Hexagram 51: The Arousing Thunder → Hexagram 3: Difficulty at the Beginning

The Arousing Thunder
Thunder / Thunder
Difficulty at the Beginning
Water / Thunder
Changing LinesStable Lines

Changing Lines

This transformation involves 2 changing lines (lines 4, 5).

Line 4

九四 震遂泥。

zhènthe thunder
suìis followed by
mud

Nine in the fourth place means: Shock is mired.

Line 5

六五 震往來厲。意无喪有事。

zhènthe thunder
wǎngin
láiand
is difficult
the meaning
is not
sànglost
yǒuhaving
shìwork to do

Six in the fifth place means: Shock goes hither and thither. Danger. However, nothing at all is lost. Yet there are things to be done.

Trigram Changes

Upper TrigramThunder WaterThe Arousing → The Deep
Lower TrigramThunder Thunder

Yilin Verse

揚水潛鑿,使君潔白。衣素附珠,遊戲皋沃。得其所願,心志娛樂。

Raising water, drilling deep; making the lord pure and white. Clothed in plain silk adorned with pearls, roaming the rich meadows. Attaining what is wished for; heart and will are filled with joy.

— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE

Commentary

Thunder doubled meets clouds and thunder together: shock gives way to the struggle of new beginnings. Water is drawn up and wells are secretly cut — cleansing the lord to radiant purity. Dressed in white silk studded with pearls, he roams the rich meadows of Gao and Wo, achieving his heart's desire in joyful play. The imagery suggests ritual purification followed by celebration, the kind of festive abundance that follows a successful inaugural effort. From The Arousing to Difficulty at the Beginning, the verse captures the moment when raw shock finds its first constructive channel. Thunder above water: the initial chaos of a new endeavor, properly managed, yields not just survival but delight.

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