41 - Decrease

Contemporary Interpretation

41 - Decrease

Reenter the river of abundance.

A short cycle
Of regeneration:
Inhalation,
Let me be fed,
Exhale.
Reenter
The river of
Abundance.

Follow the Path of the Dao: A Western Approximation

The Hexagram's Inner Trigrams

yang yin yin yin yang yang

Upper Trigram: Gen, Mountain

2nd Core Character: Kun, Earth

1st Core Character: Zhen, Thunder

Lower Trigram: Dui, Lake

The Hexagram's Inner Trigrams in the Context of Yin and Yang

The hexagram's inner trigrams within the fields of Yin and Yang

Changes and Impulses

Additional Resources

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The characters »decrease« (41) and »increase« show the beginning of flourishment and decay.

The image

At the foot of the mountain is the lake: the image of decrease. Thus the superior man tames his anger and inhibits his instincts.

The judgement

Decrease together with truthfulness has sublime good fortune without blame. One may be preserving. It furthers to undertake something. How is this done? One may use two small bowls for the sacrifice. Full text of Richard Wilhelm's 1924 translation by Cary F. Baynes