A source-first reading note for Hexagram 33, Dun (Retreat), with a reference translation, trigram frame, and one reversible observation practice.
Reference translation
Retreat: Success. In small matters, it is advantageous to persevere. The Tuan says: "Retreat brings success" — by retreating, one attains success. The firm is in its proper place and finds response; one moves with the time. "In small matters it is advantageous to persevere" — for the yin gradually grows and spreads. Great indeed is the meaning of the time of Retreat. The Image says: Below heaven there is the mountain: the image of Retreat. Thus the superior man keeps the inferior man at a distance, not with anger but with dignity.
See the original-text and authority layers in the complete catalog entry.
Context from the authority layer
The hexagram statement of Dun is developed closely around the image of "mountain beneath heaven." Its meaning both indicates the tendency within the hexagram image of yielding yin petty persons gradually "soaking and growing," and points out for the worthy a good place to retreat to—the mountain. Because the way of the petty person differs from the way of the gentleman, the gentleman cannot contend with the petty person, but can only adopt an attitude of "not displaying hatred yet remaining stern." In this way, he avoids serving in the same court as the "petty persons.
Read the structure before the slogan
The lower trigram is 艮 (山), associated in the bundled corpus with 止; the upper trigram is 乾 (天), associated with 健. 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 33. 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 Retreat 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 33 was cast for your question.