卦辭對整個卦（六條線為一組）的總體判斷。The judgment on the hexagram as a whole.
Judgment
大壯：利貞。
大壯，利於守正。 四陽從下已經升起，力量強盛，但卦辭只說「利貞」不說「亨」，強盛之中唯有守正才能持久，否則過剛易折。
Da Zhuang indicates that (under its conditions) it will be advantageous to be firm and correct.
第 34 卦 · Hexagram 34
大壯
Da Zhuang · Thunder over Heaven
陽盛·力強·春分之卦
上上卦upper trigram☳震 · 雷 / Thunder下下卦lower trigram☰乾 · 天 / Heaven
象Image
先看圖像，再讀文字。Read the image before the words.
大象傳《大象傳》從上下卦的自然圖像推演全卦之象，再提出人事取法。The Great Image derives conduct from the two trigrams' natural images.Great Image
- 全卦成象Whole image
雷在天上，大壯
(The trigram representing) heaven and above it that for thunder form Da Zhuang.
- 人事取法Conduct
君子以非禮弗履。
The superior man, in accordance with this, does not take a step which is not according to propriety.
雷在天上，是大壯之象。君子取法於此，不合禮的事絕不去做。 （雷在天上，力量巨大；君子從中學的是自我約束，力量越強，規矩要越守得住。）
(The trigram representing) heaven and above it that for thunder form Da Zhuang. The superior man, in accordance with this, does not take a step which is not according to propriety.
辭Words
先讀經文，再讀《彖傳》如何解釋卦辭。The received text, then the Tuan commentary on it.
彖傳十翼之一，直接解釋卦名、卦辭及其剛柔結構。Tuan Zhuan — explains the name, the Judgment and the line structure.
Commentary on the Judgment
大壯，大者壯也。剛以動，故壯。「大壯利貞」，大者正也。正大而天地之情可見矣。
大壯，是說大者強盛。剛（乾）以動（震），所以強盛。「大壯利貞」是說大者必須守正；守正而盛大，天地的情性就可以看見。
In Da Zhuang we see that which is great becoming strong. We have the trigram denoting strength directing that which denotes movement, and hence (the whole) is expressive of vigour. 'Da Zhuang indicates that it will be advantageous to be firm and correct':—that which is great (should be) correct. Given correctness and greatness (in their highest degree), and the character of heaven and earth can be seen.
爻Lines
六條線各有一句判斷。閱讀次序初→上；卦象由下而上，看左側的卦。One statement per line, read from the first line to the top. The figure is drawn bottom-up — watch the rail.
初九
趾
末端用力force in the toes
壯于趾，征凶有孚。
強在腳趾，出征凶，雖然有信心。 初九過早表現力量，力在末端而不在中心，凶。
The first NINE, undivided, shows its subject manifesting his vigour in his toes. But advance will lead to evil,—most certainly.
小象十翼之一。對爻辭的古典短註。Xiao Xiang — short classical commentary on this line.
壯于趾，其孚窮也。
壯于趾，信心必然窮盡。
'He manifests his vigour in his toes':—this must lead to exhaustion.
九二
中
中正而靜central, still
貞吉。
守正則吉。 九二得中，力量在該在的位置，不必多言。
The second NINE, undivided, shows that with firm correctness there will be good fortune.
小象十翼之一。對爻辭的古典短註。Xiao Xiang — short classical commentary on this line.
九二貞吉，以中也。
九二守正而吉，是因為居中位。
'The good fortune attached to the second NINE, undivided, and (the lesson of) firm correctness' is owing to its being in the centre, (and indicating) the due mean.
九三
藩
撞籬卡角ram in the fence
小人用壯，君子用罔。貞厲。羝羊觸藩，羸其角。
小人用強，君子用網，不用強。守正仍險。公羊撞籬笆，角被卡住。 九三是過剛之險，小人直接用力而受傷，君子知道用智，不用蠻力。
The third NINE, undivided, shows, in the case of a small man, one using all his strength; and in the case of a superior man, one whose rule is not to do so. Even with firm correctness the position would be perilous. (The exercise of strength in it might be compared to the case of) a ram butting against a fence, and getting his horns entangled.
小象十翼之一。對爻辭的古典短註。Xiao Xiang — short classical commentary on this line.
