Prompt Decomposition Engine (PDE)
Intention exploration as EAST practice — decomposing prompts into explicit and implicit intents, mapping dependencies, and organizing action through the Four Directions.
PDE as EAST Practice
Prompt Decomposition is part of the EAST direction in the Medicine Wheel framework — the direction of Vision, where:
- Intentions are explored before action begins
- Explicit and implicit needs are surfaced
- Ambiguities are named rather than assumed away
- The full scope of what is being asked becomes visible
The EAST practice then guides toward SOUTH — planning and structured activities with human and AI companions. This is the bridge from vision to embodied action.
How PDE Works
A prompt is decomposed into:
Primary Intent
The single most important action — what the prompt is fundamentally asking for.
Secondary Intents
Everything else, distinguished as:
- Explicit — stated directly in the prompt
- Implicit — inferred from hedging language ("probably," "I assume," "somehow")
Four Directions Mapping
| Direction | Role | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 🌅 East | Vision — what is being asked | Requirements, desired outcomes, vision statements |
| 🔥 South | Analysis — what needs to be learned | Research, investigation, reading, growing |
| 🌊 West | Validation — what needs reflection | Testing, review, accountability checks |
| ❄️ North | Action — what executes the cycle | Implementation, delivery, creation |
Action Stack
An ordered list of tasks respecting dependencies, each mapped to a direction.
Ambiguities
Places where the prompt is vague or uses uncertain language — surfaced explicitly rather than resolved by assumption.
PDE and Delayed Resolution
PDE embodies the delayed resolution principle: ambiguities are named and held rather than silently resolved. This prevents:
- Premature commitment to misunderstood requirements
- False confidence in AI interpretation
- Loss of the generative tension between "what was asked" and "what is needed"
Integration
| Framework | Connection |
|---|---|
| Creative Orientation | PDE frames decomposition as creation, not analysis |
| Structural Tension | Each decomposed intent creates its own tension chart |
| Narrative Craft | Complex prompts contain story — PDE surfaces the narrative structure |
Key Sources
- llms-pde.txt — PDE reference (llms-txt format)
- medicine-wheel-prompt-decomposition — npm package
- .pde/ — stored decompositions in this repository