Hexagram 26: The Taming Power of the Great
䷙ 大畜 Dà Chù – The Book of Changes
The Judgment
Under the conditions of the Taming Power of the Great, it will be advantageous to be firm and correct. If its subject does not seek to enjoy his revenues in his own family, there will be good fortune. It will be advantageous for him to cross the great stream.
The Image
Heaven in the midst of the mountain: the image of the Taming Power of the Great. Thus the superior man stores largely in his memory the words and deeds of former men, to serve the accumulation of his virtue.
Description
The Taming Power of the Great (Da Chu) shows heaven contained within the mountain: great energy held, stored and refined. Strength is gathered rather than spent, and knowledge of the past is put to work. When the time comes, this accumulated power makes great undertakings possible.
The six lines
A line's place shapes its role: 1 the beginning, 2 the center of the inner world, 3 the threshold to the outside, 4 close to power, 5 the ruler's place, 6 the end and the excess. Keep this grid in mind and the line texts become much easier to read. More in the guide →
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Line 1: Old Yang (bottom)
The great force is restrained. Favorable — power held back becomes wisdom; wait with strength.
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Line 2: Old Yang
Taming with purpose. Favorable — discipline refines potential; structure nurtures greatness.
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Line 3: Old Yang
Taming with frustration. Danger — resistance without vision leads to stagnation; find your center.
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Line 4: Old Yin
Taming with clarity. Favorable — inner mastery prepares outer action; the time will come.
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Line 5: Old Yin
Taming with arrogance. Danger — control without humility breeds collapse; soften your grip.
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Line 6: Old Yang (top)
Taming complete. Favorable — the great force moves with grace; power becomes peace.
Reading by area of life
❤️ What does hexagram 26 mean for relationships and private life?
Restraint deepens connection now. Hold back impulsive words, store up goodwill, and invest steadily in the relationship. Shared history matters: remember what has carried you before. Don't keep your gifts to yourself, either; generosity toward family and community strengthens the home. A bond built with patient effort can take on large projects, such as moving, children or a shared business.
💼 What does hexagram 26 mean for work and money?
Build reserves of knowledge, capital and skill. Study what succeeded for those before you and apply it. This is a strong period for preparing major undertakings, then launching them when ready. Serve something bigger than your own comfort: public roles, teaching or larger organizations may call. Disciplined accumulation turns into real power when you eventually deploy it.
🌌 What does hexagram 26 mean for your personal path and spirituality?
Gather and keep. Read the classics, learn from teachers, absorb the words and deeds of people who lived well. Daily restraint, not suppression, channels strength rather than wasting it. Inner energy that is held and refined becomes calm power. Then share it: wisdom that never leaves the house goes stale, while wisdom put to use keeps growing.
Nuclear hexagram
Lines 2, 3 and 4 form the lower trigram, lines 3, 4 and 5 the upper one. Leaving out the beginning and the end reveals the core of the situation, what is at work out of sight. It is a secondary aspect, not a second verdict. If it seems to contradict the main hexagram, that happens and is not an error. More in the guide →
Lines 2, 3, 4 and 3, 4, 5 form nuclear hexagram 54, The Marrying Maiden. It shows what is at work beneath the surface – an inner tendency, not a verdict on the situation itself.
Hexagram 54 – The Marrying Maiden
The Marrying Maiden indicates that, under the conditions which it denotes, action will be evil and in no way advantageous.
The two trigrams
- Upper, outer: Gen – Mountain
- Keeping Still (Youngest Son). Within, it means gathering, boundaries and stillness; without, stability, reflection and the completion of a cycle.
- Lower, inner: Qian – Heaven
- The Creative (Father). Within, it shows itself as will, resolve and the drive to act; without, as an ordering force that gives direction and structure.