小人用壯，君子罔也。
小人用強，君子不用。
'A small man uses all his strength; in the case of a superior man it is his rule not to do so.'
九四
輹
車軸般穩wheel-spoke firm
貞吉，悔亡。藩決不羸，壯于大輿之輹。
守正則吉，後悔消失。籬笆已開缺口，不再卡角，力量像大車的車軸，穩而強。 九四已過三爻之險，得以暢通。
The fourth NINE, undivided, shows (a case in which) firm correctness leads to good fortune, and occasion for repentance disappears. (We see) the fence opened without the horns being entangled. The vigour is like that in the wheel-spokes of a large waggon.
小象十翼之一。對爻辭的古典短註。Xiao Xiang — short classical commentary on this line.
藩決不羸，尚往也。
藩開不卡，應當前進。
'The fence is opened without the horns being entangled':—the (subject of the line) still advances.
六五
易
平易失羊lost in ease
喪羊于易，无悔。
在平易之處失去羊，不必後悔。 六五雖居君位卻是陰柔，在平順之中失去力量不必懊悔，因為這本來就不是力量該有的形式。
The fifth SIX, divided, shows one who loses his ram-like vigour in the ease of his position. But there will be no occasion for repentance.
小象十翼之一。對爻辭的古典短註。Xiao Xiang — short classical commentary on this line.
喪羊于易，位不當也。
在平易處失羊，是因為位不當，陰爻居於君位。
'He loses his ram-like vigour in the ease of his position':—he is not in his appropriate place.
上六
觸
進退兩難stuck in the fence
羝羊觸藩，不能退，不能遂。无攸利，艱則吉。
公羊撞籬笆，退不出也進不去。沒有利處，唯有在艱難中才能找到吉。 上六是過剛的困局，進退兩難時纔學會退守。
The topmost SIX, divided, shows (one who may be compared to) the ram butting against the fence, and unable either to retreat, or to advance as he would fain do. There will not be advantage in any respect; but if he realise the difficulty (of his position), there will be good fortune.
小象十翼之一。對爻辭的古典短註。Xiao Xiang — short classical commentary on this line.
不能退，不能遂，不詳也。艱則吉，咎不長也。
進退兩難，是因為不夠謹慎。艱難中知警惕便得吉，過失不會長久。
'He can neither retreat nor advance':—this is owing to his want of caution. 'If he realise the difficulty (of his position), there will be good fortune':—his error will not be prolonged.
用Use
把象套到你的情境，取一個可行的下一步。Apply the image to your situation; take one practical step.
雷在天上，巨大的力量釋放，但也必須受規律的約束。
Thunder over heaven: vast power released, but constrained by lawful pattern.
把象套到你的情境 · Apply the image to your situation
- 初九趾新人愛炫junior showing off
- 九二中守住專業中道central professionalism
- 九三藩硬碰硬卡住stuck in confrontation
- 九四輹結構性實力structural strength
- 六五易高位失衝勁lost edge in comfort
- 上六觸進退兩難deadlocked
大壯與遯是同一對力量的兩種命運：大壯主進，遯主退。讀大壯時一併想到遯，知道強盛之後一定會退。Da Zhuang and Dun are the same force in two fates: Da Zhuang advances, Dun retreats. Reading Da Zhuang should mean reading Dun as well, knowing that after strength must come retreat.
可行的一步 · Practical move
大壯教的是強而不折。卦辭只給了「利貞」兩個字，分量卻重：力量到了頂點，唯有守正才撐得住，強大並不自動換來通達。羝羊觸藩是全卦的反面教材：公羊一頭撞進籬笆，角被卡死，進退不得，用蠻力不用智謀，遲早落到這個下場。正面範本在九四「壯于大輿之輹」：力量該藏在車軸與輻條裡，藏在結構、制度與系統之中，靠表面聲勢和嗓門撐不了多久。大象「非禮弗履」收束全卦：越是強盛，越要自律。
Da Zhuang teaches strength without breaking. The judgment says only 'advantageous to be firm and correct'; that single phrase carries the weight of the whole hexagram: at peak strength, only correctness holds you up, and power alone doesn't guarantee progress. The ram caught in the fence is the cautionary case: it charges head-on, horns trapped, unable to move either way; force without judgment ends here sooner or later. The positive model is line 4, 'strength in the axle-brace of the great cart': strength that lives in structure, in institutions and systems, not in display or volume. The Great Image closes it out: the stronger you are, the more self-discipline you need.
