Progress (Jìn)

Judgment

晋：康侯用锡马蕃庶，昼日三接。

Plain Meaning：Progress: like a favored lord granted many horses, received thrice in a day—rising into the light.

Image (Great Commentary)

明出地上，晋；君子以自昭明德。

Line Texts

• 初六晋如摧如，贞吉。罔孚，裕无咎。

  Advancing yet checked—steadfast fortune; not yet trusted, staying easy brings no blame.

• 六二晋如愁如，贞吉。受兹介福，于其王母。

  Advancing amid worry—steadfast fortune; great blessing comes from the ancestress.

• 六三众允，悔亡。

  Trusted by all—remorse disappears.

• 九四晋如鼫鼠，贞厉。

  Advancing like a greedy rat—persisting is perilous.

• 六五悔亡，失得勿恤，往吉，无不利。

  Remorse gone; heed not loss or gain—going brings fortune, nothing that does not further.

• 上九晋其角，维用伐邑，厉吉，无咎，贞吝。

  Advancing with the horns—fit only to correct one’s own town; danger yet fortune, a touch of regret.

Symbolism

The sun rising over the earth: advancement into brightness.

Life Lesson

Rise by illuminating your virtue and winning trust, not by grasping.

Modern Application

In a phase of promotion, advance openly and let results speak.

Words of Caution

Greedy grasping in ascent leads to a hard fall.