Anonymous (traditionally attributed to King Wen, the Duke of Zhou and Confucius) · Complete work
Hexagram 60 · Jié ䷻
Hexagram 60 · Jié ䷻ of 69. Read it here for reference, or continue through the entire work without leaving the reader.
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節：亨。苦節不可貞。
初九：不出戶庭，无咎。
九二：不出門庭，凶。
六三：不節若，則嗟若，无咎。
六四：安節，亨。
九五：甘節，吉；往有尚。
上六：苦節，貞凶，悔亡。
彖曰：節，亨，剛柔分，而剛得中。苦節不可貞，其道窮也。說以行險，當位以節，中正以通。天地節而四時成，節以制度，不傷財，不害民。
象曰：澤上有水，節；君子以制數度，議德行。
不出戶庭，知通塞也。
不出門庭，失時極也。
不節之嗟，又誰咎也。
安節之亨，承上道也。
甘節之吉，居位中也。
苦節貞凶，其道窮也。
Musean translation
Mouseia’s complete machine-assisted Musean translation, made directly from the classical Chinese, passage for passage, covering all 64 hexagrams with their judgments, line statements and attached commentaries, and the remaining Wings (the Great Commentary, the Discussion of the Trigrams, the Sequence and the Contrasts of the Hexagrams), 1,204 passages in all.
Jie (Limitation): Success. Bitter restraint cannot be held steadfastly.
Nine at the beginning: Not going beyond the inner courtyard. No blame.
Nine in the second place: Not going beyond the outer courtyard. Misfortune.
Six in the third place: If one does not restrain oneself, one will sigh. No blame.
Six in the fourth place: Resting content with restraint. Success.
Nine in the fifth place: Sweet restraint. Good fortune; going forth wins esteem.
Six at the top: Bitter restraint. Steadfastness brings misfortune; regret vanishes.
The Judgment Commentary says: Jie succeeds: firm and yielding are distinct, and firmness attains the center. Bitter restraint cannot be maintained steadfastly, for its way comes to an end. Joyfully moving through danger, one occupies the fitting place and exercises restraint; central and upright, one passes through. Heaven and earth keep measure, and the four seasons are completed. Restraint makes ordered measures and institutions, neither wasting resources nor harming the people.
The Image Commentary says: Water above the lake: Jie. Thus the noble person establishes measures and standards and deliberates on virtue and conduct.
Not going beyond the inner courtyard: one knows when the way is open and when blocked.
Not going beyond the outer courtyard: the proper time is utterly lost.
Sighing for want of restraint: whom else could one blame?
The success of resting content with restraint comes from following the way from above.
Sweet restraint brings good fortune because it occupies the central place.
Bitter restraint and steadfast misfortune: its way has reached its limit.
Plain English translation
Mouseia’s complete Plain English edition, made independently and directly from the classical Chinese, covering all 64 hexagrams with their judgments, line statements and attached commentaries, and the remaining Wings (the Great Commentary, the Discussion of the Trigrams, the Sequence and the Contrasts of the Hexagrams), 1,204 passages in all.
Jie (Limits): Success. Bitter restrictions cannot be kept up steadily.
Nine at the beginning: Not going out of the inner courtyard brings no blame.
Nine in the second place: Not going out of the outer courtyard brings misfortune.
Six in the third place: If one does not set limits, one will sigh about it. No blame.
Six in the fourth place: Being at ease with limits brings success.
Nine in the fifth place: Pleasant limits bring good fortune; going forward earns respect.
Six at the top: Bitter limits. Staying the course brings misfortune, but regret disappears.
The Judgment Commentary says: Jie (Limits) brings success because firm and yielding are divided and the firm holds the middle. Bitter restrictions cannot be kept up steadily because that way reaches a dead end. Joyfully moving through danger, one applies limits in the right position and passes through by being centered and right. Heaven and earth keep limits, and the four seasons come about. When rules set limits, they do not waste resources or harm the people.
The Image Commentary says: Water above the lake: this is Jie (Limits). So the noble person establishes measures and standards and considers moral conduct.
Not going out of the inner courtyard means knowing when the way is open and when it is blocked.
Not going out of the outer courtyard means completely missing the right time.
If one sighs over not setting limits, who else can be blamed?
The success of being at ease with limits comes from following the way of the one above.
Pleasant limits bring good fortune because the position is central.
Staying the course under bitter limits brings misfortune because that way reaches an impasse.