Skip to content
A weary traveler sits on an uncomfortable tree stump at the mouth of a shadowed, narrow valley.
In a dark valley · Hold your purposeScene imagery · YiPhase original learning visual
Hexagram 47 · 澤水困
困KÙN

Oppression

兌 · Lake · 坎 · Water

困是受阻、力竭，却并非宣告人生失败。《彖传》说刚为柔掩，在险中仍能守其所；《大象》以泽无水提醒人在匮乏时不改志向。六爻把困的不同面貌摆出来：孤隐、丰盛反成牵累、求援无门、迟疑受阻、威刑失人心，最后从缠绕不安中知悔而行。其“亨”来自守正与调整，不来自空言。

Oppression names a period of depletion and obstruction, not a verdict on a person's worth. The lake has no water; words alone will not win trust. The six lines move through isolation, burdensome abundance, an impossible refuge, delayed help, harsh authority that must change, and a final chance to loosen what binds and move wisely.

Original Chinese, independent English explanations and modern examples. Check the sources.保留经典原文，英文独立释读，生活例子单独说明。查看依据。

LESSON 47 · EVERYDAY I CHING

When effort meets a wall

第 47 课 · 生活里的卦意

A short bilingual narration with moving views of all six line images.

跟着双语讲解与逐爻画面，理解这一卦的生活处境。

▶ Play Lessons▶ 播放课程
YiPhase · Today

In everyday life这一卦在生活中

A modern scene to help you recognize the situation. This is YiPhase's own example, separate from the classical text below.

用当代处境帮助理解卦意。以下为 YiPhase 独立编写的例子，与后面的经典原文分开。

A situation you may recognize一个可能熟悉的处境

When you're stuck and worn out, talking your way out often backfires. This hexagram describes a season where resources are low, credibility is strained, and the way forward isn't clear. The six lines show different faces of that bind: hiding in a dark valley, being trapped by too much, hitting a wall at home, waiting for slow help, ruling by pressure, and finally untangling yourself. Progress comes not from spin but from steady action and a change of course.

当你被困住、精疲力竭时，急于辩解往往适得其反。困卦描述的是资源匮乏、信誉受损、前路不明的阶段。六爻展现了这种困境的不同面貌：躲入幽谷、被过多所困、在家中碰壁、等待迟缓的援助、用威压维持局面，最后解开缠绕。出路不在空言，而在守正的行动与调整方向。

ASK YOURSELF想一想

Where in your life are you stuck and tempted to explain your way out? What would a small, honest action change?

在你生活的哪个方面，你感到停滞却想用解释来脱身？一个诚实的小行动会带来什么改变？

The Judgment

The Judgment卦辞

The original Chinese remains visible as the cultural source. The English translation and reading explain it without replacing it.

先保留经典中文，再提供英文直译与现代中文解释。英文用于理解，不替代原文。

《周易》经文 · Original Chinese
困：亨，貞大人吉，无咎，有言不信。

Oppression: passage. Steadfastness brings good fortune to a great person, without blame. Words are not believed.

Beginner’s reading

When credibility is strained, more speech may help less than steady conduct. The promise of passage is conditional: integrity and sound judgment can survive a hard season.

现代中文解说

困时言语不易取信，越急于辩解越可能加深穷境。古文所说的“亨”不是马上脱困的保证，而是在艰难中守正、用行动恢复可信度。

Classical Commentary

Tuan Commentary & The Image彖传与大象

These classical commentaries are shown separately from the Zhouyi core text, so their textual role stays clear.

以下属于解释《周易》的经典传文，页面与卦辞分层展示，方便初学者看清文本来源。

彖曰 · Tuan Commentary
彖曰：困，剛掩也。險以說，困而不失其所，亨；其唯君子乎？貞大人吉，以剛中也。有言不信，尚口乃窮也。

《彖传》指出刚健被掩，险中仍能持守其所。九二和九五虽受困，却有中德可用；“尚口乃穷”提醒人别把所有希望押在巧言上。

Strength is covered over, yet a centered person need not surrender their bearings. The Tuan's warning about speech points toward trust rebuilt through character and action.

象曰 · The Image
象曰：澤无水，困；君子以致命遂志。

The lake has no water: Oppression. A cultivated person gives their life to fulfill a purpose.

泽无水，是资源耗竭的鲜明图像。“致命遂志”属于古代极重的伦理语境，今天不应读成鼓励自伤；可读为在压力下认清所守的原则，同时求助、调整方法。

A dry lake makes scarcity visible. The ancient phrase about giving one's life belongs to an austere moral world; today it can prompt reflection on purpose and principled endurance, alongside seeking help and changing an unworkable course.

Six Changing Stages

Six Lines: Position and Change六爻：位置与变化

A stump offers no rest. Plenty can be a constraint, too. Stone, thorns and an empty home deepen the third line. A heavy carriage delays reunion. Rank and punishment isolate the fifth. At the end, a traveler can recognize the tangled footing and choose a sounder step.

