初
初九。不出戸庭、无咎。
Do not leave door or courtyard—no blame. Early restraint prevents trouble.
䷻
Hexagram 60
Limitation (水沢節)
Suitaku-setsu / Jié
Water in a lake is bounded—limits give form. Moderate to ensure lasting benefit.
Judgment
節。亨。苦節不可貞。
Limitation. Success. Bitter limitation should not be clung to.
Set reasonable limits; too harsh a regimen fails.
Line-by-Line (Yao)
Interpretations if the line changes.
二
九二。不出門庭、凶。
Not leaving the gate—misfortune. Over-limiting harms.
三
六三。不節若、則嗟若、无咎。
If you do not limit, you will lament—yet no blame. Lack of limits brings regret.
四
六四。安節、亨。
Peaceful limitation—success. Comfortable boundaries work.
五
九五。甘節、吉、往有尚。
Sweet limitation—good fortune; going forth honored. Pleasant moderation succeeds.
上
上。苦節、貞凶、悔亡。
Bitter limitation—correct yet misfortunate; regret disappears. Excessive austerity is harmful.
Practical Reading: Love, Career, Health & Decisions
When you cast Hexagram 60, Jié (Limitation), the Book of Changes shows you a situation with Kan (Water) above and Dui (Lake) below. Water in a lake is bounded—limits give form. Moderate to ensure lasting benefit. Use the cards below to map that pattern onto your specific question — a love reading, a career decision, a health concern, or a yes/no choice.
Love & Relationships
Keep healthy boundaries; neither suffocate nor neglect. In a love or relationship reading, Hexagram 60 (Jié) describes the meeting point of Kan (water) above and Dui (lake) below: how the outer situation meets your inner state. Ask whether you are forcing the relationship to fit a picture, or letting it move at the rhythm this hexagram suggests. For a partnered question, read the changing lines to see which side — yours or the other person's — is being asked to shift.
Work & Career
Budget time and resources; trim waste without rigidity. In work and career, Jié points to whether the outer market or workplace (Kan (water)) and your inner stance (Dui (lake)) are in alignment. If a project, negotiation, or job change is the question, ask what this hexagram says about timing rather than effort: pushing harder rarely changes a Jié situation; reading the configuration usually does.
Health & Wellbeing
Moderation is key; avoid extreme diets or discipline. For a body or wellness reading, treat the lines of Hexagram 60 as descriptions of phases, not diagnoses. Jié usually signals where energy needs to be conserved versus where it is asking to be expressed. Combine the hexagram's advice with concrete medical guidance — the I Ching is a reflective tool, not a substitute for professional care.
Decision-Making
When the question is a yes/no — should I take the offer, move, leave, commit? — read Hexagram 60 (Jié, Limitation) as a statement about the configuration of your situation rather than the outcome. The summary "Water in a lake is bounded—limits give form. Moderate to ensure lasting benefit." is your starting frame. Ask: does this action respect that configuration, or fight it? Changing lines, if any, tell you which specific aspect needs to bend.
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