Hard Beginnings
zhūn · Water over ThunderBuild your support first, and move once the ground is firm.
元亨，利貞。勿用有攸往，利建侯。
A seed is pushing up through hard ground. The start is difficult, yet the promise is great. Stay true, resist rushing off anywhere, and put helpers and structure in place before you go further.
The six lines
初九：磐桓，利居貞，利建侯。
You circle and hesitate, like a boulder hard to shift. Stay where you are, keep your footing, and gather people you can rely on.
六二：屯如邅如，乘馬班如，匪寇婚媾，女子貞不字，十年乃字。
Stuck, turning back, horses milling. The riders are suitors, not raiders. She will not commit, and ten years pass before she accepts. Some things take long.
六三：即鹿无虞，惟入于林中，君子幾不如舍，往吝。
You chase a deer with no guide, and it leads you deep into the forest. Wisdom sees this and lets go. Pressing on brings regret.
六四：乘馬班如，求婚媾，往，吉无不利。
The horses still mill about, but now you go to seek the match. Reaching out for the partner you need looks good from every side.
九五：屯其膏；小貞吉，大貞凶。
What should nourish others is stuck and cannot flow far. Small, quiet steps can work, but forcing something large now is dangerous.
上六：乘馬班如，泣血漣如。
The horses mill about and you weep tears of blood. The hard start has reached its bitterest point. Ask how long you can stay here.
The I Ching is a tool for reflection. Do not use it as the basis for medical, legal or money decisions.