One tries to catch the others off guard but they rejoice and respond in a scathing way. taoscopy.com
Shock51
Sudden change or shock, like thunder, that can jolt you awake. Embrace the disruption as an opportunity for growth, respond calmly, and align your actions with the new reality.
↓ Line 2
The shock may cause loss and hardship, but patience and perseverance will eventually restore what was lost. Avoid hasty actions.
↓ Line 4
The shock is overwhelming and may cause stagnation. It is important to find a way to move forward despite the difficulties.
↓ Line 6
The shock leads to destruction and disarray, both internally and externally. Acting appropriately and in harmony with the situation can prevent blame.
↓ Decrease41
Simplify and reduce. Embrace minimalism to gain clarity and focus on what truly matters. Letting go can bring unexpected abundance.
51 Shock
Other titles: The Arousing, Thunder, The Symbol of Startling Movement, Shake, The Beginning of Movement, Shocking, The Thunderclap, Action, Motion, Sudden Change, Surprise! "The necessity to keep tranquil in the midst of upheaval." -- D.F. Hook
Judgment
Legge:Shock intimates ease and development. When the time of movement which it indicates comes, the subject of the hexagram will be found looking out with apprehension, and yet smiling and talking cheerfully. When the movement like a crash of thunder terrifies all within a hundred miles, he will be like the sincere worshipper who is not startled into dropping his ladle and cup of sacrificial spirits.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Shock brings success. Shock comes --oh, oh! Laughing words -- ha, ha! The shock terrifies for a hundred miles, and he does not let fall the sacrificial spoon and chalice.
Blofeld: Thunder -- success! Thunder comes with a terrible noise, laughing and shouting in awesome glee and frightening people for a hundred miles around. The sacrificial wine is not spilt. [This suggests that the holder of the sacrificial vessel is not easily alarmed or else that he is very wise and able to distinguish between the apparently dangerous and the truly dangerous.]
Liu: Thunder. Success. Thunder comes -- ho ho! Speaking and laughing -- ha ha! It shocks and terrifies for a hundred miles. But one does not drop the spoon or chalice.
Ritsema/Karcher: Shake, Growing. Shake coming: frightening, frightening. Laughing words, shrieking, shrieking. Shake scaring a hundred miles. Not losing the ladle, the libation. [This hexagram describes your situation in terms of a disturbing and inspiring shock. It emphasizes that rousing things to new activity, the action of Shake is the adequate way to handle it. To be in accord with the time, you are told to: stir things up!]
Shaughnessy:Thunder: Receipt; thunder comes so renewingly; laughter and talk yaya; thunder alarms one hundred miles; not losing the ladle or goblet.
Cleary (1): Thunder is developmental. When thunder comes, there is alarm, then laughter. Thunder startles for a hundred miles, but one does not lose the spoon and wine.
Cleary (2):Thunder comes through. Etc.
Wu:Motion indicates pervasiveness. When Motioncomes, it frightens people. Later, it makes people talk and laugh. Its majesty reaches one hundred li in all directions. There is no misplacement of the ladle or sacrificial wine.
The Image
Legge: The image of Thunder, being repeated, forms Shock. The superior man, in accordance with this, is fearful and apprehensive, cultivates his virtue, and examines his faults.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Thunder repeated: the image of Shock. Thus in fear and trembling the superior man sets his life in order and examines himself.
Blofeld: This hexagram symbolizes continuous thunder. The Superior Man in fear and trembling seeks to improve himself.
Liu: Thunder doubled symbolizes shock. The superior man contemplates himself with fear and caution.
Ritsema/Karcher: Reiterated thunder. Shake. A chun tzu uses anxious fearing to adjust inspecting.
Cleary (1):Traveling thunder reverberates. Thus superior people cautiously practice introspection.
Cleary (2): Repeated thunder reverberates.Developed people practice introspection with caution.
Wu: One thunderclap after another constitutes hexagram Motion. Thus the jun zi reflects and rectifies for fear of being wrong.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: His feeling of dread leads to happiness because he is thereby made to adopt proper laws for himself. The movement startles the distant and frightens the near, yet he makes the proper sacrifices the same as always.
Legge: Shock consists of the trigram for Thunder doubled. (This trigram also represents Movement and the Eldest Son.) The hexagram therefore symbolizes a crash or peal of thunder, and combined with the idea of movement shows a sudden change taking place in the kingdom. The lesson is the conduct to be pursued in a time of sudden change through an awareness of danger and the proper regulation of oneself.
