My Run-in with I Ching 41: Decrease
So, the other day, I decided to have a sit down with the I Ching. Things felt a bit… much. You know that feeling? Like you’re juggling too many things. Anyway, I got out my coins, did the usual tossing routine, focusing on just needing a bit of clarity.
Ended up with Hexagram 41, Sun. Decrease. My first thought was, honestly, a little bit like “Uh oh, what am I losing now?”. The word ‘decrease’ just sounds kinda negative off the bat, doesn’t it?
But I sat with it for a bit. Pondered. Decrease. It doesn’t always have to mean loss in a bad way. Sometimes you gotta trim the hedges for the plant to grow better, right? Maybe it meant I needed to cut back on something myself.
Making it Real
I looked at my schedule, my to-do list that seemed to stretch into next year. It was pretty obvious where the ‘decrease’ needed to happen. I was spread thin, trying to keep too many plates spinning.
- First thing I did was look at my social commitments. There was this one regular meetup that was nice, but honestly, it drained me more than it energized me lately. Decided to politely bow out for a while.
- Then, my desk. Piles of stuff. Good intentions, half-finished projects. I spent a solid hour just clearing it. Not organizing into fancy folders, just… decreasing the clutter. Put stuff away, tossed what was clearly junk.
- Even cut back on checking news and social media constantly. Just decided, okay, check it morning and evening, that’s it. Decrease the input.
How it Felt
It wasn’t about losing money or possessions, not this time. It was about decreasing the demands on my time and energy. And you know what? It actually felt good. Lighter. Like taking off a heavy backpack I didn’t realize I was carrying.
It wasn’t a huge, dramatic change. Just small steps. Trimming the fat, so to speak. That Hexagram 41, yeah, it pointed towards ‘decrease’, but for me, it turned out to be about increasing my own peace of mind by letting go of the excess. Simple as that, really. Just a practical adjustment.