失手之處 · Failure mode
把大壯讀成『我已經夠強，可以硬衝』就錯了。卦辭故意只寫「利貞」，省去「亨」字，是要提醒你：強大不等於通達。九三與上六都用羝羊觸藩警告過剛之險。最大的失誤，是只靠蠻力、速度與聲勢，卻不靠智謀、結構與自律。
Reading Da Zhuang as 'I'm strong now, time to charge' is a mistake. The judgment deliberately says only 'advantageous to be firm and correct' and omits 'progress': strength does not equal progress. Lines 3 and 6 both invoke the ram in the fence to warn against over-firmness. The deepest failure is relying on brute force, speed, and volume instead of judgment, structure, and self-restraint.
義理Commentary4
大壯者，剛長之名。陽氣盛大，物無不應。然剛而能止於正，是以「利貞」。過剛則折，故以正為戒。
Da Zhuang is the name for the firm growing. Yang's qi flourishes in greatness, and nothing fails to respond. Yet only when the firm can rest in correctness — therefore 'advantageous to be firm and correct.' Over-firmness breaks, so correctness is the warning.
大者壯也。陽盛而陰衰，正當盛時，故為大壯。然壯者易過，羝羊觸藩之象正是警戒過剛之失。聖人於壯時尤戒以「非禮弗履」，蓋知盛中必有失也。
The great is strong. Yang flourishes and yin recedes; this is the peak of strength, hence Da Zhuang. But strength easily overshoots: the image of the ram caught in the fence warns against the fault of over-firmness. The sage in the time of Da Zhuang especially warns 'do not step where it isn't proper,' knowing that loss is bound to appear within the peak.
大壯，陽長之卦。二月之卦也。「利貞」，唯正則可久，壯而不正則折。卦辭省「亨」字，明壯時不可徒恃力也。
Da Zhuang is the hexagram of yang's flourishing, the hexagram of the second lunar month. 'Advantageous to be firm and correct' means only correctness can endure; strength without correctness breaks. The judgment omits 'progress,' making clear that in the time of strength one cannot rely on force alone.
大壯排在二月，春分：四陽升起，再進一步就是五陽的夬。卦辭只給「利貞」，省掉了「亨」字，這個缺口正是全卦的鑰匙。盛不擔保通，守得正纔通；把強大當成通達，是壯時最容易犯的錯。卦裡的反面教材是羝羊，九三、上六兩次用它：公羊力氣足，一頭撞進籬笆，角卡住，「不能退，不能遂」。正面的樣子在九四「壯于大輿之輹」，力量長在車軸車輻上，藏在結構裡，不露在角尖上。強要強在制度、系統、根基這一層，嗓門與蠻勁靠不住。 大象收在「君子以非禮弗履」：力量越是在手，步子越要有規矩。沒有約束的力，遲早自己走到籬笆跟前。
Da Zhuang sits at the second lunar month, spring equinox: four yang lines risen, one step short of five-yang Breakthrough. The judgment grants only 'advantageous to be correct' and withholds 'progress': that missing word is the key to the whole hexagram. Strength at its peak guarantees nothing; only correctness carries it through, and mistaking power for passage is the season's characteristic error. The cautionary figure is the ram, used twice, in lines 3 and 6: full of force, it charges the fence, horns caught, 'unable to retreat, unable to advance.' The counter-image is line 4, 'strength in the axle-brace of a great cart,' power living in the structure, axle and spoke, never flaring at the horn-tip. Let strength reside in systems and foundations; volume and brute effort will not hold. The Great Image closes with 'the gentleman treads nowhere contrary to propriety': the more force in hand, the stricter the footwork. Unrestrained strength walks itself into the fence.
注解Annotation6
壯zhuàng
強盛、有力。「大壯」是說陽氣強盛到極點，已接近過剛的邊界。
Strong, vigorous, powerful. 大壯 = great strength.
趾zhǐ
腳趾，肢體的最末端。初九「壯于趾」是說力量剛從最下面冒出來就想往前衝，時機還太早。
Toes. Line 1: '壯于趾' — strength manifesting at the toes (extremity), too early.
