Asking for trust
One thinks that one can continue without checks. taoscopy.com
Decrease41
Simplify and reduce. Embrace minimalism to gain clarity and focus on what truly matters. Letting go can bring unexpected abundance.
↓ Line 1
Acting promptly and efficiently is beneficial, but one should be mindful of not diminishing others in the process.
↓ Line 2
Steadfastness is advantageous, but taking on new ventures may lead to trouble. By maintaining one's own resources, one can support others.
↓ Line 6
Gaining without causing loss to others is blameless. Continued effort brings success, and one may gain assistance, though personal independence may be compromised.
↓ The Receptive2
Receptive, nurturing energy; embody patience, openness, and gentle support. Embrace the path of yielding and adapt to circumstances.
41 Decrease
Other titles: Decrease, The Symbol of Lessening, Loss, Diminishing, Reduction, Diminution of Excesses, Decline, Bringing into Balance, Dynamic Balance, Sacrifice, "Not necessarily material loss. Can mean decreasing the lower self to increase the higher." -- D.F. Hook
Judgment
Legge: Compensating Sacrifice means that sincerely maintained rectitude brings great success. Action is appropriate if one's sacrifice is sincere -- even two baskets of grain, though there be nothing else, may be offered.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Decrease combined with sincerity brings about supreme good fortune without blame. One may be persevering in this. It furthers one to undertake something. How is this to be carried out? One may use two small bowls for the sacrifice.
Blofeld: Loss accompanied by confidence -- sublime good fortune and no error! It is favorable to have in view some goal (or destination). If there is doubt as to what to use for the sacrifice, two small bowls will suffice.
Liu:Decrease with sincerity: great good fortune, no blame. One may continue. It is beneficial to go somewhere. How can this (decrease with sincerity) be done? One may use two bamboo containers of grain for a sacrifice.
Ritsema/Karcher: Diminishing, possessing conformity. Spring significant. Without fault, permitting Trial. Harvesting: possessing directed going. Asking-why: having availing of. Two platters permit availing-of presenting. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of sacrifice and loss. It emphasizes that lessening yourself and decreasing your involvements is the adequate way to handle it...]
Shaughnessy: There is a return; prime auspiciousness; there is no trouble. It can be determined. Beneficial to have someplace to go. Why use two tureens; you can use aromatic grass.
Cleary (1): Reduction with sincerity is very auspicious, impeccable. It should be correct. It is beneficial to go somewhere. What is the use of the two bowls? They can be used to receive.
Cleary (2): … It is beneficial to have somewhere to go, etc … They can be used for presentation.
Wu: Loss indicates that with confidence there will be great fortune, no error, perseverance, and advantage to have undertakings. What to use in offerings? Two boxes of grain are adequate.
The Image
Legge: The image of a mountain and beneath it the waters of a marsh form Compensating Sacrifice. The superior man, in accordance with this, restrains his wrath and represses his desires.
Wilhelm/Baynes: At the foot of the mountain, the lake: the image of Decrease. Thus the superior man controls his anger and restrains his instincts.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes a marshy lake at the foot of a mountain. The Superior Man keeps his anger under control and is moderate in his desires.
Liu: The lake beside the mountain symbolizes Decrease. The superior man curbs his indignation and restricts his desires.
Ritsema/Karcher: Below mountain possessing marsh. Diminishing. A chun tzu uses curbing anger to block the appetites.
Cleary (1): There is a lake under a mountain, reducing it. Thus does the superior person eliminate wrath and cupidity.
Cleary (2): Lake below a mountain – Reducing. Thus do developed people eliminate anger and greed.
Wu: There is a marsh below the mountain; this is Loss. Thus the jun zi mitigates his anger and restrains his desires.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: In Compensating Sacrificethe lower trigram is diminished to increase the upper, and the flow is upward. The two baskets of grain accord with the time. There is a time when the strong should be diminished and the weak strengthened. Decrease and increase, overflowing and emptiness, take place in harmony with the demands of the time.
Legge: Ch'eng-tzu says: "Every diminution and repression of what we have in excess to bring it into accordance with right and reason is comprehended under Compensating Sacrifice. If there is sincerity in doing this it will lead to success and happiness, and even if the offering is small, yet it will be accepted."
