Anonymous (traditionally attributed to King Wen, the Duke of Zhou and Confucius) · Complete work
Hexagram 17 · Suí ䷐
Hexagram 17 · Suí ䷐ of 69. Read it here for reference, or continue through the entire work without leaving the reader.
Open the complete readerOriginal Classical Chinese
隨：元亨。利貞。无咎。
初九：官有渝，貞吉。出門交有功。
六二：係小子，失丈夫。
六三：係丈夫，失小子。隨，有求得利，居貞。
九四：隨有獲，貞凶。有孚在道，以明，何咎。
九五：孚于嘉，吉。
上六：拘係之，乃從維之。王用亨于西山。
彖曰：隨，剛來而下柔，動而說，隨。大亨貞，无咎，而天下隨時，隨時之義大矣哉！
象曰：澤中有雷，隨；君子以嚮晦入宴息。
官有渝，從正吉也。出門交有功，不失也。
系小子，弗兼與也。
系丈夫，志舍下也。
隨有獲，其義凶也。有孚在道，明功也。
孚于嘉，吉；位正中也。
拘系之，上窮也。
Musean translation
Mouseia’s complete machine-assisted Musean translation, made directly from the classical Chinese, passage for passage, covering all 64 hexagrams with their judgments, line statements and attached commentaries, and the remaining Wings (the Great Commentary, the Discussion of the Trigrams, the Sequence and the Contrasts of the Hexagrams), 1,204 passages in all.
Sui (Following): Supreme success. Steadfastness is favorable. No blame.
Nine at the beginning: Office changes. Steadfastness brings good fortune. Go out the gate and form connections; there is achievement.
Six in the second place: Bound to the boy, one loses the grown man.
Six in the third place: Bound to the grown man, one loses the boy. By following, one obtains what one seeks. It is favorable to remain steadfast.
Nine in the fourth place: Following brings a gain, yet steadfastness brings misfortune. With sincerity upon the way and clarity, what blame could there be?
Nine in the fifth place: Trust in what is excellent. Good fortune.
Six at the top: Bind him fast, then hold him with a cord. The king offers sacrifice on the western mountain.
The Judgment Commentary says: In Sui, the firm comes beneath the yielding; movement joined with joy is Following. Great success, steadfastness, no blame: all under heaven follow the time. Great indeed is the meaning of following the time!
The Image Commentary says: Thunder within the lake: Sui. Thus the noble person enters into rest as darkness falls.
Office changes: following what is right brings good fortune. Going out the gate and making connections brings achievement: nothing is lost.
Bound to the boy: one cannot keep both.
Bound to the grown man: the will relinquishes what is below.
Following brings a gain, but by right it brings misfortune. Sincerity upon the way illuminates achievement.
Trust in what is excellent brings good fortune: the place is upright and central.
Binding him fast: what is above has reached its limit.
Plain English translation
Mouseia’s complete Plain English edition, made independently and directly from the classical Chinese, covering all 64 hexagrams with their judgments, line statements and attached commentaries, and the remaining Wings (the Great Commentary, the Discussion of the Trigrams, the Sequence and the Contrasts of the Hexagrams), 1,204 passages in all.
Sui (Following): Supreme success. Staying steady is favorable. No blame.
Nine at the beginning: An official's duties change. Staying steady brings good fortune. Go out the gate and make connections; this brings results.
Six in the second place: Cling to the boy and lose the grown man.
Six in the third place: Cling to the grown man and lose the boy. By following, you gain what you seek. It is favorable to remain steady.
Nine in the fourth place: Following brings a gain, but staying steady brings misfortune. If you have sincerity on the right path and act with clear understanding, how could there be blame?
Nine in the fifth place: Trust what is good. Good fortune.
Six at the top: Hold him fast, tie him up, then bind him again. The king makes an offering on the western mountain.
The Judgment Commentary says: In Sui, the firm line comes down below the yielding line. It moves and is joyful: this is following. There is great success in staying steady, with no blame. The whole world follows the times. How important it is to follow the times!
The Image Commentary says: Thunder is within the lake: this is Sui. When darkness approaches, the noble person goes inside to rest.
When an official's duties change, following what is right brings good fortune. Going out the gate to make connections brings results without losing one's way.
Clinging to the boy means one cannot also be with the grown man.
Clinging to the grown man means one's aim has left those below.
Following for gain is wrong and brings misfortune. Sincerity on the right path makes one's achievements clear.
Trusting what is good brings good fortune because the position is proper and central.
Binding him means the line at the top has reached its limit.