A successful issue is predicted if the dynamic first line can be superior to the two magnetic lines above him. It is in the idea of the hexagram that he should be moving and advancing. Although sensible of the danger, he is confident and self-possessed -- so much so that he can calmly perform his religious duties during the prevailing chaos. This is proper behavior for the eldest son, who must eventually assume the duties of his father.
Anthony: In the I Chingshock means being subjected to unsettling events. It also means perceiving and reacting to these events … perceiving, in any of these changes, that a new set of limits, or deprivations, has been placed on our life which seems to restrict or even penalize us. This sense of being projected by events into a sort of emotional trap is what this hexagram calls “Fate.” Acknowledgement of this fate, or trap, and the imperative – to find the way out – is one of the purposes of shock. As far as the I Ching is concerned, there is only one way out – to undergo spiritual development.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Judgment: During sudden changes, adjust your tempo and move ahead, remembering that while conditions may alter, the goal remains the same.
The Superior Man double-checks his premises, confronts his weak spots and adheres to the rules and ideals of the Work.
The image here is one of a sudden, dramatic release of energy, power and force. To receive this hexagram without changing lines can refer to almost any abrupt, startling or unexpected situation. Sometimes it is the oracle's way of saying: "Surprise!” It can also be a kind of reprimand for asking a dumb or inappropriate question -- the oracle is "shocked” by your temerity, ignorance, etc. In such instances there is often an element of wry humor in the situation -- usually at the ego's expense. On rare occasions, it is possible to receive this hexagram as a warning about an upcoming event which has no bearing on the question posed. Should you receive such an oracle, be extremely vigilant – as always, the advice to the superior man in the Image suggests the proper course.
A true test of devotion to the Work is to maintain one's will under all circumstances. The world may be falling apart around us, but the adept does not ruin the performance of his sacrifice: the ego continues the Work regardless of conditions, and keeps a cool head under all circumstances.
Have no fear of sudden terror
or of assault from wicked men,
since Yahweh will be your guarantor,
He will keep your steps from the snare.
Proverbs 3: 25-26
Both Yahweh and Christ are what Jung calls "god images” which exist in one form or another in every human psyche, whether it is consciously religious or not. The god image is synonymous with the Self, and the implication of the above quotation from Proverbsis that as long as the ego remains devoted to the Work -- in I Chingterms: "maintains the sacrifice” -- it is under the protection of the Self.
The Perfect Man is godlike. Though the great swamps blaze, they cannot burn him; though the great rivers freeze, they cannot chill him; though swift lightning splits the hills and howling gales shake the sea, they cannot frighten him. A man like this rides the clouds and mist, straddles the sun and moon, and wanders beyond the four seas. Even life and death have no effect on him, much less the rules of profit and loss! Chuang Tzu
Line 2
Legge: The second line, magnetic, shows its subject, when the movement approaches in a position of peril. She judges it better to let go the articles in her possession, and to ascend to a very lofty height. There is no occasion for her to pursue after the things she has let go; in seven days she will find them.
Wilhelm/Baynes: Shock comes bringing danger. A hundred thousand times you lose your treasures and must climb the nine hills. Do not go in pursuit of them. After seven days you will get them back again.
Blofeld:Thunder approaches -- trouble is at hand! Sadly he lets go of his valuables and fleeing sets foot among the nine hills. He should not search for them; in seven days he will regain them.
Liu: Thunder comes, causing danger. You will lose a great deal of your wealth, then climb nine hills without searching for it. After seven days you will regain it.
Ritsema/Karcher: Shake coming: adversity. A hundred-thousand lost coins. Climbing tending-towards the ninth mound. No pursuit. The seventh day: acquiring.
Shaughnessy:Thunder comes so dangerously; one loses cowries; sacrificing to the nine peaks; do not follow, in seven days you will get it.
Cleary (1):Thunder comes: dangerous thoughts. Losing valuables, you climb nine hills: Don’t chase it – you’ll get it in seven days. [Mounting strength with weakness, arbitrary imagination gets too high, and one tries to do what one cannot do. This is losing basic sense and acting on dangerous thoughts … It is fortunate if you maintain rectitude when you are weak, not daring to act arbitrarily…]
Cleary (2):Thunder comes – dangerous. Remembering that you have lost your treasure, you climb nine hills. But do not pursue it; in seven days you will get it.
Wu: He encounters severe movements and presumes to have lost his precious possessions. He climbs up a hill that has nine winding passes, There is no need to search for his possessions. He will recover them after seven days. [He climbs up to high ground to distance himself from the movement below.]