初六困坐株木、遁入幽谷；九二困于酒食，朱绂来而不可妄征；六三上阻于石、下据蒺藜，回家又不见妻；九四被金车隔阻，缓来终有相与；九五受刑与赤绂之困，徐徐转向祭祀；上六在葛藟与臲卼中知悔，行动得吉。

初六
A lone traveler sits on a hard stump before a dark valley path, bent with weariness.
初六 · Line 1 · 入于幽谷

臀困于株木，入于幽谷，三歲不覿。

The buttocks are distressed on a tree stump; one enters a dark valley and is not seen for three years.

坐在硬树桩上不得安，往前又是幽谷。三岁表示漫长不见，不必硬作准确年限；困局里先承认环境昏暗，寻找能照亮路的人与时机。

The stump gives no rest and the valley hides the way ahead. 'Three years' conveys prolonged obscurity, not a timer. Begin by recognizing how little can be seen from here.

Acknowledge the darkness
Picture this in daily life生活中的这一爻

After a job loss, a man isolates himself in his apartment, sitting on a hard chair by the window, unable to see any path forward. Months pass without a single interview. He keeps replaying old mistakes, but the view is foggy.

失业后，他把自己关在公寓里，坐在窗边的硬椅上，看不到前方的路。几个月过去，连一次面试都没有。他反复回想过去的错误，眼前却一片迷雾。

Ask yourself: What small light could you ask for when everything feels hidden?

想一想：当一切都被遮蔽时，你可以寻求哪一点微光？

九二
A troubled man sits before too much wine and food while a messenger wearing a red ceremonial sash approaches.
九二 · Line 2 · 征凶无咎

困于酒食，朱紱方來，利用亨祀，征凶，无咎。

Constrained by wine and food, a red ceremonial sash is coming. It is beneficial to make an offering. Going forth is ill-omened; no blame.

困不总是贫乏，也可能是供给和关系太多而难以行动。朱绂是礼服标识；来者可相应，宜以诚相待，别在此时贸然扩张。“亨祀”古本亦作“享祀”。

Even abundance can bind. The arriving red sash suggests recognition or a summons, but it is no cue to rush outward. A sincere rite and patient attention suit this moment better than another push.

Do not force the next move
Picture this in daily life生活中的这一爻

A woman's small bakery becomes so popular that she's buried in orders and social invitations. An important community leader offers a partnership, but she feels stretched thin. She decides to decline expansion for now and focus on quality.

一位女士的小面包店生意兴隆，订单和社交邀请让她应接不暇。社区里一位重要人物提出合作，但她感到力不从心。她决定暂不扩张，专注做好现有的品质。

Ask yourself: Where might having too much be blocking your next step?

想一想：拥有太多，可能在哪里阻碍了你的下一步？

六三
A man sits among thorny plants beside a massive blocking boulder; behind him his home's open doorway reveals an empty room.
六三 · Line 3 · 困于石

困于石，據于蒺藜，入于其宮，不見其妻，凶。

Blocked by stone, seated on thorns; entering one's home, one does not see one's wife. Ill fortune.

上有坚石不可进，下有蒺藜不可安，回家又无人相应。图中三重落空同框，说明仅靠强闯或退回旧处都不能解决问题；应先停下识别阻力与失去的支持。

The boulder stops advance, thorns make rest painful, and the empty doorway offers no welcome. Three failures of support converge; this is a moment to reassess rather than press harder.

See where support fails
Picture this in daily life生活中的这一爻

A father tries to mediate between his feuding siblings. His older brother blocks every suggestion like a stone wall; his younger sister's sharp words prick like thorns. He returns home to an empty kitchen—his wife is away caring for her mother. Nothing works.

一位父亲试图调解反目的兄妹。哥哥像一堵石墙，挡回所有建议；妹妹的话语像蒺藜，句句扎人。他回到家，厨房空无一人——妻子去照顾她母亲了。一切努力都落空。

Ask yourself: When every direction is blocked, how do you know it's time to stop pushing?

想一想：当每个方向都被堵死，你如何知道该停止硬闯？

九四
A traveler approaches a waiting person slowly while a heavy bronze-fitted carriage blocks the narrow road between them.
九四 · Line 4 · 吝，有終

來徐徐，困于金車，吝，有終。

Coming slowly, hindered by a metal carriage: embarrassment, yet there is an end.

九四想向下接应，却受刚重的金车所隔。迟缓有吝，但并非无望；守谦、认清阻碍，终能找到相与的路。画面保留远处等待之人，让“来”的方向明确。

Help comes slowly because something weighty blocks the road. Delay is awkward, yet patient resolve and a workable route can still bring the meeting to completion.

Slow help can arrive
Picture this in daily life生活中的这一爻

A rural clinic waits for a shipment of basic supplies. The truck is delayed because a heavy, expensive new road-grading machine is stuck on the only bridge. The nurse is embarrassed by the slow progress, but she keeps calling and finds an alternate route. Help arrives at last.