羝羊dī yáng
公羊，性子剛猛好鬥。卦裡兩次用牠撞籬笆的樣子，比喻有力而不知節制，反而困住自己。
Ram (a male sheep). The hexagram's signature animal: powerful, but charges blindly.
藩fān
籬笆、柵欄。「羝羊觸藩」是說一味用蠻力衝撞，結果被卡住，進退不得。
Fence, hedge. The image of the ram getting horns caught: the over-reach trap.
輹fú
車軸下固定車廂的木件，承重卻不外露。九四用它比喻力量藏在結構裡，穩固而持久。
Wheel-axle support. Line 4's image: strength held structurally, useful, sustainable.
羸léi
困住、纏住，這裡不是瘦弱的意思。「羸其角」是說羊角被籬笆纏住，動彈不得。
To be entangled, trapped, caught (not 'weak' here). Line 3's '羸其角': horns trapped through over-application of force.
歷史Context4
12 消息卦中的位置
Position in the 12-cycle
大壯對應二月（卯月，春分前後）。從二陽的臨（十二月），到三陽的泰（正月，立春），再到四陽的大壯（二月），是陽氣邁向巔峰前段的階段。
Da Zhuang corresponds to the second lunar month, around the spring equinox. From two-yang Approach (hexagram 19, twelfth month) to three-yang Peace (hexagram 11, first month, Beginning of Spring) to four-yang Da Zhuang (second month): this is the hexagram just before yang reaches its peak.
與遯為綜卦
Inverse of Dun (33)
大壯與第三十三卦遯上下顛倒，互為綜卦。大壯是四陽從下往上行進取；遯是同樣四陽退居上方，隱退避讓。同一對力量，各自走向「進」與「退」兩種命運。讀大壯時該一併想到遯，強盛之時，就該知道有退的一天。
Da Zhuang and Dun (hexagram 33) are inverse hexagrams, each the other read upside down. Da Zhuang shows four yang lines rising from below in ascent; Dun shows the same four yang lines retreated to the top, withdrawing. One pair of forces, two fates: advance and retreat. Reading Da Zhuang should mean reading Dun as well, so that at the peak of strength, you already know the day of retreat will come.
「非禮弗履」的儒家根
Confucian root of 'do not step where it isn't proper'
大象「君子以非禮弗履」與《論語·顏淵》「非禮勿視、非禮勿聽、非禮勿言、非禮勿動」，是同一條修身教學的兩種表達。「禮」不只是表面的規矩，更是行為的結構性約束。讀大壯時把「禮」理解為自我約束的內在框架，最為通透。
The Great Image's 'the gentleman does not step where it isn't proper' expresses the same self-cultivation teaching as the Analects' (12.1) instruction to not look, listen, speak, or act contrary to propriety. Propriety (li) here means more than surface convention; it is a structural constraint on behavior. Reading Da Zhuang, taking li as the inner framework of self-restraint gives the most penetrating reading.
羝羊在中國文學中的引用
The ram-in-fence image in Chinese literature
「羝羊觸藩」這個象出自易經，後世常借它比喻有力卻無謀、進退失據的處境，是易經裡少數走出卦爻、被廣泛借用的意象之一。讀大壯，值得留意這個象後來的生命力。
The image of the ram caught in the fence comes from the Yijing itself, and later writers have often borrowed it to describe a position with strength but no strategy, unable to advance or retreat. It is one of the few images from the Yi that stepped outside the hexagram text into wider use. Reading Da Zhuang, it's worth noting the afterlife this image has had.
練習Practice3
- line-read
你此刻是不是在大壯的某一爻？是用蠻（三）還是用結構（四）？
Are you currently on a Da Zhuang line? Using brute force (line 3) or structural strength (line 4)?
- char-recall
辨認：壯、趾、羝、藩、輹、羸。
Identify: 壯 (zhuàng), 趾 (zhǐ), 羝 (dī), 藩 (fān), 輹 (fú), 羸 (léi).
- parse
為什麼卦辭只說「利貞」而不說「亨」？這一字之省教了什麼？
Why does the judgment say only 'advantageous to be firm and correct' (lì zhēn) and omit 'progress' (hēng)? What does this single-word omission teach?