The K'ang-hsi editors say: "What is meant by diminishing in this hexagram is the regulation of expenditure or contribution according to the time. This would vary in a family according to its poverty or wealth, and in a state according to the abundance or scantiness of its resources. If one supplements the insufficiency of his offering with the abundance of his sincerity, the insignificance of his two baskets will not be despised."
The waters of a marsh are continually rising up in vapor to bedew the hill above it, and thus increase its verdure. What is taken from the marsh gives increase to the hill.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: A sacrifice creates equilibrium.
The Superior Man sacrifices his appetites to a higher principle.
The traditional name for this hexagram is Decrease, but the lines and commentary all describe a compensating exchange of forces to attain equilibrium. The idea of "sacrifice" is mentioned in the Judgment, and that also might make a good title, though the image of two baskets of grain suggests a balancing scale: a "compensating" device. In this hexagram, the flow of energy moves from below upwards -- the waters of the lake or marsh are dispersed to enrich the mountain. In psychological terms we think of the ego sacrificing or decreasing its autonomy to achieve psychic equilibrium with the Self: we forfeit something valuable to obtain something even more valuable. Without this quid pro quo, the concept of sacrifice is meaningless and irrational.
A sacrifice is meant to be a loss, so that one may be sure that the egoistic claim no longer exists. Therefore the gift should be given as if it were being destroyed. But since the gift represents myself, I have in that case destroyed myself, given myself away without expectation of return. Yet, looked at in another way, this intentional loss is also a gain, for if you can give yourself it proves that you possess yourself. Nobody can give what he has not got. Jung -- Transformation Symbolism in the Mass
Compare the Image message from hexagram number 15, Temperance with the notion of a compensating balance: "The superior man, in accordance with this, diminishes his excesses to augment his insufficiencies, thus creating a just balance." We are reminded of another "Temperance" -- the 14th Arcanum of the Tarot, which depicts an angel pouring water from one vessel into another: "compensating." A comparison of its symbolism with that of hexagram number 41 yields many insights:
The Path of ... TEMPERANCE, leads from ... the Personality [ego] to the Higher Self ... The whole experience is one of preparation of the Personality [ego], and the body in which it is operating, to deal with an influx of Light which would be devastating to a system unready to handle such energy. Most important here is the monitoring of progress, the continual testing from above. It is the angel here which is at once the Higher Self and the initiatory forces of Nature, which pours the elixir from vase to vase. This is an ongoing process of testing; measuring to see how much the physical vehicle can bear. R. Wang --The Qabalistic Tarot
Without belaboring the point, we can see that all sacrifice is a kind of remuneration: it couldn't be otherwise in an interconnected universe. The Image instruction for the superior man to “control his anger” is also echoed in the Temperance card. This relates to:
...an aspect of the Mysteries only rarely discussed, and certainly germane to the Twenty-Fifth Path [the Kabbalistic equivalent of the relationship between lines one and four in this hexagram]: this is the very real hostility often felt by the student toward the Path itself, as he works day after day and seems to be getting nowhere. Such hostility and frustration is in itself a major test; it is part and parcel of the work prior to the emergence of inner proofs. -- Ibid
"Decrease with sincerity" (Liu) refers to one's continuous sacrifice for the goals of the Work, and "curbing anger" (Ritsema/Karcher) is how one handles the archetypal forces evoked when the decrease seems endless and you've yet to receive anything in return. Like any other hexagram, Compensating Sacrifice can symbolize an infinity of possible situations, but psychologically speaking we can first regard it as an image of sacrifice for the purpose of attaining a balance of power within the psyche. Without the sacrificial devotion of the ego, the Self cannot attain its will; and if the Self can't make it, the ego is doomed by default.
Line 1
Legge: The first line, dynamic, shows its subject suspending his own affairs, and hurrying away to help the subject of the fourth line. He will commit no error, but let him consider how far he should contribute of what is his for the other.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Going quickly when one's tasks are finished is without blame. But one must reflect on how much one may decrease others.
Blofeld: To hurry away when work is done is not wrong, but first consider whether such a hasty departure will harm the work.
Liu: To go quickly after the work is done brings no blame. One should consider how much the decrease will be.
Ritsema/Karcher: Climaxing affairs, swiftly going. Without fault. Discussing Diminishing it.
Shaughnessy: Already serving the ends in going; there is no trouble; toasting decreases it.
Cleary (1): Ending affairs, going quickly, there is no fault; but assess before reducing something.
