Reading
Rain and thunder arise—there will be development and creativity.
Like walking into a storm, there will be struggle progressing, but well-prepared and firm, the journey through the tempest can be managed, to advantage. Do not take things lightly—this is movement in peril. There is much irregularity and confusion, but where there is risk, there is often reward—whatever begins, develops, and whatever develops, will bear fruit. Carefully manage affairs, like an artisan weaving the warp of a loom. This is done by setting up a ruler who can understand and manage the course, without abandoning the Dao. Remember, promoting strength is the effect of not having it—yang energy is latent here. When primal energy appears, this is called "living midnight." Do not be reckless and desirous, allowing the sure driver to hold the reigns, and the latent energy will reappear in time.
Translation Reference
Judgment
Difficulty at the Beginning effects sublime success,
furthered by perseverance.
One should undertake nothing.
It is favorable to appoint helpers.
Times of becoming are difficult. It is like a first birth. But these difficulties arise from the abundance of that which is struggling to take shape. Everything is in motion, and therefore, despite the present danger, there is prospect of great success if one has perseverance. When such beginning-times come as fate, everything is still unformed and dark. One must therefore wait, for any premature grasping could bring failure. Likewise it is of great importance not to remain alone. One must have helpers, to master the chaos together with them. This does not mean, however, that one should watch events idly; one must lend a hand, actively encouraging and guiding all the while.
Image
Clouds and thunder: the image of difficulty at the beginning.
Thus the noble one works to untangle and to order.
Clouds and thunder are depicted by specific line ornaments, meaning that order is already laid out within the chaos of difficulty at the beginning. So the noble one must, in such beginning-times, articulate and order the unsurveyable abundance as one untangles silk threads from a tangle and binds them into skeins. To find oneself in the infinite, one must distinguish and connect.
Commentary
The name of the hexagram, Chun, actually depicts a blade of grass that meets an obstacle as it sprouts up out of the earth. From this arises the meaning of difficulty at the beginning. The hexagram indicates how heaven and earth bring forth individual beings. Their first encounter is bound up with difficulties. The lower hexagram, Chen, is the Arousing; its motion goes upward; its image is thunder. The upper hexagram, K'an, is the Abysmal, the dangerous; its motion goes downward; its image is rain. The situation therefore suggests a dense, chaotic abundance. Thunder and rain fill the air. But the chaos is clearing. The motion directed upward, while the abysmal sinks down, eventually moves out of danger. In the thunderstorm the pent-up forces discharge, and everything breathes a sigh of relief.
Changing Lines
Line 1: When advancement is difficult, stick to correct paths, and a good coach.
The effective ruler sets up a good foundation, and nurtures primal energy. When people avoid extremes, staying the course by humbling themselves to balance, they are praised for following their noble character.
Commentary
If one meets with hindrance at the beginning of an undertaking, one must not try to force progress, but must cautiously pause. At the same time, one must not allow oneself to be thrown off course; one must keep one's goal in view continuously and with perseverance. It is important to seek the right assistants. One finds them only by dealing modestly with people and not putting oneself above them. Only thus do people rally to one, with whose help the difficulties can be tackled.
Line 2: Overburdened and mastered by the struggle, one is obliged to return.
Circumstances reject advancement and union, but by upholding virtue, the course will reset itself in time. Be adaptable, refine yourself, and wait. Seeking immediate solutions is unleashing newborn yang energy, to injury.
Commentary
One finds oneself in difficulty and hindrance. Then suddenly a turn appears, as if someone were approaching with wagon and horses and unhitching them. The event comes so unexpectedly that one suspects the one arriving is a robber. Gradually it becomes apparent that he has no evil intentions, but seeks friendly connection and offers relief. One does not accept the offer, however, since it does not come from the right quarter; one waits instead until the time is fulfilled. Ten years are a closed span, a completed time. Then the normal conditions return of themselves, and one can unite with the friend who is destined for one.
Under the image of a bride who remains faithful to her beloved through severe conflicts, advice is given for a particular life situation: if, in times of difficulty when one meets with hindrance, unexpected relief is offered from a quarter with which one has no connection, one should be cautious and not take on obligations, as would follow from such help, for otherwise one would be impaired in freedom of decision. If one waits out the time, the calm conditions will return, and one will attain what one hoped for.
Line 3: Follow the deer without a ranger, and find yourself in the midst of the thick forest.
Becoming lost is an extreme situation—a wiser person knows the hidden risks of dangerous pursuit, withdrawing from the chase before disaster. Do not be arbitrary. Do not rush.
Commentary
If one has no guide and wants to hunt in an unknown forest, one gets lost. One must not try to extricate oneself thoughtlessly and without guidance from the difficulties one is in. Fate cannot be deceived. Hasty striving without the necessary guidance leads to failure and disgrace. Therefore the noble one, who recognizes the seeds of what is coming, would rather renounce a wish than, by trying to force it, incur failure and humiliation.
Line 4: The chariot is turned back, almost to retreat, but the aim is still true.
Having nurtured flexibility, and properly orienting oneself, neither the Dao, nor the yang energy, is lost. Stay true at the threshold, by seeking solutions appropriate to the time.
Commentary
One is in a situation where one has the duty to act, but one's strength is not enough. Yet an opportunity offers itself to find a connection. Here one must seize it. One must not let oneself be held back by false pride or false reserve. It is a sign of inner clarity when one can bring oneself to take the first step, even when a certain self-denial is bound up with it. In a difficult situation it is no disgrace to accept help. If one finds the right assistant, all goes well.
Line 5: Advancement may become expensive.
Stay firm and correct, and there can some good fortune, even if things go awry. Forestall great matters, for danger is still imminent. Wait for the proper time to escape the struggle. Nonstriving will be beneficial.
Commentary
One finds oneself in a situation where one has no way to give expression to one's good intentions such that they really come into view and are understood. Others push themselves in between and distort everything one does. Here one must be cautious and proceed gradually. One must not try to force through anything grand; for such a thing succeeds only when one already enjoys general trust. Only quietly, through faithful and conscientious work, can one gradually bring it about that conditions clear up and the hindrance falls.
Line 6: The storm defeats you, and your horses weep tears of blood.
Continuing in this state is great suffering. Weak and helpless, without a whip, turned back by difficulty, it is most necessary to come to understand the medicine of the time. Do not experience struggle where there is none.
Commentary
There are people for whom the difficulties at the beginning become too heavy. They get stuck and can no longer find their way through. They let their hands drop and give up the struggle. Such a surrender is among the saddest of things. Therefore Confucius remarks on this: "Bloody tears pour forth: one must not do this indefinitely."