A source-first reading note for Hexagram 60, Jie (Limitation), with a reference translation, trigram frame, and one reversible observation practice.
Reference translation
Limitation. Success. But galling limitation must not be persevered in. The Commentary says: "Limitation brings success." The firm and the yielding are divided, and the firm holds the central place. "Galling limitation must not be persevered in" — for such a way is exhausted. With gladness one walks the path of danger. He whose place is correct exercises limitation; centered and upright, he attains to mastery. Heaven and earth observe their limits, and the four seasons are thereby completed. When limitation is set by measure and rule, wealth is not squandered, and the people suffer no harm.
See the original-text and authority layers in the complete catalog entry.
Context from the authority layer
From the fourth and fifth lines upward, the line statements distinguish between "contented restraint," "sweet restraint," and "bitter restraint." This shows that although the hexagram is named "Restraint," the meaning of "restraint" itself is not limited to "restraining" or "limiting." What matters is to restrain in accordance with timeliness. When done "with timing," it becomes "contented restraint" or "sweet restraint," and such restraint is "centered, upright, and penetrating." When not done with timing, it becomes "bitter restraint," and bitter restraint brings about situations in which "one cannot remain steadfast.
Read the structure before the slogan
The lower trigram is 兑 (泽), associated in the bundled corpus with 悦; the upper trigram is 坎 (水), associated with 陷. 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 60. 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 Limitation 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 60 was cast for your question.