Being shunned
One hesitates to ask others to accept fatigue, so one finishes the preparation with the most capable. taoscopy.com
Limitation60
Set boundaries and apply discipline to create balance and order in life. Prioritize moderation and clear limits for greater focus and harmony.
↓ Line 4
Accepting limitations with contentment leads to success.
↓ Joy58
Embrace joy and communicate openly. Positive interactions and shared enthusiasm strengthen bonds and cultivate happiness.
60 Limitation
Other titles: Restrictive Regulations, Restraint, Regulations, Articulating, Receipt, Restraining, Containment
Judgment
Legge:Restrictive Regulations bring progress and success, but if they are severe and difficult they cannot be permanent.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Limitation. Success. Galling limitation must not be persevered in.
Blofeld:Restraint -- success! It is wrong to persist in harsh restraint.
Liu: Limitation. Success. Bitter limitation should not be continued.
Ritsema/Karcher:Articulating, Growing. Bitter Articulating not permitting Trial. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of confused relations. It emphasizes that making limits and connections clear, particularly through speech, is the adequate way to handle it...]
Shaughnessy: Receipt. Withered moderation; one may not determine.
Cleary (1):Discipline is developmental, but painful discipline is not to be held to. [Discipline means having limits that are not to be exceeded. This hexagram represents practicing obedience in unfavorable circumstances, adaptably keeping to the Tao. The situation may be up to others, but creation of destiny is up to oneself. When discipline gets to the point of inflicting suffering, it brings on danger itself even where there was no danger; you will only suffer toil and servility which is harmful and has no benefit.]
Cleary (2): Regulation is successful, but painful regulation is not to be held to.
Wu: Regulation indicates pervasiveness. Excessive regulation should not be obstinately pursued. [Sometimes the meaning of conservation or moderation is implied. Although the idea of regulation is convincing, it should not be applied blindly without regard to conditions.]
The Image
Legge: Water over a lake -- the image of Restrictive Regulations. The superior man constructs methods of numbering and measurement, and examines the nature of virtuous conduct.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Water over lake: the image of Limitation. Thus the superior man creates number and measure, and examines the nature of virtue and correct conduct.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes water held in a dyke above a marshy lake. The Superior Man employs a system of regulations in his plans for the widespread practice of virtue.
Liu: Water above the lake symbolizes Limitation. The superior man devises number and measure, and measures conduct and virtue.
Ritsema/Karcher: Above marsh possessing stream. Articulating. A chun tzu uses paring to reckon the measures. A chun tzu uses deliberating actualizing-taoto move.
[Actualize-tao: ...ability to follow the course traced by the ongoing process of the cosmos... Linked with acquire, TE: acquiring that which makes a being become what it is meant to be.]
Cleary (1): There is water over a lake, regulated. Thus superior people determine measures and discuss various actions.
Cleary (2): … Leaders establish numbers and measures, and consider virtuous conduct.
Wu: There is water above the marsh; this is Regulation. Thus, the jun zi enacts statutes and deliberates virtues. [A study of the limits and merits will avert difficulties.]
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Progress and attainment are seen in the equally divided dynamic and magnetic lines, with the dynamic lines in the central places. If the regulations are severe and difficult, the course of action will come to an end. We see a cheerful attitude directing the course amidst peril. The rules are correctly initiated by the ruler in the fifth place. Heaven and earth observe their regular cycles and complete the four seasons. When rulers frame their laws according to just limitations, the resources of the state suffer no injury, and the people receive no hurt.
Legge: The written Chinese character which denotes Restrictive Regulations means the regular division of a whole, such as the division of the seasons of the year into ninety-day periods clearly marked by the solstices and equinoxes. Whatever makes regular division may be denominated by a "restrictive regulation," and there enter into it the ideas of ordering and restraining. The hexagram deals with the regulations of government enacted for the guidance and control of the people. An important point is made that these regulations must be adapted to the circumstances and not made too strict and severe.
Ch'eng-tzu says on the Image: "The water which a lake or marsh will contain is limited to a certain quantity. If the water flowing in exceeds that amount, it overflows. This gives us the idea of Restrictive Regulations."
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: Restrictive Regulations are necessary for growth, but severe restriction must itself be limited.
The Superior Man differentiates his options in relation to the goals of the Work.
The Work itself is nothing if not a rigid structure imposed upon one's life -- a "restrictive regulation" of the ego's illusion of freedom of choice. Ordinary people insist that their lives are ordered by the intelligent exercise of free will, but this "freedom" is more commonly just a rationalization for the activity of autonomous complexes. No one can look objectively at the current state of the world and seriously claim that it reflects either rational order or balanced perception. Collective human experience on this planet is determined by the whims of archetypal forces expressing themselves through the unconscious psyches of six-billion people.