乡村诊所等待一批基本物资。卡车迟迟不来，因为一辆昂贵沉重的修路机卡在唯一的桥上。护士为进展缓慢感到难堪，但她不停联系，终于找到另一条路。援助最终到达。

Ask yourself: How can you stay patient when help seems stuck behind a heavy obstacle?

想一想：当援助被沉重障碍挡住时，你如何保持耐心？

九五
A dignitary faces empty punishment stocks and officials in red ritual sashes; at a modest altar a staff is lowered as coercion gives way to restraint.
九五 · Line 5 · 乃徐有說

劓刖，困于赤紱，乃徐有說，利用祭祀。

Nose-cutting and foot-cutting; constrained by red ceremonial sashes. Then there is gradual release; it is beneficial to perform an offering.

劓、刖是古代酷刑，画面用空刑具提示伤害，不描绘施刑。《正义》把此爻读作当权者因刚暴而失人心，后来慢慢回到中直。赤绂代表礼服与权位；能改威压为敬慎，困才渐解。

The ancient line names brutal punishments; the image uses empty stocks, not an act of harm. Classical commentary reads a ruler trapped by coercive authority who gradually returns to upright conduct. Rank cannot compel trust.

Change course before power hardens
Picture this in daily life生活中的这一爻

A team leader uses harsh punishments and public shaming to meet targets. At first people obey, but soon they stop sharing ideas. When a senior manager in a red tie asks why morale is low, the leader gradually realizes the cost. She eases the pressure and starts listening.

一位团队领导用严厉惩罚和公开羞辱来达到目标。起初人们服从，但很快不再分享想法。当一位系红领带的高层问起士气为何低落，她渐渐意识到代价。她放松高压，开始倾听。

Ask yourself: If you lead by pressure, what would a small act of respect change?

想一想：如果你靠施压来领导，一个小小的尊重举动会带来什么改变？

上六
On an unstable rocky ledge, a traveler frees a leg from tangled vines and turns toward a safer path.
上六 · Line 6 · 有悔征吉

困于葛藟，于臲卼，曰動悔。有悔，征吉。

Bound by climbing vines and unstable footing; one says, moving brings regret. With regret acknowledged, going forth is auspicious.

藤蔓缠足，脚下不稳，先怕动就后悔。到了困的尽头，真正的转机是知道旧做法不对并改变它；图中松开藤蔓的动作比一味冲上去更关键。

Vines and uncertain footing make every movement risky. Regret becomes useful when it helps the traveler untangle the bind and choose a better direction; staying frozen is not the only option.

Untangle, then move
Picture this in daily life生活中的这一爻

A woodworker has used the same faulty technique for years. His projects wobble like a table on uneven ground, and vines of habit trip him. Finally he admits the approach is wrong, untangles his process, and tries a new method. His next piece stands firm.

一位木匠多年来一直使用有缺陷的技法。他的作品像放在不平地面上的桌子，摇摇晃晃，习惯的藤蔓缠住他。他终于承认方法不对，解开流程，尝试新方法。下一件作品稳稳立住了。

Ask yourself: What old habit could you untangle today to move forward?

想一想：今天你可以解开哪个旧习惯，让自己向前走？

Cultural Phrases

Classic Chinese Phrases可延展的中文经典短句

Chinese carries the cultural identity; English makes the meaning accessible. These phrases can later inform cards, objects, and décor.

中文保留文化识别，英文负责解释。这些短句可作为未来卡牌、装饰与文创的文字基础，具体载体仍需单独设计。

困而不失其所

受困时仍守住自己的方向。

Keep your bearings in hardship.

有悔，征吉

知悔并改变，才能走出困境。

Recognize the bind, then take a wiser step.

Questions about this hexagram这一卦的常见问题

What does Hexagram 47, Oppression, describe?第47卦描述什么处境？

Oppression names a period of depletion and obstruction, not a verdict on a person's worth. The lake has no water; words alone will not win trust. The six lines move through isolation, burdensome abundance, an impossible refuge, delayed help, harsh authority that must change, and a final chance to loosen what binds and move wisely.

困是受阻、力竭，却并非宣告人生失败。《彖传》说刚为柔掩，在险中仍能守其所；《大象》以泽无水提醒人在匮乏时不改志向。六爻把困的不同面貌摆出来：孤隐、丰盛反成牵累、求援无门、迟疑受阻、威刑失人心，最后从缠绕不安中知悔而行。其“亨”来自守正与调整，不来自空言。

How should I read its six lines?应该怎样阅读这六爻？

Read from the bottom line upward. Each position describes a different stage or condition. The highlighted line-position diagrams on this study page locate the line being explained; they are not a personal cast or a prediction.

从下往上读，结合不同位置与处境理解。这里的高亮卦画只说明正在讲哪一爻，不是个人起卦或预测结果。