Ming Yi · Darkening of the Light

Judgment

利艰贞。

It is favourable to persevere through hardship.

The Chinese above is the received classical text. The English below it is a plain-language rendering written for this site — not a scholarly translation. The classical wording is terse and genuinely open to more than one reading, so where interpretations diverge we follow the mainstream one.

The Image (Da Xiang)

明入地中，明夷，君子以莅众，用晦而明。

光明隐入地中，这是明夷卦，光明受损、时局晦暗的卦象，君子面对群众应当韬光养晦，内心反而更加清明。

The Six Lines

• First line明夷于飞，垂其翼；君子于行，三日不食；有攸往，主人有言。初九 — classical Chinese line text. Translations vary substantially between traditions; consult a scholarly edition for depth.
• Second line明夷，夷于左股，用拯马壮，吉。六二 — classical Chinese line text. Translations vary substantially between traditions; consult a scholarly edition for depth.
• Third line明夷于南狩，得其大首，不可疾贞。九三 — classical Chinese line text. Translations vary substantially between traditions; consult a scholarly edition for depth.
• Fourth line入于左腹，获明夷之心，出于门庭。六四 — classical Chinese line text. Translations vary substantially between traditions; consult a scholarly edition for depth.
• Fifth line箕子之明夷，利贞。六五 — classical Chinese line text. Translations vary substantially between traditions; consult a scholarly edition for depth.
• Top line不明，晦；初登于天，后入于地。上六 — classical Chinese line text. Translations vary substantially between traditions; consult a scholarly edition for depth.

Modern Interpretive Reference

Quality: Very Inauspicious

Tendency: Light obscured; a period where clarity is suppressed.

Guidance: Keep your inner clarity while dimming your outward profile. Endure with integrity.

This section is editorial reflection written for this site, not classical commentary. Hexagram qualities are not fixed outcomes — context and response matter more than the label. For cultural reflection only; not a basis for any decision.