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: A magnetic line is mounted on a dynamic one. Wilhelm/Baynes: It rests upon a firm line. Blofeld: That the approach of thunder presages trouble is indicated by the position of this yielding line over a firm one. Ritsema/Karcher: Riding a solid indeed. Cleary (2): The danger of thunder coming is mounting the unyielding. Wu: Because he rides on a yang. [The weak second six “rides” on the strong first nine and finds what a perilous situation he is in.]
Legge: The peril in line two is suggested by her position immediately above line one. The rest of the symbolism is obscure, and Chu Hsi says he does not understand it. The subject of the line does what she can to get out of danger, and finally, as is signified by the central position of the line, the issue is better than could have been expected. On the symbolism of "seven days," Ch'eng-tzu says: "The places of a hexagram amount to six. The number seven is the first of another hexagram. When the movement symbolized by Shock has gone through its cycle, things will be as they were before."
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: An uprising endangers the man. He accepts the material losses and ascends to lofty heights inaccessible to the threatening forces. After the shock and upheaval have subsided, his property will be restored without his fighting for it.
Wing: A cataclysmic upheaval can cause you great losses. Do not try to resist or fight the forces, since this is impossible. Instead, remove yourself from the dangerous situation. Become inaccessible. In time you will recoup your losses.
Editor: Symbolically, the symbolism is not obscure at all: the basic idea is to transcend your habitual responses and view them from a higher perspective. When things have settled down again, losses will prove to be illusory.
Verily destruction is the foundation of existence,
And the tearing down thou seest
Is but the assembling of material
for a greater structure...
Deluded are they who say,
"Man liveth by the Mercy of the Lord."
Know ye
That the balance of Mercy and Severity
Is the continuance of every life,
Yea, and of this whole universe.
P.F. Case -- The Book of Tokens
A. A new situation renders old methods obsolete.
B. Detach yourself from your accustomed responses and wait for the situation to mature. Losses are imaginary.
Line 4
Legge: The fourth line, dynamic, shows its subject, amid the startling movements, supinely sinking deeper in the mud.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Shock is mired.
Blofeld: After the thunderstorm, the paths are muddy.
Liu:Thunder causes mire. [Even with a humble manner, a person can achieve nothing during this time. If birth time and zodiac symbols are not favorable, one will be involved in trouble.]
Ritsema/Karcher: Shake: releasing the bog.
Shaughnessy: Thunder is followed by mud.
Cleary (1):Thunder gets bogged down.
Wu: He has gotten himself into muddy ground.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: The light in him has not yet been brilliantly developed. Wilhelm/
Baynes: It is not yet brilliant enough. Blofeld: This implies muddled thinking. Ritsema/Karcher: Not-yet shining indeed. Cleary (2):Thunder getting bogged down is not illuminating. Wu: He cannot bring himself to a bright spot.
Legge: The fourth line is dynamic in a magnetic place, and is pressed by the magnetic lines on either side, hence he is seen as supinely sinking in the mud. Compare what Confucius says about him with hexagram 21:4 -- "His light has not yet been sufficiently displayed.”
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The man is unable to make progress against an unyielding situation and remains trapped by its stubborn resistance.
Wing: The Shocking event will reduce you to immobility. This comes about because of a befuddled mind, confused and unprepared. You cannot make any progress under the circumstances.
Editor: The image is of one who is trapped in obtuseness and ambiguity, as in mud. Muddy: Unclear, as in: "This is as clear as mud.” Note that no value judgment is attached to the line. Meditation on the similarities between this line and 21:4 is useful.
But as the mind matures its principles tend to harden and gradually become fixed, and it becomes unable to accept fresh material which will not fit easily into the existing structure. Thus it loses contact with the dynamism of reality. Its enclosing walls of dogmatic opinion become unable to adapt to changing circumstances, and if faced with a major challenge of ideas it can only collapse, leaving the bewildered mind within to cope as best it may with the apparent chaos that surrounds it. The lesson here is that any structure is only defensible as long as it remains flexible and capable of evolution; life itself is in a state of constant flux and no merely human construction can hope to survive if it cannot adapt. A. Douglas -- The Tarot
A. You are immobilized by ignorance and lack of clarity.
B. The time calls for action, but your inertia bogs you down.
C. Ambiguity emasculates action -- wait for the situation to clarify.
Line 6
Legge: The sixth line, magnetic, shows its subject, amidst the startling movements of the time, in breathless dismay and looking around her with trembling apprehension. If she takes action, there will be evil. If, while the startling movements have not reached her own person and her neighborhood, she were to take precautions, there would be no error, though her relatives might still speak against her.
Wilhelm/Baynes:Shock brings ruin and terrified gazing around. Going ahead brings misfortune. If it has not yet touched one's own body but has reached one's neighbor first, there is no blame. One's comrades have something to talk about.
