Great Taming
Stored-Up Strength
Great force held in reserve, character built from the past; power never spent is not tamed but wasted.
Da Xu sets Gen, keeping still, the mountain, above Qian, the creative, heaven, giving the image of heaven within the mountain: enormous energy held and stored rather than spent. The name is read both as great taming and as great accumulation, and it stands to hexagram 9, the taming power of the small, as firmness stands to gentleness. The Image has the superior man acquainting himself with many sayings of antiquity and many deeds of the past, and strengthening his character by them. The Judgement holds that perseverance furthers and that not eating at home brings good fortune, the man of ability being fit to be maintained in public service.
Light
Signifies disciplined restraint, the daily accumulation of character through study of what has gone before, and strength kept in reserve until there is an undertaking worth its use.
Shadow
Restraint can harden into obstruction, and force held back too long becomes stagnation or mere hoarding. Power that is never released is not tamed but wasted.
