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Hexagram 41: Decrease
損 · Sǔn
Decrease combined with sincerity brings great fortune and no blame. Perseverance furthers. If one has two bowls, one can indeed be used for sacrifice.Judgment 卦辭
At the foot of the mountain, the lake: the image of Decrease. The superior man controls his anger and restrains his impulses.Image 象辭
Core Meaning of Hexagram 41
Hexagram 41 is decrease — the lake drained to heighten the mountain. Loss, austerity, sacrifice: resources or energy genuinely go down. Yet with sincerity, decrease brings ‘great fortune and no blame’ — the deliberate sacrifice of the lower for the higher, the second bowl given away, is one of the most auspicious gestures in the book.
Hexagram 41 in a Reading
In a reading, less is the way. Cut costs, cut obligations, cut ego — but do it willingly and cleanly, not with grief or resentment, and direct the savings toward something real (the offering). Simplification now is not poverty but concentration. Also the inner version: less anger, fewer impulses, reduced reactivity. What you subtract in this season is what makes the next season’s increase possible.
Common Questions
What does hexagram 41 mean?
Hexagram 41 is decrease — the lake drained to heighten the mountain. Read the full meaning above, or cast your own reading with our free online I Ching coins.
What is the structure of hexagram 41?
Hexagram 41 is built from the trigram Mountain above and Lake below — binary 110001 read from the bottom line to the top. Decrease is King Wen number 41 of the 64 hexagrams.
Related Hexagrams
Other Hexagrams with Trigram Mountain Above
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