The Work then, is a restrictive regulation of these autonomous forces -- it is a limitation, a containment of the expression of instinct and desire. We are reminded of the alchemical vessel which is hermetically sealed to prevent its contents from escaping before they have been transmuted into gold. If the alchemist miscalculates his "methods of numbering and measurement" the vessel becomes a kind of bomb: the seal breaks, the contents explode, and the Work is ruined. This is what is meant by "if the regulations are severe and difficult, the course of action will come to an end." If we restrict the contents of the vessel beyond their capacity for confinement the psyche boils over in some degree of rebellion. This is no minor thing -- depending on the circumstances, severe psychotic reactions can be created in this manner.
On the other hand, the ego thinks that all but the most minor restrictions are severe and difficult, and it is constantly on the verge of rebellion. As always, it is the Self which must determine how far the restrictive regulations can be taken. From its perspective outside of spacetime it is best able to determine how much pressure the psyche can take -- frequently it is far more (or sometimes far less) than the ego thinks possible.
The Confucian commentary observes: "We see a cheerful attitude directing the course amidst peril." This refers to the lower trigram of Cheerfulness encountering the upper trigram of Peril or Danger. The restrictions of the Work are more often than not unpleasant and risky, constantly verging on some kind of an explosion. An attitude of cheerful acceptance enables one to survive these difficult trials. This is an extremely important concept, because without it one can all too easily fall into a suicidal despair. The Work can become an impossible burden unless one learns how to approach stress and hardship with an almost irreverent sense of humor. (This in itself is an essential lesson about how to purge the ego of its myopic notions of what it will and will not "accept" in life.)
There is an old Zen proverb that says: "Hell, also, is a place to live in." The message is clear: be of good cheer, because without it you are sure to fail.
The seeming inevitability of conflict among the archetypal "powers" can cause us to experience life as a hopeless, senseless impasse. But the conflict can also be discovered to be the expression of a symbolic pattern still to be intuited. It can be lived as if it were a drama, the play of life or of the gods, for the purpose of experiencing an ultimate meaning ... When one can feel with Goethe that "everything transient is but a symbol," then meaning can be found not only in creativity, joy and love but also in impasse, suffering and conflict. Then life can be lived as a work of art. E.C. Whitmont -- The Symbolic Quest
Line 4
Legge: The fourth line, magnetic, shows its subject quietly and naturally attentive to all regulations. There will be progress and success.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Contented limitation. Success.
Blofeld: Peaceful restraint -- success!
Liu: Peaceful limitation. Success.
Ritsema/Karcher: Quiet Articulating Growing.
Shaughnessy: Placid moderation; receipt.
Cleary (1): Peaceful discipline is developmental.
Cleary (2): Peaceful regulation is successful.
Wu: He achieves regulation with ease. Pervasive.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Progress and success is due to the difference which accepts the ways of the ruler above. Wilhelm/Baynes: Accepting the way of the one above. Blofeld: Success is indicated by the firm line immediately above this one. Ritsema/ Karcher: Receiving tao above indeed. Cleary (2): Taking up the higher path. Wu: He supports his superior.
Legge: Line four is magnetic, as it ought to be, and she has respect for the authority of the dynamic ruler in line five above her -- hence the good symbolism and auspice.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The man understands the nature of regulations and accommodates accordingly. He does not waste energy in useless struggles, but directs it effectively to solving the problem at hand.
Wing: Allow your Limitations to become natural extensions of your behavior.
Accommodate and adapt yourself to the fixed conditions in the situation. Don't carry on battles over "the principle of the thing." Deal with the matter at hand and you will meet with success.
Editor: The idea here is to work within the limitations of the situation at hand. By doing this, one acts according to the will of the Self: ("...accepts the ways of the ruler above").
When nothing is possible without His will, then what is the use of planning? Is it not better to depend on Him and do as He wills? ... When his will bids circumstances and environment change, then accept the change, not before. Swami Saradananda
A. Accept the restrictions of the Work.
58 Joy
Other titles: The Joyous, Joyousness, Pleased Satisfaction, Encouraging, Delight, Open, Usurpation, Self-indulgence, Pleasure, Cheerfulness, Frivolity, Callow Optimism
Judgment
Legge:Joy intimates that under its conditions there will be progress and attainment, but it will be advantageous to be firm and correct.
Wilhelm/Baynes:The Joyous. Success. Perseverance is favorable.
Blofeld: Joy -- success! Persistence in a righteous course brings reward.
Liu: Joyousness. Success. Continuance is favorable.
Ritsema/Karcher:Open, Growing. Harvesting Trial. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of interaction and exchange. It emphasizes that stimulating things through cheering and persuasive speech, the action of Open, is the adequate way to handle it. To be in accord with the time, you are told to: stimulate!]
Shaughnessy:Usurpation: Receipt; a little beneficial to determine.
Cleary (1): Joy is developmental, beneficial if correct. [This hexagram represents joy in practicing the Tao. Having one’s will in the Tao is finding joy in the Tao; when one delights in the Tao, then one can practice the Tao. This is why Joy is developmental.]
Cleary (2):Delight comes through, beneficial if correct.
Wu:Joy indicates pervasiveness. It is advantageous to be persevering.