Cleary (2): … Assess the reduction of this.
Wu: He stops doing his own things, and swiftly goes forward. There will be no blame. He should consider limiting the loss.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: The subject of the fourth line mingles her wishes with his. Wilhelm/Baynes: The mind of the one above accords with one's own. Blofeld: Moreover, the approval of our superiors must first be obtained. Ritsema/ Karcher: Honoring uniting purposes indeed. Cleary (2): Valuing unification of aims. Wu: He does what pleases the above.
Legge: Line one is dynamic and his correlate in line four is magnetic. He wants to help her, but won't leave anything of his own undone in doing so. Nor will he diminish anything of his own for her without due deliberation.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: At the outset, the man disregards his own interests to help his superior. The latter should be sensitive to the amount of such help that can be accepted without harm to the subordinate. Neither should a subordinate give without due consideration.
Wing: When you are in a position to help others or to be helped yourself, be certain that moderation is exercised. To give or take too much can result in an imbalanced situation. Think this through carefully before acting.
Editor: The full meaning of this line is best evoked by comparing it with its fourth line correlate. This is an image of less than total support. It says: "Render all due assistance." It is left up to you to differentiate the appropriate amount, which is a hint that a test may be involved. ("...Let him consider how far he should contribute of what is his for the other" can sometimes imply a warning about slavish service to archetypal powers.) When compared with the image of line four, we get a definite picture of an active balancing of forces – perhaps a dialectical process. The Self is demanding a differentiation from the rational ego. This is a complex line which often implies messages which are literally impossible to put into words.
Principally he must know how far he is willing to go, what he is willing to sacrifice. There is nothing more easy to say than everything. A man can never sacrifice everything and this can never be required of him. But he must define exactly what he is willing to sacrifice and not bargain about it afterwards. Gurdjieff
A. An image of judicious choices to attain proper balance or equitable compensation of forces.
B. How much are you willing to give to the Work? (Be careful with your answer!)
C. Render aid to "the one above." (The Self.)
Line 2
Legge: The second line, dynamic, shows that it will be advantageous for its subject to maintain firm correctness, and that action on his part will be evil. He can give increase to his correlate without taking from himself.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Perseverance furthers. To undertake something brings misfortune. Without decreasing oneself, one is able to bring increase to others.
Blofeld: Persistence in a righteous course brings reward, but to advance (or go anywhere) now would bring misfortune. This is not a time for decreasing but for augmenting.
Liu: To continue is beneficial. Undertakings bring misfortune. Without decrease, without increase.
Ritsema/Karcher: Harvesting Trial. Chastising: pitfall. Nowhere Diminishing, augmenting it.
Shaughnessy: Beneficial to determine; to be upright is inauspicious. Not decreasing it, but increasing it.
Cleary (1): It is beneficial to be correct. An expedition is inauspicious. No reduction or increase of this. [If you do not know when enough is enough and go on reducing and increasing, you will reactivate the human mentality and thus obscure the mind of Tao … It is because the strong energy is balanced, not biased or lopsided, that there is no more reduction or increasing to be done.]
Cleary (2): … Increase it without reduction.
Wu: It is advantageous to be firm and correct, but foreboding to go ahead. His decision of not taking a loss will benefit the other. [It may be justifiable for the below to support the above in a very moderate way in time of Loss, but it would be unacceptable by asking the below to give up all of its possessions … to satisfy the above.]
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: His central position gives its character to his aim. Wilhelm/Baynes: It has the correct mean in its mind. Blofeld: The central position of this line in the lower trigram indicates that persistence will be rewarded by the fulfillment of what is willed. Ritsema/Karcher: Centering using activating purposes indeed. Cleary (2): The balance that characterizes its aim. Wu: He is to remain central.
Legge: Line two is dynamic and in the central place. But he is in the place of a magnetic line, and should maintain his position without moving to help his fifth line correlate. Maintaining his own firm correctness is the best way to give assistance. " His aim" is to abide where he is and help the fifth line by the exhibition of firm correctness.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The man renders faithful service without sacrificing himself. Forfeiting one's dignity and personality to do the bidding of a person of high rank is shameful.
Wing: When aiding others, be certain to maintain your sense of dignity. If the nature of your task diminishes your strength or compromises your principles, or if you sacrifice your personality to please your superior, you are acting shamefully. Only efforts that do not diminish your Self are worthwhile.
