Anonymous (traditionally attributed to King Wen, the Duke of Zhou and Confucius) · Complete work
Hexagram 34 · Dà Zhuàng ䷡
Hexagram 34 · Dà Zhuàng ䷡ of 69. Read it here for reference, or continue through the entire work without leaving the reader.
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大壯：利貞。
初九：壯于趾，征凶，有孚。
九二：貞吉。
九三：小人用壯，君子用罔，貞厲。羝羊觸藩，羸其角。
九四：貞吉悔亡，藩決不羸，壯于大轝之腹。
六五：喪羊于易，无悔。
上六：羝羊觸藩，不能退，不能遂，无攸利，艱則吉。
彖曰：大壯，大者壯也。剛以動，故壯。大壯利貞；大者正也。正大而天地之情可見矣！
象曰：雷在天上，大壯；君子以非禮弗履。
壯于趾，其孚窮也。
九二貞吉，以中也。
小人用壯，君子罔也。
藩決不羸，尚往也。
喪羊于易，位不當也。
不能退，不能遂，不詳也。艱則吉，咎不長也。
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.
Da Zhuang (Great Power): Steadfastness is favorable.
Nine at the beginning: Power in the toes. To march brings misfortune; there is sincerity.
Nine in the second place: Steadfastness brings good fortune.
Nine in the third place: The petty person uses force; the noble person uses none. Steadfastness brings danger. A ram butts the hedge and catches its horns.
Nine in the fourth place: Steadfastness brings good fortune; regret vanishes. The hedge breaks open and does not entangle him; strength rests in the body of a great wagon.
Six in the fifth place: Losing a sheep in an open place. No regret.
Six at the top: A ram butts the hedge; it can neither retreat nor advance. Nothing is favorable. Through hardship, good fortune.
The Judgment Commentary says: Da Zhuang means the great is powerful. Firmness joined to movement makes power. Steadfastness is favorable in Great Power, for the great must be upright. In great uprightness, the nature of heaven and earth becomes visible!
The Image Commentary says: Thunder above heaven: Da Zhuang. Thus the noble person does not tread where ritual propriety forbids.
Power in the toes: its sincerity comes to an end.
Steadfast good fortune for the second nine comes from holding the center.
The petty person uses force; the noble person does not.
The hedge breaks open without entanglement: one may continue forward.
Losing a sheep in an open place: the position is not fitting.
Unable to retreat or advance: this is ill considered. Through hardship comes good fortune, since the blame does not endure.
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.
Da Zhuang (Great Strength): Staying steady is favorable.
Nine at the beginning: Strength in the toes. Going forward brings misfortune. This is certain.
Nine in the second place: Staying steady brings good fortune.
Nine in the third place: The petty person uses strength; the noble person does not. Staying steady is dangerous. A ram butts against a fence and gets its horns stuck.
Nine in the fourth place: Staying steady brings good fortune and regret disappears. The fence breaks open and the horns are not stuck. There is strength in the body of a large cart.
Six in the fifth place: Lose a sheep in the open field. No regret.
Six at the top: A ram butts against a fence. It cannot retreat or move forward. Nothing is favorable. If you face the difficulty, there is good fortune.
The Judgment Commentary says: Da Zhuang means that what is great is strong. The firm moves, and so it is strong. Staying steady is favorable in Da Zhuang because what is great is upright. When greatness is upright, the nature of heaven and earth can be seen.
The Image Commentary says: Thunder is above heaven: this is Da Zhuang. The noble person therefore does not take any step that breaks proper conduct.
Strength in the toes means his confidence has reached its limit.
Staying steady brings the nine in the second place good fortune because it is centered.
The petty person uses strength, but the noble person does not.
The fence breaks open and the horns are not stuck, so one can keep going.
The sheep is lost in the open field because the position is improper.
Unable to retreat or advance, he does not understand the situation. Facing the difficulty brings good fortune because the blame will not last.