Hexagram 39.4 — Obstruction (Fourth Line)

Original Text & Translation

「往蹇來連。」 — Going leads to obstruction; returning brings connection.

The image is of someone at a crossroads facing difficulty ahead. The natural impulse might be to press forward with determination, but the oracle counsels the opposite: turn back toward your base, your allies, your resources. "Connection" (連) implies linking up, joining together, forming bonds that distribute weight and multiply capacity. The obstruction you face is too large for solo navigation; it requires partnership, coordination, and shared strategy.

Core Meaning

Line four in any hexagram represents the threshold of influence — the boundary between the inner world of preparation and the outer world of action. In Obstruction, this position becomes especially significant: you can see the difficulty clearly, you understand its scope, and you must decide how to engage it.

The counsel to return and connect is not about giving up. It's about shifting from individual heroics to collective intelligence. Obstruction at this scale cannot be overcome by willpower alone; it requires resources, perspectives, skills, and support that only collaboration provides. The line teaches that sometimes the most courageous act is admitting you need others and taking the time to build genuine alliance before proceeding.

This line also addresses ego and the mythology of the lone achiever. Western culture often glorifies the solo breakthrough, but ancient wisdom recognizes that most meaningful obstacles are systemic and require systemic responses. Returning to join forces is not weakness — it is strategic maturity.

Symbolism & Imagery

The hexagram structure places Water (danger) above Mountain (stillness). The fourth line sits at the base of the upper trigram — right at the edge of danger. To go forward is to enter peril unprepared and unsupported. To return is to descend back into the mountain's stability, where others are gathered, where resources are stored, where planning can happen in safety.

Think of a mountaineer who reaches a technical section beyond their current gear and skill. Pressing on risks catastrophe; descending to base camp, consulting with the team, upgrading equipment, and returning with a rope partner transforms the impossible into the achievable. The mountain hasn't changed, but the approach has.

The imagery of "connection" (連) also evokes chains, links, networks — structures that distribute load. One link breaks under pressure; many links woven together hold. This line is about building that weave before you need it to bear weight.

Action Guidance

Career & Business

• Audit your blockers: identify which obstacles are genuinely solo-solvable and which require cross-functional support, executive sponsorship, or external partnerships.
• Map your allies: who shares your goal? Who has complementary skills? Who controls resources you need? Invest time in understanding their priorities so collaboration is mutual, not transactional.
• Formalize the coalition: move from informal chats to structured collaboration — shared documents, regular syncs, clear ownership, visible milestones.
• Communicate the "why": people join efforts when they see how the obstacle affects them too. Frame the challenge in terms that resonate across stakeholders.
• Delay the big push: resist pressure to "show progress" by charging ahead alone. Visible regrouping and team-building is progress; it just looks different.
• Prototype together: use small joint experiments to build trust and refine the approach before committing major resources.

Love & Relationships

• Name the impasse: if you're stuck in a recurring conflict or facing a decision neither of you can navigate alone, say so explicitly. Acknowledgment is the first step toward joint problem-solving.
• Seek third perspectives: couples counseling, trusted mentors, or facilitated conversations can break stalemates that feel unsolvable in isolation.
• Return to shared values: when forward motion is blocked, reconnect with the foundational reasons you're together. Let those anchor the next steps.
• Co-create solutions: avoid unilateral decisions on major issues. The obstruction may be revealing that you need a new decision-making process, not just a decision.
• Build your external support network: strong relationships are supported by strong friendships, family ties, and community. Isolation amplifies every internal difficulty.

Health & Inner Work

• Recognize when to get help: chronic pain, persistent mental health struggles, or plateaus in recovery often require professional guidance, not more self-directed effort.
• Join a cohort or group: whether it's a training group, a support circle, or a structured program, shared commitment creates accountability and reduces the psychological weight of solo effort.
• Integrate practices: if one modality isn't working, connect it with others. Combine movement with therapy, nutrition with sleep hygiene, mindfulness with social connection.
• Track and share: use apps, coaches, or accountability partners to make progress visible and collaborative rather than private and invisible.
• Rest as regrouping: if you're burned out, rest isn't laziness — it's returning to your foundation so you can rebuild with support.

Finance & Strategy

• Syndicate risk: if a financial goal or investment is too large or complex for your current capital or expertise, explore partnerships, co-investment, or advisory relationships.
• Build your brain trust: return to mentors, peer groups, or professional advisors before making high-stakes moves in unfamiliar territory.
• Diversify information sources: one perspective on a market or opportunity is dangerous. Gather multiple viewpoints, stress-test assumptions, and look for consensus or useful disagreement.
• Formalize governance: if you're managing shared resources (family funds, partnership capital, community assets), create clear agreements and decision frameworks before obstacles force improvisation.
• Delay deployment: if market conditions or deal structures feel obstructed, pull back to preserve capital and wait for better alignment rather than forcing execution.

Timing, Signals, and Readiness

How do you know when it's time to return versus when it's time to push through? Look for these signals: (1) repeated failure despite competent effort suggests the obstacle is structural, not tactical; (2) isolation or lack of support indicates you're operating outside your resource base; (3) escalating cost (time, money, energy, morale) without proportional progress; (4) feedback from trusted others that you're missing key information or capacity.

Conversely, you know you've successfully regrouped when: (1) you have clear, committed partners with complementary strengths; (2) the path forward has been collaboratively mapped and stress-tested; (3) resources are pooled and allocated; (4) communication rhythms are established; (5) early joint actions produce measurable momentum.

The transition from "returning" to "advancing together" should feel less like a solo sprint and more like a coordinated movement — each person knows their role, timing is synchronized, and the collective capacity clearly exceeds the obstacle's resistance.

When This Line Moves

A moving fourth line in Obstruction often signals that the phase of regrouping is complete or nearly so, and the situation is shifting toward collective action. The transformation hexagram (the result after this line changes) will show the new configuration of forces and the quality of the path that opens once collaboration is established.

Practical takeaway: if this line is moving in your reading, treat it as confirmation that your instinct to seek help, build alliances, or return to your base is correct. The change is already in motion. Your task now is to formalize those connections, clarify shared goals, and prepare for coordinated forward movement. Don't rush back into solo action just because momentum is building — the power of this line is in sustaining the collaborative structure even as conditions improve.

Concise Summary

Hexagram 39.4 teaches that some obstacles are too large, too complex, or too entrenched for individual effort. The wisdom is in recognizing when to stop pushing forward alone and instead return to gather allies, resources, and shared strategy. "Going leads to obstruction; returning brings connection" is not a counsel of defeat but of strategic intelligence. By joining forces, you transform isolation into collaboration, and what was impossible alone becomes achievable together. This line asks you to value partnership over pride, and to see regrouping as the essential foundation for breakthrough.