Editor: This line changes the hexagram to number twenty- seven, Nourishing, the corresponding line of which carries a similar message, i.e., the idea that one's impetus to act is incorrect. Lines one and three each show some variation of active compensating (balancing) going on. Here in line two, which is the center of the lower trigram, action is inappropriate. It is the fulcrum or point of balance which must remain stationary. Note the subtle differences in the various translations of the last sentence. You decide.
The Sage uses his mind like a mirror. It remains in its place passively, and it gives back what it receives without concealment. Therefore it can overcome things without distorting them. Chuangtse
A. You serve the Work best now by remaining in place. Willpower, non-action and example are all the assistance that is required.
B. Maintain the status-quo.
Line 6
Legge: The sixth line, dynamic, shows its subject giving increase to others without taking from himself. There will be no error. With firm correctness there will be good fortune. There will be advantage in every movement that shall be made. He will find ministers more than can be counted by their clans.
Wilhelm/Baynes: If one is increased without depriving others, there is no blame. Perseverance brings good fortune. It furthers one to undertake something. One obtains servants but no longer has a separate home. [Through perseverance and zealous work a man wins success and finds helpers as they are needed. But what he accomplishes is not a limited private advantage; it is a public good and available to everyone… There are loyal helpers, but not for promoting family interests.]
Blofeld: Gain which causes no loss to others involves no error. Persistence in a righteous course brings good fortune. It is favorable to have in view some goal (or destination). He obtains followers but not a family (or home).
Liu: If one increases (gains) without anyone decreasing (losing), no blame. To continue brings good fortune. It is beneficial to go somewhere else; one will find a helper after leaving home.
Ritsema/Karcher: Nowhere Diminishing, augmenting it. Without fault. Trial: significant. Harvesting: possessing directed going. Acquiring a servant, without dwelling.
Shaughnessy: Not decreasing it, but increasing it; there is no trouble; determination is auspicious; there is someplace to go; obtain a servant without family.
Cleary (1): Not reducing or increasing this is faultless. Correctness brings good fortune. It is beneficial to go somewhere. Getting a servant, there is no house. [The mind of Tao is the master, the human mind is the servant. When the mind of Tao is in charge of things, every step, every undertaking, is celestial design; personal desires do not arise, and even the human mind transforms into the mind of Tao: “getting a servant, there is no house” … This is returning to ultimate good by reduction.]
Cleary (2): Increase without reduction, and there will be no blame. Correctness leads to good results. There is somewhere to go. Getting an administrator without a house. [To increase the third yin, it is necessary not to reduce the top yang. This is because the third yin as an administrator is in the position of “losing one’s home in the service of the country,” but the top yang perceives the sincerity of this lone journey, so this is “great attainment of the objective,” and the third yin considers this “getting companionship.” This is called “increase without reduction.”]
Wu: His wishes of not taking a loss will benefit others. No error. Perseverance brings auspiciousness. It is advantageous to have undertakings. His subordinates are so dedicated to their assignments that they act as if they had no families.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: He obtains his wish on a grand scale. Wilhelm/Baynes: He attains his will in great measure. Blofeld: The first sentence presages the complete fulfillment of what is willed. Ritsema/Karcher: The great acquiring purpose indeed. Cleary (2): Increase without reduction is great attainment of the objective. Wu: His aspiration is fully realized.
Legge: Line six has been changed from a magnetic to a dynamic line from line three. He has received the greatest increase and will carry out the idea of the hexagram in the highest degree and style. He can increase others without diminishing his own resources, and the benefit will be incalculable. Ministers will come to serve him, and not one from each clan only, but many. Ch'eng-tzu says on line six: "Dwelling on high and taking nothing from those below him, but on the contrary giving more to them, the superior man accomplishes his aim on a grand scale. The aim of the superior man is simply to be increasing what others have -- that and nothing else.”
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The man increases in power and dispenses blessings to the world without diminishing his own resources. Everyone willingly serves him because he does not siphon off resources to his private advantage.
Wing: Expand your goals to encompass a more universal pursuit. In this way others will lend support. Your successes will lead you to a new public awareness. You may find this social position and responsibility a desirable new life-style and a benefit to many.
