Knowing Your Limits
jié · Water over LakeSet limits that steady you, not ones that punish you.
亨。苦節不可貞。
Sensible limits keep things flowing, like joints in bamboo. But limits so harsh they turn bitter cannot be kept up for long. Set the measure you can actually live with.
The six lines
初九：不出戶庭，无咎。
You do not step past your own inner courtyard. Knowing when to stay in is blameless.
九二：不出門庭，凶。
You do not step out of the gate when the moment calls for it. Staying in now is a real caution: a missed time.
六三：不節若，則嗟若，无咎。
You set no limits, and then you sigh over the results. Owning that lament leaves no one else to blame.
六四：安節，亨。
Limits that feel settled and natural. Ease in restraint opens the way.
九五：甘節，吉；往有尚。
Limits taken up sweetly, without strain. This is favorable, and going forward earns respect.
上六：苦節，貞凶，悔亡。
Harsh, bitter limits. Insisting on them is a caution, though using such severity on yourself alone may leave no regret.
The I Ching is a tool for reflection. Do not use it as the basis for medical, legal or money decisions.