The I Ching or Classic of Changes, is an ancient divination text and the oldest of the Chinese classics. Possessing a history of more than two and a half millennia of commentary and interpretation, the I Ching is an influential text read throughout the world, providing inspiration to the worlds of religion, psychoanalysis, business, literature, and art. Originally a divination manual in the Western Zhou period (1000–750 BC), over the course of the Warring States period and early imperial period (500–200 BC) it was transformed into a cosmological text with a series of philosophical commentaries known as the "Ten Wings." After becoming part of the Five Classics in the 2nd century BC, the I Ching was the subject of scholarly commentary and the basis for divination practice for centuries across the Far East, and eventually took on an influential role in Western understanding of Eastern thought. The I Ching uses a type of divination called cleromancy, which produces apparently random numbers. Four numbers, 6 to 9, are turned into a hexagram, which can then be looked up in the I Ching book, arranged in an order known as the King Wen sequence. The interpretation of the readings found in the I Ching is a matter of centuries of debate, and many commentators have used the book symbolically, often to provide guidance for moral decision making as informed by Taoism and Confucianism. The hexagrams themselves have often acquired cosmological significance and paralleled with many other traditional names for the processes of change such as yin and yang and Wu Xing.

How to consult i-ching

An ancient method for casting an I Ching reading involved a relatively laborious process of sorting fifty stem stalks of the yarrow plant. A more modern method uses a series of coin tosses using three identical coins (copper pennies will work) with an identifiable heads and tails. In each case, the process is done six times, with each outcome producing one line of the hexagram. Like a building, the hexagram is assembled from the ground up, bottom line being considered the first line in the text interpretations. A much easier hands-on method for casting the I Ching is to use three coins. If you are using Chinese bronze coins with the square hole in the middle, where there are no obvious heads or tails, be sure to choose for yourself which is which before beginning, and stick with that decision every time you use them. (Note: The easiest way of casting the I Ching is to use our “Visionary I Ching” app, which preserves the mathematical odds of the yarrow stalk method for each line, as well as preserving an energetic connection, because it depends on the way you shake or the timing of how you click on the app to determine which of the four kinds of line you get.) 1. Remember to stay focused on your dilemma or subject or question when casting. 2. Hold the coins loosely in your hands, shake them briefly, and then toss them, all the while contemplating your query. The line you record is determined by assigning numerical values to heads and tails, then adding the total. Each heads is a 3, and each tails is a 2. So, if you cast one heads and two tails (3+2+2), your starting line would be a 7 (see the chart below).

Add contents here

Add contents here

Add contents here

Add contents here

Add contents here