Hexagram 26 · ䷙

Great Taming

大畜 · Dà Xù

Upper Mountain 艮Lower Heaven 乾

The Judgment · 卦辭

利貞，不家食吉，利涉大川。

Under the conditions of Tâ Khû it will be advantageous to be firm and correct. (If its subject do not seek to) enjoy his revenues in his own family (without taking service at court), there will be good fortune. It will be advantageous for him to cross the great stream.

The Image · 大象

天在山中，大畜；君子以多識前言往行，以畜其德。

(The trigram representing) a mountain, and in the midst of it that (representing) heaven, form Tâ Khû. The superior man, in accordance with this, stores largely in his memory the words and deeds of former men, to subserve the accumulation of his virtue.

Plain-English Meaning

Great taming. Gather and hold your strength; learn, prepare, then act on something significant.

The Judgment

Holding strength in check brings good fortune; it favours crossing great waters.

The Image

Like heaven held within the mountain, learn from the words and deeds of the past to build character.

Editorial summary written for this site; not a translation.

The Lines · 爻辭

初九 · Line 1
有厲利已。
The first NINE, undivided, shows its subject in a position of peril. It will be advantageous for him to stop his advance.
象曰：有厲利已，不犯災也。
九二 · Line 2
輿說輹。
The second NINE, undivided, shows a carriage with the strap under it removed.
象曰：輿說輹，中无尤也。
九三 · Line 3
良馬逐，利艱貞，吉。日閑輿衛，利有攸往。
The third NINE, undivided, shows its subject urging his way with good horses. It will be advantageous for him to realise the difficulty (of his course), and to be firm and correct, exercising himself daily in his charioteering and methods of defence; then there will be advantage in whatever direction he may advance.
象曰：利有攸往，上合志也。
六四 · Line 4
童牛之告，元吉。
The fourth six, divided, shows the young bull, (and yet) having the piece of wood over his horns. There will be great good fortune.
象曰：六四元吉，有喜也。
六五 · Line 5
豶豕之牙，吉。
The fifth six, divided, shows the teeth of a castrated hog. There will be good fortune.
象曰：六五之吉，有慶也。
上九 · Line 6
何天之衢，亨。
The sixth NINE, undivided, shows its subject (as) in command of the firmament of heaven. There will be progress.
象曰：何天之衢，道大行也。

English: James Legge (1882), public domain · Text · Image (Appendix II), sacred-texts.com.

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