Wu Ding

Wu Ding, also known by his sacrificial title Kâo Ȝung, is invoked as an able Shang sovereign whose campaign against the Demon Region took three years to subdue. In the commentary on the hexagram, his expedition gives historical weight to a warning about the difficulty of sustained enterprise and the importance of choosing capable agents.

Identity and Historical Setting

The commentary identifies Kâo Ȝung as Wu Ding’s sacrificial title and describes him as one of the ablest sovereigns of the Shang dynasty, dating his reign to 1364–1324 BC. It places the region he attacked among the cold, bleak lands north of the Middle States, framing the campaign as an undertaking beyond the polity’s frontiers.

The Three-Year Campaign

Wu Ding’s expedition appears in the interpretation of the third line, which suggests a person undertaking a vigorous enterprise. The campaign may have been worthwhile and successful, the commentator allows, but its duration—three years before the Demon Region was subdued—makes its difficulty and cost of persistence central to the example. The line concludes with a caution: small men should not be employed in enterprises of this kind.

Recurrence and Interpretive Role

Wu Ding’s campaign is mentioned again in the commentary on the next hexagram, where it serves as a model for exertion that must be both vigorous and prolonged. That discussion adds the conditions surrounding military action: the ruler above welcomes the effort, and communication between the army and court allows rewards, distinctions, and necessary encouragement to reach the troops. The repeated example therefore links endurance in the field with capable leadership and support from the center; it is not simply a celebration of conquest, but a test of whether a difficult undertaking is properly led and sustained.