Yarrow paired source note · 2026-07-17

Guan and Da Zhuang: Read an Opposite Pair Without Ranking It

Compare Hexagram 20 Guan (Contemplation) with Hexagram 34 Da Zhuang (Great Power) as a line-by-line opposite pair, without turning contrast into prediction.

Cast one source-first reading Browse all 2026-07-17 notes

20 · Guan · Contemplation

CONTEMPLATION. The ablution has been made, but not yet the offering. Full of trust they look up to him. The Commentary on the Decision says: The great sight is above. Devoted and gentle, central and correct, he presents himself to the world. CONTEMPLATION. "The ablution has been made, but not yet the offering; full of trust they look up to him" — those below behold him and are transformed. When we contemplate the divine way of heaven, the four seasons proceed without error.

The hexagram statement takes "having sincerity, dignified and reverent" as its view, while the Commentary on the Image takes "the great view above" and "centered and...

Complete source entry

34 · Da Zhuang · Great Power

The Great Power: it furthers one to be persevering. The Tuan says: The Great Power means that the great is strong. Firm and in movement, hence strong. "The Great Power furthers perseverance," for the great must be correct. When greatness and correctness are joined, the disposition of heaven and earth may be seen. The Hsiang says: Thunder above in the heavens — the image of the Great Power. Thus the superior man does not tread upon paths that do not accord with established order.

"Great and upright" and "firm in movement" are the distinctive powers of Da Zhuang. Majestic and grand, with a presence that is proper and correct, awe-inspiring and...

Complete source entry

What the structural contrast actually says

The local structured corpus records Hexagram 20's opposite as Hexagram 34, and Hexagram 34's opposite as Hexagram 20. Every line changes polarity across this pair. Use that structural fact to compare conditions, not to label one side good and the other bad.

Two-column comparison practice

Make two columns headed Guan and Da Zhuang. Under each, copy one phrase from its reference translation and one observable condition from the situation you are studying. Circle the condition that would have to change before the other column became more relevant. Choose one reversible step and a review date.

Common misread to avoid

An opposite pair is not a before-and-after promise. Guan does not automatically become Da Zhuang, and the pair does not decide which person or outcome is correct. It is a disciplined contrast for closer observation.

Source boundary

The two reference translations and context notes come from Yarrow's bundled structured Zhouyi authority layer. The opposite-pair relation comes from the same local corpus. This comparison is not a fresh cast or a forecast.