I CHING – The Oldest Foundation Of Eastern

Divination
I CHING

The I Ching (pronounced ‘yee jing’) is one of the oldest of the 5 Chinese Classics. Literally
translated it means “Classic of Changes” or “Book of Changes”. The I Ching has occupied
scholars throughout time, even to present day. Much of the Chinese cultural history has been
inspired by the I Ching. Both Chinese philosophies Confucianism and Taoism have deep roots
that extend from this very book.
It is one of the oldest surviving books in the world. Being over 3,000 years old it has been the
basis for divination practice for centuries. In fact, it is one of the oldest forms of
divination. The I Ching is a collection of practical wisdom, pertaining to every conceivable
situation.
Even now, in present day, the I Ching remains the most popular spiritual resource and oracle
in Asian countries. Western countries in Europe and the Americas now beginning to see the
spiritual power of the I Ching as it provides detailed insights for those who study the I Ching.
The I Ching is quite possibly the most credible, but certainly the oldest oracles available to
study.
An overview of I-Ching
I-Ching is a book of divination and wisdom in ancient times. It is a product of a seasoned
wisdom beginning from thousand of years ago. The two branches of Chinese philosophy
known as Taoism and Confucianism have their shared roots from this ageless classic known
as – The book of changes. Moreover, amongst all Confucian classics it is only I-Ching that
escaped the burning of books under the ruler named Chin Shih Huang Ti.
All of the most valued Chinese cultural history as well as its view of the Holy Trinity, heaven,
man, earth, balance and harmony, positive and negative energies, fortune and misfortune
and the theories of Yin and Yang were all derived from the versions of text and commands of
the 64 hexagrams of I-Ching.
Each of the I-Ching’s hexagrams is made up of 6 lines where one is placed above the other.
These lines can either be broken or unbroken. Broken lines are the yin while the unbroken
lines are the yang. Moreover, the lines can either be changing or unchanging which means;
the broken yin line can simply change into unbroken yang line and around. Hence, the key to
completely understand the texts of the I-Ching is to correctly understand the placement of
the broken lines and unbroken lines in view of the other.
There are 8 probable patterns of broken and unbroken lines when it is arranged in sets of 3
lines. When it is arranged in sets of 6 lines, there will be approximately 64 probable
combinations of broken and unbroken lines. Each of the 8 Trigrams signifies different
meaning. Also, their positioning contains suggestions of both bad and good luck.
On the other hand, the I-Ching hexagrams convey ideas and symbols of nature, individual
and society. I-Ching provides wisdom, warning and specific forecast to those who consult
before deciding on something significant. Also, the hexagrams offer advice on behavior,
attitudes and timing on particular question being asked. On certain event, it suggests
preparation and uncovers misfortunes concealed in seemingly good fortune. Furthermore,
good and bad conditions are also revealed including the associated challenges.
The 6 lines of the I-Ching’s hexagrams are consists of 3 elements known as symbol, event
and judgment. The readings of these elements are based directly to the specific question
being asked. Hence, questions must be very specific during the consultation.
Respectively, hexagram has 4 trigrams. Each trigram have symbol, attribute and characteristic
that are related to the 5 elements which are water, fire, wood, earth and metal. The
composition of each of the hexagram contains 2 primary trigrams and 2 nuclear trigrams.
The 2 primary trigrams have top three lines and bottom three lines while the two nuclear
trigrams have lines 2, 3 & 4 (from the bottom) and lines 3,4 & 5 (from the bottom). The
primary trigrams shows the condition of the situation being asked while the nuclear trigrams
shows the forecasts in precise facts for nuances of the foreseen good and bad luck.
Philosophy Of I Ching
As with other divination, like the Tarot, this is a way to obtain guidance about our current
situations and possible future events. The true power in any divination practice is to connect
with spirits and unseen powers. Spirits and powers that our conscious selves refuse or are
unable to acknowledge.
Connecting with these unseen powers with openness allows them to guide us to our
unconscious wisdom we hid deep within our minds. The I Ching is a way of communicating
and seeing solutions that are otherwise missed by our conscious selves.
You will need to understand why you must follow the I Ching (Tao). You will also need to
understand the forces in your life (Yin and Yang). Lastly, you will need to achieve The
Absolute (T’ai Chi)
Tao

