大壯
Dà Zhuàng — Great Power
upper trigram
震Thunder (Movement)lower trigram
乾Heaven (Strong)The Judgment
利貞。
Character-by-character gloss
Modern Interpretation
Persistence furthers. Inner strength rises with great force and comes to power. But it has already passed the point of balance. Danger: relying entirely on your own power, forgetting to ask what's right. The truly great power doesn't degenerate into mere force—it stays united with principles of justice. Greatness and justice are inseparable.
The Image
雷在天上，大壯。君子以非禮弗履。
Character-by-character gloss
Modern Interpretation
Thunder in heaven above—electrical energy mounting upward in harmony with heaven's direction. The person of character doesn't walk paths that contradict established order. Great power must stay aligned with what's right.
「雷在天上，大壯。君子以非禮弗履。」雷聲往上衝，跟天的方向一致。力量大的時候，更要守規矩——這話聽起來保守，但想想那些不守規矩的強者，下場往往不好。
The Six Lines
First (Bottom) Line
初九 壯于趾。征凶有孚。
Modern Interpretation
Power in the toes—ready to advance by force from a lowly position. This leads to misfortune if continued. Warning: the impulse to push from below through raw strength ends badly.
Second Line
九二 貞吉。
Modern Interpretation
Persistence brings good fortune. The gates open, resistance gives way. This is exactly where exuberant self-confidence becomes dangerous. Inner equilibrium, not excessive force, brings good fortune now.
Third Line
九三 小人用壯。君子用罔。貞厲。羝羊觸藩。羸其角。
Modern Interpretation
The inferior person works through power display. The superior person does not. A goat butting a hedge entangles its horns. Reveling in power leads to entanglement. Renounce the empty display of force in time.
Fourth Line
九四 貞吉。悔亡。藩決不羸。壯于大輿之輹。
Modern Interpretation
Persistence brings good fortune. Remorse disappears. The hedge opens without struggle. Quiet, persevering work at removing resistances succeeds. Power that doesn't show externally can move heavy loads—like the axle of a great cart.
Fifth Line
六五 喪羊于易。无悔。
Modern Interpretation
Loses the goat easily. No remorse. Resistance has vanished. The belligerent, stubborn approach can now be dropped without regret. The situation no longer requires hardness.
Sixth (Top) Line
上六 羝羊觸藩。不能退。不能遂。无攸利。艱則吉。
Modern Interpretation
The goat butts the hedge. Cannot go forward, cannot go back. Nothing furthers. Recognize the difficulty—only then does good fortune come. Pushed too far, stuck in a deadlock. Compose yourself and decide not to continue. Everything will right itself.
Yilin Verse
From the Forest of Changes (焦氏易林) — 大壯 Dà Zhuàng (Great Power)
左有噬熊，右有囓虎，前觸銕矛，後躓強弩，無可抵者。
On the left, a biting bear; on the right, a gnawing tiger. Ahead, the iron spear's point; behind, the strong crossbow's string. None can withstand it.
Full explanation
Thunder doubles upon thunder above heaven — Great Power remains Great Power, the hexagram transforming into itself. The verse paints a warrior surrounded on all sides: a biting bear to the left, a gnawing tiger to the right, iron spears ahead, strong crossbows behind. There is no safe direction, no angle of escape, no one who can resist such concentrated force. This is power at its absolute zenith, hemmed in by its own magnitude. From Dazhuang to Dazhuang, the image mirrors itself: when power faces equally matched power from every quarter, even the mightiest stands paralyzed. The verse reads not as triumph but as warning — total strength without maneuver room becomes total entrapment.
Masterpiece
A work of art reflecting this hexagram's essence
Lion Hunt
Peter Paul Rubens, 1621
Rubens' 1621 masterpiece depicts a violent confrontation between mounted hunters and lions in chaotic combat. Bodies of men, horses, and beasts intertwine in a whirlwind of raw power unleashed—the great power of heaven in furious action.
Wilhelm Commentary
Richard Wilhelm's classic translation and interpretation
The Judgment
The hexagram points to a time when inner worth mounts with great force and comes to power. But its strength has already passed beyond the median line, hence there is danger that one may rely entirely on one's own power and forget to ask what is right. There is danger too that, being intent on movement, we may not wait for the right time. Therefore the added statement that perseverance furthers. For that is truly great power which does not degenerate into mere force but remains inwardly united with the fundamental principles of right and of justice. When we understand this point–namely, that greatness and justice must be indissolubly united–we understand the true meaning of all that happens in heaven and on earth.
The Image
Thunder–electrical energy–mounts upward in the spring. The direction of this movement is in harmony with that of the movement of heaven. It is therefore a movement in accord with heaven, producing great power. However, true greatness depends on being in harmony with what is right. Therefore in times of great power the superior man avoids doing anything that is not in harmony with the established order.
First (Bottom) Line
The toes are in the lowest place and are ready to advance. So likewise great power in lowly station is inclined to effect advance by force. This, if carried further, would certainly lead to misfortune, and therefore by way of advice a warning is added.
Second Line
The premise here is that the gates to success are beginning to open. Resistance gives way and we forge ahead. This is the point at which, only too easily, we become the prey of exuberant self-confidence. This is why the oracle says that perseverance (i. e. , perseverance in inner equilibrium, without excessive use of power) brings good fortune.
Third Line
Making a boast of power leads to entanglements, just as a goat entangles its horns when it butts against a hedge. Whereas an inferior man revels in power when he comes into possession of it, the superior man never makes this mistake. He is conscious at all times of the danger of pushing ahead regardless of circumstances, and therefore renounces in good time the empty display of force.
Fourth Line
If a man goes on quietly and perseveringly working at the removal of resistances, success comes in the end. The obstructions give way and all occasion for remorse arising from excessive use of power disappears. Such a man's power does not show externally, yet it can move heavy loads, like a big cart whose real strength lies in its axle. The less that power is applied outwardly, the greater its effect.
Fifth Line
The goat is noted for hardness outwardly and weakness within. Now the situation is such that everything is easy; there is no more resistance. One can give up a belligerent, stubborn way of acting and will not have to regret it.
Sixth (Top) Line
If we venture too far we come to a deadlock, unable either to advance or to retreat and whatever we do merely serves to complicate things further. Such obstinacy leads to insuperable difficulties. But if, realizing the situation, we compose ourselves and decide not to continue, everything will right itself in time.