Blofeld: Thunder brings disorder and people stare about them in terror. Advancing at this time brings misfortune. The thunder affects not ourselves but our neighbors -- no error. [We are not to blame for the trouble afflicting them; but, as the commentary on this line indicates, they may think we are to blame and plan reprisals.] A marriage causes gossip.
Liu:Thunder causes trembling and frightened looks. Undertaking -- misfortune. It will not threaten your own body, but it might your neighbor. No blame. There will be gossip about marriage.
Shaughnessy: Thunder is so clapping; looking so scared; to be upright is inauspicious. Thunder is not in his body, but in his neighbor; in going there is no trouble. In confused slander there is talk.
Cleary (1):Movement uneasy, gaze unsteady – an expedition will bring misfortune. The action is not in oneself but in the neighbors; there is no blame. Association involves criticism.
Cleary (2):Thunder is faint; the look is shifty. An expedition leads to misfortune.
The thunder does not reach you, but is in the vicinity. There is no blame. Association involves criticism.
Wu: He is wavering in mind and looking anxiously right and left. It will be foreboding to have undertakings. If he can prepare himself well, he will not be affected by the thunderclap that impinges on his neighbor. However, he will be criticized for initiating marriage.
COMMENTARY
Confucius/Legge: Amid the startling movements she has not found out the course of the due mean. Though evil threatens, she will not fall into error. She is afraid of being warned by her neighbors. Wilhelm/Baynes: He has not attained the middle. Misfortune, but no blame. One is warned by the fear for one's neighbor. Blofeld: That thunder brings disorder is indicated by the failure of the middle line of the upper trigram to win supremacy over this top line. Although misfortune arises, we are not to blame. Fear of our neighbors makes us cautious. Ritsema/Karcher: Center not-yet acquired indeed. Although a pitfall, without fault. Dreading the neighbor, a warning indeed. Cleary (2): The thunder is faint – balance has not been attained. Though there is misfortune, there is no blame. Fear nearby is a warning. Wu: “He is wavering,” because he lacks self-confidence. Despite the perilous situation, he will be free from error if he can learn a lesson from his neighbor.
Legge: Line six is magnetic, and must abide the concluding terrors of the movement. Action on her part is sure to be evil. If she were to take precautions, she might escape with only the censure of her relatives.
NOTES AND PARAPHRASES
Siu: The man has not yet found a moderate course of behavior. He is dismayed at the startling events of the times. Action will lead only to evil under such conditions. He should withdraw, taking appropriate precautions, before the shock has affected him personally. His associates may speak against him, but he should not be concerned.
Wing: The times are full of Shocking occurrences which bring disorder to all of society. You cannot combat the times alone, and all those affected are too confused to react appropriately. Retreat is the best course, although it may bring criticism from others who do not comprehend your actions.
Anthony: We must not let shocking events cause us to vilify the Sage, Fate, God, or the people who have wronged us. Shock brings an end to the old, but also a beginning to the new, even though we encounter many dangers to get there. Meanwhile, we must withdraw from the negative effects of shock.
Wu: If he can learn from the experience of his neighbor and rectify his personal life, he will greatly lessen his losses.
Editor: The "neighbor” in the warning is the fifth line, described as coping with shock reasonably well, though unable, as ruler, to hold the entire hexagram together. Line six is advised to learn from her observation of line five's troubles to remain calm and stationary, out of the fray. In other words, by analyzing the adversity of others, one can avoid making their mistakes. Another way of conveying the same idea is to regard the "relative” who might "speak against” line six as the third line correlate who is forced by her circumstances to take action: because of this, line three is unable to understand why line six cannot support her. The clear message here is one of adopting an unconventional or independent point of view: survival now depends on not following the crowd. Blofeld, Liu, Ritsema/Karcher and Wu are the only translators who mention "gossip about marriage." Psychologically interpreted, this can mean stress connected with any synthesis of thought and feeling -- perhaps a new attitude or belief. If this is the only changing line, the new hexagram becomes number twenty-one, Discernment, giving a hint that cold-blooded, dispassionate analysis is the best way to cope with a tricky situation.
The devastating impact of this fire can free the mind from its fetters and open the way that leads to the center; but if the conscious mind is not prepared, not strongly built on firm foundations, it may end in catastrophe. In psychological terms the outcome will be dissociation, the division of the mind against itself. A. Douglas -- The Tarot
A. Forewarned is forearmed. Never act when confused. Differentiate the components of the situation, center your thinking, then act in your own best interests.
B. Despite contrary input (psychological or social), observation, experience and/or common sense counsel self-protection.
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.