A source-first reading note for Hexagram 18, Gu (Work on the Decayed), with a reference translation, trigram frame, and one reversible observation practice.
Reference translation
GU signifies decay and its remedy: supreme success. It furthers one to cross the great water. Three days before the day jia, three days after the day jia. The Tuan says: In Gu the firm rises above and the yielding lies below; gentle and arrested—thus Gu. Decay corrected brings supreme success, and the world is set in order. "It furthers one to cross the great water"—going forward, there is work to be done. "Three days before jia, three days after jia"—endings give rise to beginnings; such is the course of heaven.
See the original-text and authority layers in the complete catalog entry.
Context from the authority layer
The Tuanzhuan states: "Gentle and stopping, this is Gu." Most scholars interpret this as "gentle and able to stop Gu," mistakenly reading it as if "gentle" could "stop Gu." This error arises from connecting "stop" and "Gu" in their reading, breaking the phrase incorrectly, while also failing to understand the trigram imagery, which leads to a misinterpretation of the meaning of "stop." According to the Shuogua, Xun means to enter; when something enters and then stops, the stopping causes blockage; when there is no flow, Gu (corruption) is generated. Therefore, the phrase must be clearly broken between "stop" and "Gu."
Read the structure before the slogan
The lower trigram is 巽 (风), associated in the bundled corpus with 入; the upper trigram is 艮 (山), associated with 止. Read the lower trigram as the inner or starting field and the upper trigram as the outward field before turning the pattern into advice.
One accountable observation practice
Copy one concrete verb, condition, or image from the reference translation for Hexagram 18. Name one place where it is observable in the situation you are examining. Then choose one small step you can reverse and write the condition that would make you review it.
Common misread to avoid
Do not turn Work on the Decayed into a personality label, a guaranteed event, or a verdict about another person. The translation and trigram frame are source layers to examine, not an instruction to surrender judgment.
Source boundary
The reference translation and context are drawn from Yarrow's bundled structured Zhouyi authority layer. Yarrow keeps that layer separate from optional modern reflection. This page does not claim that Hexagram 18 was cast for your question.