Sung — Conflict

Sung

Sung — Conflict

(28)

The Judgement

CONFLICT. You are sincere
And are being obstructed.
A cautious halt halfway brings good fortune.
Going through to the end brings misfortune.
It furthers one to see the great man.
It does not further one to cross the great water.

The Image

Heaven and water go their opposite ways:
The image of CONFLICT.
Thus in all his transactions the superior man
Carefully considers the beginning.

The Lines

Six at the beginning means:

If one does not perpetuate the affair,
There is a little gossip.
In the end, good fortune comes.

Six in the second place means:

One cannot engage in conflict;
One returns home, gives way.
The people of his town,
Three hundred households,
Remain free of guilt.

Six in the third place means:

To nourish yourself on ancient virtue induces perseverance.
Danger. In the end, good fortune comes.
If by chance you are in the service of a king,
Seek not works.

Six in the fourth place means:

One cannot engage in conflict.
One turns back and submits to fate,
Changes one's attitude,
And finds peace in perseverance.
Good fortune.

Six in the fifth place means:

To contend before him
Brings supreme good fortune.

Six at the top means:

Even if by chance a leather belt is bestowed on one,
By the end of a morning
It will have been snatched away three times.

(Note: the numbers in parentheses below the title of each hexagram refer to the page in the Wilhelm/Baynes 1968 Third Edition of I Ching or book of changes where additional commentary on the individual hexagram can be found.)