Editor: There is a conceptual disagreement between Legge's rendition of this line and that of the other translators. Legge: “increasing others while not decreasing oneself.” Wilhelm: “increasing oneself without decreasing others.” Cleary’s Buddhist version is the most neutral: “increase without reduction.” My understanding of the hexagram is that it depicts a process of active compensation -- the continuous give and take of life which maintains a fair equilibrium: neither pole imbalances the other. Psychologically interpreted, the sentence about the “servant but no home,” suggests the creation of a kind of Psychic Commonwealth in which all the complexes have become integrated enough to abandon their partisan interests and serve the intentions of the Self. The ego as an administrator or servant is essential for the attainment of this.
Insofar as analytical treatment makes the “shadow” conscious, it causes a cleavage and a tension of opposites which in their turn seek compensation in unity. Jung –Memories, Dreams, Reflections
It may be thought that a few initiates living life according to principle could have little effect on the vast mass of people living their lives in various degrees of chaos, seeking only after pleasure and profit rather than principle. The point is, though, that a life lived with talismanic intention has far greater force than one that has its patterns based, not on spiritual reality, but on day to day physical expediency. Gareth Knight -- Qabalistic Symbolism
A. A harmonious alliance or balance of power is created through the wise apportionment of energy and resources.
B. It costs you nothing to benefit the situation.
C. Increase without decrease.
2 The Receptive
Other titles: The Receptive, The Symbol of Earth, Submission, The Passive Principle, Field, The Flow, Responsive Service, Yin, Natural Response, The Bearer
Judgment
Legge:The Magnetic means success through the docility of a mare. If the superior man takes the initiative, he goes astray, but if he follows, he finds his proper lord. It is advantageous to find one's friends in the southwest, and to lose them in the northeast. Through a passively firm correctness, there will be good fortune.
Wilhelm/Baynes: The Receptive brings about sublime success, furthering through the perseverance of a mare. If the superior man undertakes something and tries to lead, he goes astray; but if he follows, he finds guidance. It is favorable to find friends in the west and south, to forgo friends in the east and north. Quiet perseverance brings good fortune.
Blofeld:The Passive Principle. Sublime success! Its omen is a mare, symbolizing advantage. The Superior Man has an objective and sets forth to gain it. At first he goes astray, but later finds his bearings. It is advantageous to gain friends in the west and the south, but friends in the east and the north will be lost to us. Peaceful and righteous persistence brings good fortune
Liu: The Receptive : great success. Benefiting from the quality of a mare -- perseverance. The superior man has an undertaking; in the beginning he will go astray, but later will receive guidance. He can find a friend in the southwest and lose friends in the northeast. Peacefulness and continuance. Good fortune.
Ritsema/Karcher: Field: Spring Growing Harvesting, female horse's Trial.
A chun tzu possesses directed going. Beforehand delusion, afterwards
acquiring. A lord Harvesting. Western South: acquiring partnering. Eastern North: losing partnering. Quiet Trial significant. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of the primal structuring power confronted with many forces and obstacles. It emphasizes that giving way in order to serve and yield results, the action of Field, is the adequate way to handle it. To be in accord with the time, you are told to yield!]
Shaughnessy:The Flow: Prime receipt; beneficial for the determination of a mare; the gentleman has someplace to go, is first lost but later gains his ruler; beneficial to the southwest to gain a friend, to the northeast to lose a friend; contented determination is auspicious.
Cleary(1): With earth, creativity and development are achieved in the faithfulness of the female horse. The superior person has somewhere to go. Taking the lead, one goes astray; following, one finds the master. It is beneficial to gain companionship in the southwest and lose companionship in the northeast. Stability in rectitude is good.
Cleary(2): The creative is successful. It is beneficial to be correct like a mare. People with developmental potential have a goal; if they go ahead before this, they will get lost. If they follow, they get the benefit of the director. Companionship is found in the southwest; companionship is lost in the northeast. Stability and correctness bode well.
Wu:The Bearer is primordial, pervasive, prosperous, and has the perseverance of a mare. When the jun zi is going to undertake a task, he will lose his direction if he leads, and he will find guidance if he follows. This will be advantageous. If he goes south or west, he will win friends; if he goes north or east, he will lose them. If he can be content and single-hearted, he will have good fortune.
The Image
Legge: The capacity and sustaining power of the Earth is shown in The Magnetic. The superior man supports men and things with his large virtue.
