Hexagram 39, Jiǎn (Obstruction): Line 2
蹇卦六二 · 水山蹇 · 中文版
六二:王臣蹇蹇,匪躬之故。
The line (Legge)
The second SIX, divided, shows the minister of the king struggling with difficulty on difficulty, and not with a view to his own advantage.
Small Image commentary
'The minister of the king struggles with difficulty on difficulty:' - in the end no blame will be attached to him.
象曰:王臣蹇蹇,终无尤也。
In plain words
The king's servant meets obstruction upon obstruction, not for his own sake. The second line is central and correct and corresponds to the fifth; it shares the ruler's burden and labours through hardship. The Small Image says in the end there is no fault.
Applying it to your situation
If you are working hard for others or for something larger, this line suggests the effort is worth it. For whom, and for what, are you working?
Position
A broken (yin) line in the second place, which is a yin (even) place, so it is in its proper place. It holds the centre of the lower trigram. Its partner is line 5; one is yin and the other yang, so they respond to each other.
If this line moves
With this line moving alone, Jiǎn changes into Hexagram 48 Jǐng (The Well). The Jiaoshi Yilin verse for this change (Chinese): 焦氏易林·蹇之井.
A recorded case from Takashima
Jian to Jing: a son's business debts: Takashima called on a Tokyo gentleman who was running about trying to deal with his son's large business debts. The gentleman cast himself and drew the second line of Jian, "the king's servant struggles on and on, not for his own sake". Takashima read the neighbouring lines as a plan for the debts: gather the creditors, negotiate reductions, bring in an outside elder to mediate, and for now step back and wait.
The hexagram
Hexagram 39 Jiǎn (Obstruction). The Judgment: In (the state indicated by) Jian advantage will be found in the south-west, and the contrary in the north-east. It will be advantageous (also) to meet with the great man. (In these circumstances), with firmness and correctness, there will be good fortune.
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English text: James Legge, The Yi King (Sacred Books of the East, vol. 16, 1882), public domain, as transcribed by the Chinese Text Project. Chinese: the received text. Offered for study and reflection, not as prediction. Plain-English readings and position notes by this site.