Before completion — the threshold, almost but not yet.
The goal is near but not reached, and the final crossing demands care. Order each remaining step, for haste at the end spoils the whole. Success comes to those who finish deliberately.
transitionpotentialcarethreshold
Before Completion places Fire (clinging, light-giving) above Water (abysmal, dangerous). The interplay of these two trigrams gives the hexagram its character.
The Classical Textoriginal Chinese
The Judgment · 卦辞
亨，小狐汔济，濡其尾，无攸利。
The Image · 大象
火在水上，未济；君子以慎辨物居方。
The Six Lines · 爻辞
- 初六濡其尾，吝。象曰：濡其尾，亦不知极也。
- 九二曳其轮，贞吉。象曰：九二贞吉，中以行正也。
- 六三未济，征凶，利涉大川。象曰：未济征凶，位不当也。
- 九四贞吉，悔亡，震用伐鬼方，三年有赏于大国。象曰：贞吉悔亡，志行也。
- 六五贞吉，无悔，君子之光，有孚，吉。象曰：君子之光，其晖吉也。
- 上九有孚于饮酒，无咎，濡其首，有孚失是。象曰：饮酒濡首，亦不知节也。
The judgment, image and line texts above are quoted from the original Zhou Yi. A modern Chinese translation of the full classic is available on the original-text page.