Wilhelm/Baynes: The earth's condition is receptive devotion. Thus the superior man who has breadth of character carries the outer world.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes the passivity of the terrestrial forces. The Superior Man displays the highest virtue by embracing all things.
Liu: The earth's condition is that of the Receptive. The superior man has the greatness of character to bear with everything in the world.
Ritsema/Karcher: Earth potency: Field. A chun tzu uses munificent actualizing-tao to carry the beings. [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): The configuration of earth is receptive; superior people support
others with warmth.
Cleary(2): The attitude of earth is receptivity. Thus do leaders support people with rich virtue.
Wu:The Bearer symbolizes the physical features and resources of the earth. Thus the jun zi uses his immense virtue to bear his responsibilities.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: All things owe their birth to the great originating capacity of The Magnetic -- it obediently receives the influences of Heaven. Its largeness contains and supports all things, and its capacity matches the unlimited power of The Dynamic. Its comprehension is wide, its brilliance great, and through it all things are fully developed. The mare is a creature of the earth, with a limitless power to traverse the land. She is mild and docile, with stamina and capacity for work. Such is the path of the superior man. If he takes the initiative, he loses his way; if he follows, he finds it again. In the southwest he will walk with his own kind. To lose friends in the northeast means he is well rid of them. The passively firm correctness of the superior man imitates the unlimited capacity of the earth.
Legge: The same attributes are ascribed to The Magnetic as in the former hexagram to The Dynamic -- but with a difference: The Dynamic originates, The Magnetic produces, or gives birth to what has been originated. This figure, made of six divided lines, symbolizes the idea of subordination and docility. The superior man described here must not take the initiative, and by following he will find his lord – the subject ofThe Dynamic. The firm correctness is analogous to a mare -- docile and strong, but a creature for the service of man. That it is not the sex of the animal which is paramount is plain from the mention of the superior man and his lord.
The superior man will bring his friends with him to serve the ruler. The southwest is the direction proper forThe Magnetic.The northeast is the direction proper for the trigram of the Mountain -- hence a direction of obstruction and impasse, the opposite of magnetic receptivity. Thus the injunction to seek friends who are receptive, and shun those who are recalcitrant.
Concerning The Image, Lin Hsi-yuan says: "The superior man, in his single person sustains the burden of all under the sky. The common people depend on him for their rest and enjoyment. Birds and beasts and creeping things, and the tribes of the vegetable kingdom, depend on him for the fulfillment of their destined being. If he be of a narrow mind and cold virtue, how can he help them? Their hope in him would be in vain."
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: The ego bears the burden of the Work. Success is found in compliance with the will of the Self.
The Superior Man supports the Work through its many transformations.
In terms of the symbolism of the Work, the second hexagram clearly shows the proper role of the ego as one of receptivity to the will of the Self. The sexual, male-female metaphor must be interpreted as one of polarity. The ego, inhabiting a physical body, is the psychological link which connects the material dimension of spacetime with the world of thought where the Self resides. To be receptive to the influence of the Self is to allow its energy to work through the ego-body to attain its purpose. This earth-like receptivity is seen as a feminine quality, as the Heavenly dynamic force emanating from the Self is seen as masculine. Earth means the body in spacetime, and Heaven means the realm of thought transcending spacetime -- the Pleroma of the gnostics which Jung referred to as the Collective Unconscious. The concept is also found in the Kabbalah:
I am the Door of Life, The passage from the world of ideas Into the world of form... Now, as Daleth [the Door], I present myself as the Portal Through which life, Eternal and Unbounded, Entereth the realm of temporal and limited creation... I am the fruitful womb Whence all creatures have their birth.
P.F. Case -- The Book of Tokens
The message in the Judgment clearly indicates the ego's proper role –
"If the superior man takes the initiative, he goes astray." This is supplemented by the image of a docile mare which uncomplainingly bears its load. Indeed, during certain phases of the Work it becomes painfully obvious that the ego really is just a beast of burden. The Self is beyond our full comprehension, and at times it uses us as if we were an expendable tool -- which, to a certain extent, we are. Only by realizing that our existence in spacetime consists mostly of illusions and that the Self is the only real thing in our lives, can we come to accept the Work as the duty we were created to perform.
SUGGESTIONS FOR MEDITATION
Compare the ego-Self relationship in hexagrams one and two with that in hexagrams seven and eight.