The Image
Legge: Two images of the waters of a marsh, one over the other, form Joy. The superior man, in accordance with this, encourages the conversation of friends and the stimulus of their common practice.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Lakes resting one on the other: the image of The Joyous. Thus the superior man joins with his friends for discussion and practice.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes two bodies of water conjoined. The Superior Man joins his friends in discussions and in practicing the various arts and virtues.
Liu: The beautiful lakes symbolize Joyousness. The superior man joins his fellows for teaching and study.
Ritsema/Karcher: Congregating marshes. Open. A chun tzu uses partnering friends to explicate repeating.
Cleary (1): Joined lakes are joyful. Thus do superior people explain and practice with companions. [As water provides moisture for myriad beings, joy develops myriad beings; joyful within and without, reaching the outer from within, communicating with the inner from without, inside and outside are conjoined, without separation between them – therefore it is called joy.]
Cleary (2): ... Thus do developed people study and practice with companions.
Wu: One marsh is adjacent to another; this is Joy. Thus the jun zi discusses and exchanges ideas with friends.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge:Joy has the meaning of Pleased Satisfaction. We have the dynamic lines in the center and the magnetic lines on the outer edge of the two trigrams, indicating that in pleasure what is most advantageous is the maintenance of firm correctness. Through this there will be found an accordance with the will of heaven, and a correspondence with the feelings of men. When such pleasure goes before the people, and leads them on, they forget their toils; when it animates them in encountering difficulties, they forget the risk of death. How great is the power of this Pleased Satisfaction, stimulating in such a way the people!
Legge: The feeling of pleasure is the subject of this hexagram, which is made up of the doubled trigram of Cheerfulness, or Pleased Satisfaction. The progress and attainment of the figure are due to the one magnetic line surmounting each trigram and supported by the two dynamic lines. The idea is that of mildness which is energized by a double portion of strength.
The pleasure which leads the people to endure toil and risk death is the effect of the instructive example of their ruler. Fu Fan-hsien paraphrases this portion of the text as: "When the sage with this precedes them, he can make them endure toil without any wish to decline it, and go with him into difficulty and danger without their having any fear."
Anthony: This hexagram speaks, on the one hand, of that on which true joy depends, and on the other, of joy as desire, which leads to conflict. The essence of true joy is inner stability. Being firmly devoted to our path, we do not waver. When we think of the soft and comfortable path, on the other hand, self-conflict begins. Therefore, getting this hexagram indicates that we may be wavering or irresolute.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: A cheerful attitude serves the will.
The Superior Man shares his thoughts and feelings. [Or, psychologically interpreted: observes, weighs and integrates his thoughts with his feelings.]
The title of this hexagram denotes joyousness and pleasure, and most people regard it as a good omen when they receive it. Yet, an analysis of the lines indicates that only the first two are particularly favorable, and the hexagram itself seldom seems to refer to anything remotely resembling “Joy” in a typical oracle consultation. The lessons to be learned from the figure are the differences between self-indulgence and maintaining emotional stability in one's conduct of the Work, which always demands a firm control over one’s affects. To receive this hexagram without changing lines requires the querent's careful discrimination -- it can mean simply: "Oh happy day!" Or, it can suggest that you examine an inclination toward lack of control in the situation at hand. The oracle is capable of brutal sarcasm when your query warrants it, so don't be too quick to accept the shallow meaning ofJoy – as often as not, Self-indulgence is the more appropriate title.
In light frivolity, the center is lost; in hasty action, self-mastery is lost. Lao Tse
The Image depicts an open interchange among “friends.” Intrapsychically, this suggests the normal give and take between thoughts and feelings for the purpose of reaching integration. The symbol of “two bodies of water conjoined” (Blofeld) might refer to the adjacent dimensions of thought and emotion within the psyche. When feelings are not in harmony with intellectual differentiation (a common phenomenon), give and take (“discussion and practice”), is essential to effect integration: i.e., harmony, or “joy.”"Practice" suggests cycles of time, and the notion that perfection is still to be achieved.
Shaughnessy’s seemingly anomalous title of Usurpation for this hexagram offers some subtle insights into the symbolism here. Emotions, feelings, affects, are often portrayed as daemonic forces which “usurp” ego consciousness and indulge themselves in the “joy” of expressing whatever they happen to represent in the psyche. This is often what is implied when receiving this hexagram.
Each of us is equipped with a psychic disposition that limits our freedom in high degree and makes it practically illusory. Not only is "freedom of the will" an incalculable problem philosophically, it is also a misnomer in the practical sense, for we seldom find anybody who is not influenced and indeed dominated by desires, habits, impulses, prejudices, resentments, and by every conceivable kind of complex. All these natural facts function exactly like an Olympus full of deities who want to be propitiated, served, feared and worshipped, not only by the individual owner of this assorted pantheon, but by everybody in his vicinity. Jung -- Psychology and Religion
Cleary’s Taoist commentary: “As water provides moisture for myriad beings, etc.,” supports this interpretation. Water symbolizes the emotional realm, and the “myriad beings” dwelling therein are emotional entities: creatures like untamed animals, which are never happier than when running free. To them it’s Joy; to the executive function in the psyche, it’s Self-indulgence. Usurpation has taken place.