Tao is basically the philosophy of the nature of life, the universe and the profound unity of
both to each other. It is a thought process that humans must follow a path to join that unity,
rather than cause disturbances in it.
The interdependence of all things creates opposing forces. You cannot have day without
night, nor cold without warmth. Day and night as well as cold and hot are in a constant state
of flux; one ebbing towards the other and vice versus. They will meet for a moment and one
will gradually over take the other for a period of time, allowing the other force to be dominant
for a time.
Taoist philosophers observed that in nature the ebb and flow happen without premeditation,
without instruction and without effort. It just happens. The plant seeds fall to the ground.
The seed grows. It needs not to be shown or told how to take nourishment from the Earth,
or how to become an adult plant and produce seeds of its own. It just happens. The process
happens by the natural forces that are applied to it, thru an effort of its own.
To truly understand the interdependence you can come to understand the meaning of your
life and about what place you have in the universe. Understanding that we must allow
opposing forces to exert themselves, will allow our situations unfold as they should, rather
than disturbing the balance and unity that is ever present.
Understanding Chi
Chi is believed to be the primal substance that animates the universe. Chi is a mysterious
force. Chi is the force that set the world and everything in it into motion, the life energy
contained within matter. Chi is also the force that sustains all things once they are created.
Certain individuals have the ability to emit this form of energy from their bodies. They are
known as chi kung masters. Their entire lives are devoted to developing this ability to omit
chi.
In western cultures chi is often recognized as bio-energy.
Yang & Yin
Understanding Yang and Yin you will begin to understand a balanced and unbalanced
life. Quite possibly begin to understand why you are living one or the other.
Yin is typically thought of as a feminine force; nurturing, reflective, receptive, mutable,
contracting and yielding in character.
Yang is typically considered to be the masculine force — active, intellectual, creative,
expansive and dominant force.
Although Yin and Yang are opposites, they are complementary to each other. Through their
interactions with each other, they are the forces responsible for the constant change we see
in the world.
All things with any kind of life force go through stages if you will; birth, growth, decent, death
and rebirth. Each stage displays significant patterns of change. What creates change, is
forces applied to the life force and the balance or lack thereof between opposing forces; Yang
and Yin.
As an example of simple displays of Yang and Yin, day gives way to night; summer will turn
to winter. We can see this pattern very clearly and obviously. With a mathematical precision
we know that within 24 hours we will experience a period of dark and light, and that within a
12 month period we will also experience both warmth and cold. All opposing forces in
predictable balance.
Because the forces do not change they are considered “universal law”. Through careful
attention paid to Yin and Yang you will realize that all living things have these forces applied
to them. All things are governed by Yin and Yang.
When life is harmonious and you follow this path, you are living in accordance with the Tao
and you can achieve T’ai Chi, the absolute.
Tai Chi
Tai chi chuan, usually referred to as tai chi, is an eastern fluid meditative activity based on the
philosophic principles of T’a Chi. However, we are not talking about the exercise per se, we
are talking about the principles of the philosophy.
Yielding in the face of aggression is the basis for T’ai Chi. By yielding to aggression, you
overcome the unyielding. In other words, to win you must lose. Giving way to the aggression
is a way to ward off and neutralize it.
When you embrace this concept you begin to the circulation of Ch’I, the life force within.
As in T’ai Chi Ch’aun the mind and body become one fluid state, bringing the opposing forces
of Yin and Yang into perfect alignment achieving absolute balance. When you allow the fluid
state of mind and body by yielding to aggression or negative forces in your life, you are
allowing balance to be created without your disturbance of those forces.
Structure of I Ching
Hexagrams
Hexagrams in the I Ching are broken and unbroken lines that represent Yin and Yang. Each
hexagram is made up of 6 “lines”. The Hexagrams are always made as well as read from
bottom to top, and each line is either Yin or Yang. There are 64 different hexagrams. Each
hexagram has its own oracular meaning as well as each line has its own meaning.
Trigrams

Each hexagram is further understood to contain 2 Trigrams, with three lines each. They are
known as the “Above” and “Below”. The “above” indicates the “outer” aspects of your
situation. The “below” indicates the “inner” aspects of your situation. There are 8 possible
Trigrams in the I Ching, again each has its own meaning
Nuclear Hexagrams
Nuclear hexagrams indicate hidden potentials. Nuclear Hexagrams are made from trigrams
made up of lines 2,3,4 and 3,4,5.
Ruling Lines
All Hexagrams contains at least one perhaps 2 ruling lines. Most commonly, line 5 is the ruling
line, however because they are dynamic and represent favorable qualities, lines other than 5
may take precedence.
Consulting the I Ching
Asking Your Question
You should consider your questions thoughtfully. Your goal is to achieve balance in your life,
not the life of others. Your C’ai is yours it does not live within others.
Clear your mind of distractions. Reflect on your thoughts and feeling about your situation
before you consult the I Ching Oracle. Focus on how you will be affected in a situation. Focus
on what aspects or forces will be in play. Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, how you are
to receive this situation and behave towards it in the most balanced way.
Approach the I Ching with an attitude of openness and respect.
Some things you should never ask:
A question on the behalf of someone else
Ambiguous questions. This will give you ambiguous answers.
The timing of specific events. This is not the intention of the I Ching
Casting Hexagrams
The ancient, perhaps more authentic method is to use 50 yarrow stalks, however this is more
complicated and not as widely used as throwing 3 coins, 6 times.
Whichever method you use the intention is the same. The random falling of coins or the
natural division of the stalks will reflect the nature of your question.
Focus on your question and cast your stalks or coins.
Reading The Hexagrams
Both coins and yarrow stalks provide 4096 possible readings.
There are 3 main parts of a reading; the first Hexagram, the ruling lines, and the second
hexagram.
First Hexagram
This hexagram will give you’re the basics of the situation. Some advice will be presented here
as well. In some readings, because one or more lines may change from Yin to Yang, the first
hexagram becomes a second hexagram.
Ruling Lines
Interpreting the changing lines should be read from bottom to top. These lines indicate the
changing of the situation. If, after reading the lines, you find the ruling line in contradiction to
the first hexagram advice, the ruling line takes precedent.
The Second Hexagram
This is the advice for the future of the situation or how it will develop.
Consider carefully the advice the I Ching has given you. You have consulted the Oracle so
that you can achieve balance. Allow your unconscious to connect with the meaning of your
reading. Bring forth those meanings discovered and allow the forces to balance themselves
without your disturbance to them.