A source-first reading note for Hexagram 47, Kun (Oppression), with a reference translation, trigram frame, and one reversible observation practice.
Reference translation
KUN signifies Oppression: yet there is progress and success. For the great man, firm and virtuous, there is good fortune; he incurs no blame. In times of distress, words spoken may not find belief. The Tuan says: In Oppression, the strong is veiled by the weak. Meeting peril, yet inwardly glad, he loses not that whereby he attains success—this surely is the way of the superior man alone. "For the great man, good fortune"—because the firm holds the central place. "Words spoken find no belief"—to esteem mere speech is to come to ruin. The Hsiang says: A marsh without water: the image of Oppression. Thus the superior man yields up his life to fulfill his purpose.
See the original-text and authority layers in the complete catalog entry.
Context from the authority layer
The hexagram Kun teaches that hardship and poverty do not bring all things to a dead end, but rather offer people an opportunity to test their will. The way of the noble person in dealing with "hardship" is to be "all the more resolute in poverty, never letting fall one's lofty aspirations," whereas the petty person will be overcome by it. When Confucius fell out of favor with Duke Ling of Wei and later went hungry in Chen, Zilu, resentful, said to Confucius: "Does the noble person also face hardship?" Confucius replied: "The noble person stands firm in hardship; the petty person, in hardship, loses all restraint!" The Xici says: "Kun is the discernment of virtue.
Read the structure before the slogan
The lower trigram is 坎 (水), associated in the bundled corpus with 陷; the upper trigram is 兑 (泽), associated with 悦. Read the lower trigram as the inner or starting field and the upper trigram as the outward field before turning the pattern into advice.
One accountable observation practice
Copy one concrete verb, condition, or image from the reference translation for Hexagram 47. Name one place where it is observable in the situation you are examining. Then choose one small step you can reverse and write the condition that would make you review it.
Common misread to avoid
Do not turn Oppression into a personality label, a guaranteed event, or a verdict about another person. The translation and trigram frame are source layers to examine, not an instruction to surrender judgment.
Source boundary
The reference translation and context are drawn from Yarrow's bundled structured Zhouyi authority layer. Yarrow keeps that layer separate from optional modern reflection. This page does not claim that Hexagram 47 was cast for your question.