from home. From Pushing Upward to Difficulty at the Beginning, the organic ascent encounters the turbulence of new birth — cloud and thunder colliding before the rain can fall. Yet the verse is optimistic: even amid initial hardship, the foundations laid through steady cultivation yield enduring prosperity and long life.
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