未濟 → 大壯
Hexagram 64: Before Completion → Hexagram 34: Great Power
Changing Lines
This transformation involves 3 changing lines (lines 1, 3, 6).
Line 1
初六 濡其尾。吝。
Six at the beginning means: He gets his tail in the water. Humiliating.
Line 3
六三 未濟征凶。利涉大川。
Six in the third place means: Before completion, attack brings misfortune. It furthers one to cross the great water.
Line 6
上九 有孚于飲酒。无咎。濡其首。有孚失是。
Nine at the top means: There is drinking of wine In genuine confidence. No blame. But if one wets his head, He loses it, in truth.
Trigram Changes
Yilin Verse
蒙惑憧憧，不知西東。魁罡指南，告我室中。利以宜止，去國憂患。
Bewildered and dazed; not knowing west from east. Kuigang points to the south; it tells me where my home lies. Favorable to halt and rest; depart the land of worry and care.
— Jiao Yanshou, Yilin (Forest of Changes), 1st century BCE
Commentary
Fire above water, and the traveler is lost in bewilderment. Confused and drifting, not knowing east from west. Then the Beidou's handle points south, guiding him home. It is best to stay put and leave the troubled state behind. The Kuigang (魁罡) refers to the Beidou constellation's handle stars, used for orientation since antiquity. From Before Completion to Great Power, fire-over-water transforms into thunder rolling above heaven — enormous energy demanding proper direction. The verse enacts this perfectly: raw confusion meets celestial guidance. Great Power's danger is force without orientation; its promise is force correctly aimed. The wanderer who finds the Dipper's direction and uses that power to depart a dangerous situation embodies Great Power properly exercised.
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