Xici Biography·Chapter 9·Full Text

"Yi" is a book, the original must be final, and it is regarded as a quality. The six lines are mixed together, only the things at that time. It is difficult to know at the beginning, but it is easy to know at the beginning, the root and the bottom. The first words are drawn up, and the final words are completed.
If you compose virtues based on miscellaneous things and argue about right and wrong, it is because you are not prepared. Alas! It is also necessary to know the good and bad of survival and death. If a wise person observes his words, he will have thought too much.
The two and four have the same function but different positions, and their goodness is different; the two are more praised, the four are more fearful, and they are close.
Gentleness is the way, and it is harmful to those who are far away; it is necessary to avoid blame. Its use is soft and medium.
Three and five have the same merit but are in different positions. Three has more bad qualities, and five has more merit. They are noble and inferior. Its softness is dangerous, but its strength is victorious?