The I Ching

The teaching

As the Book of Changes with its Ten Wings teaches it.

The two lines and the eight trigrams

The book is built from two lines. The whole line, yang, is firm and light; the broken line, yin, is yielding and dark. Three lines make a trigram, and there are eight, each with a name, an image and a nature: Qian, heaven, the Creative, strong; Kun, earth, the Receptive, yielding; Zhen, thunder, the Arousing, movement; Kan, water, the Abysmal, danger; Gen, the mountain, Keeping Still, rest; Xun, wind and wood, the Gentle, penetrating; Li, fire, the Clinging, light; Dui, the lake, the Joyous.

The trigrams make a family. Heaven is the father and earth the mother; thunder, water and mountain are the eldest, middle and youngest sons, and wind, fire and lake the eldest, middle and youngest daughters. The Wings give each an animal too: the horse to heaven, the cow to earth, the dragon to thunder, the pig to water, the dog to the mountain, the cock to wind, the pheasant to fire, the sheep to the lake.

How a hexagram is built and read

Two trigrams, one above the other, make a hexagram of six lines, counted from the bottom up, and there are sixty-four. The lower trigram is the inner side of the matter and the upper the outer. Each line has its place: the first is the beginning and the sixth the end; the second and fifth are the middle places, and the fifth is the ruler's. A firm line stands rightly in the odd places and a yielding one in the even, and the lines answer one another, the first the fourth, the second the fifth, the third the sixth.

Each hexagram has a name, a Judgement on the whole and a saying for each line, and the Wings add the Image, which pairs the two trigrams and says how the superior person acts in such a time. A firm line is called nine and a yielding one six, so the sayings run: nine at the beginning, six in the second place.

Casting with yarrow stalks and with coins

The old way uses fifty yarrow stalks. One is set aside and the rest split at random into two heaps; one stalk from the right heap is held between the fingers of the left hand, the left heap is counted off by fours and its remainder held, then the right heap, and the stalks held, five or nine, are laid aside. The rest is divided and counted twice more, leaving four or eight. A small result counts three and a large one two, and the three counts together make six, seven, eight or nine: one line.

The common way throws three coins six times; heads usually count three and tails two, and the throw adds to six, seven, eight or nine. Seven is a firm line at rest and eight a yielding line at rest. Nine is an old firm line and six an old yielding line: these are the changing lines, which have reached their extreme and turn into their opposites.

If no line changes, the Judgement and the Image of the one figure are the answer. If lines change, read the Judgement, the Image and the sayings of the changing lines, then turn each changing line into its opposite: the second hexagram shows where the matter is tending.

1 to 8: the Creative to Holding Together

1, the Creative (Qian): heaven doubled, strength that never tires. 2, the Receptive (Kun): earth doubled, devotion that carries all things, following and not leading. 3, Difficulty at the Beginning (Zhun): a shoot pushing through hard ground; undertake nothing yet, find helpers. 4, Youthful Folly (Meng): the teacher answers the first sincere question, and not one asked two or three times.

5, Waiting (Xu): clouds rise to heaven; wait in sincerity, eat and drink. 6, Conflict (Song): halt halfway and see the great man; to press on to the end brings misfortune. 7, the Army (Shi): the many held together by discipline and a strong, tried leader. 8, Holding Together (Bi): union round a centre; whoever comes too late meets misfortune.

9 to 16: the Taming Power of the Small to Enthusiasm

9, the Taming Power of the Small (Xiao Xu): dense clouds and no rain yet; restrain by gentle means. 10, Treading (Lü): treading on the tiger's tail, and it does not bite; courtesy in danger. 11, Peace (Tai): heaven and earth unite; the small departs and the great approaches. 12, Standstill (Pi): heaven and earth do not meet; fall back on your inner worth and refuse honours.

13, Fellowship with Men (Tong Ren): fellowship in the open, with shared aims. 14, Possession in Great Measure (Da You): fire high in heaven; great possessions held with modesty. 15, Modesty (Qian): the mountain within the earth; the modest carry things through, evening out too much and too little. 16, Enthusiasm (Yu): thunder out of the earth; music and readiness that move people to follow.

17 to 24: Following to Return

17, Following (Sui): to be followed, first learn to adapt; at nightfall, rest. 18, Work on What Has Been Spoiled (Gu): repair what has decayed, weighing it three days before and three days after. 19, Approach (Lin): the great draws near like spring, but the eighth month brings misfortune. 20, Contemplation (Guan): the wind over the earth; look deeply, and be looked to as an example.

21, Biting Through (Shi He): bite through the obstacle; clear judgement and just penalties. 22, Grace (Bi): fire at the foot of the mountain; beauty of form, good for small matters, not great. 23, Splitting Apart (Bo): the dark strips away the last light; go nowhere, keep still and give generously. 24, Return (Fu): the turning point when light comes back at midwinter; on the seventh day comes return.

25 to 32: Innocence to Duration

25, Innocence (Wu Wang): act from your true nature, without design; whoever is not as he should be meets misfortune. 26, the Taming Power of the Great (Da Xu): hold firm and store up strength; learn from the past. 27, the Corners of the Mouth (Yi): nourishment; watch what you take in and what you say. 28, Preponderance of the Great (Da Guo): the ridgepole sags to breaking; a time for bold, careful action.

29, the Abysmal, Water (Kan): danger doubled; water flows on and stays true, so keep sincerity in your heart. 30, the Clinging, Fire (Li): light that depends on what it burns; clarity, and the docile care of the cow. 31, Influence (Xian): a lake on the mountain; attraction between two, met with an open, still mind. 32, Duration (Heng): thunder and wind; constancy, standing firm without changing direction.

33 to 40: Retreat to Deliverance

33, Retreat (Dun): withdraw in good time, with reserve and without anger. 34, the Power of the Great (Da Zhuang): great strength that must go with what is right. 35, Progress (Jin): the sun rising over the earth; the prince honoured three times in a day. 36, Darkening of the Light (Ming Yi): in hard times veil your light and keep firm within.

37, the Family (Jia Ren): order in the household; words with substance and a way of life that lasts. 38, Opposition (Kui): fire and lake draw apart; good fortune only in small matters. 39, Obstruction (Jian): water on the mountain; turn inward and mend yourself. 40, Deliverance (Xie): the storm breaks and the tension lifts; forgive faults and go back to order.

41 to 48: Decrease to the Well

41, Decrease (Sun): what is lessened below enriches what is above; with sincerity two small bowls suffice; curb anger and desire. 42, Increase (Yi): undertake things; copy the good and rid yourself of faults. 43, Break-through (Guai): make the matter known at the king's court, truthfully, and do not take up arms. 44, Coming to Meet (Gou): the dark returns in a small way; the bold maiden is not to be married.

45, Gathering Together (Cui): people gather round a leader; bring great offerings and prepare for the unforeseen. 46, Pushing Upward (Sheng): wood growing within the earth; rise step by step and fear nothing. 47, Oppression (Kun): a lake with no water; exhaustion, when words are not believed; hold to your will. 48, the Well (Jing): the town may be moved but not the well; reach the water, and do not break the jug.

49 to 56: Revolution to the Wanderer

49, Revolution (Ge): fire in the lake; change believed on its own day. 50, the Caldron (Ding): the sacred vessel; nourishment of the worthy, and a fate made firm by right position. 51, the Arousing, Thunder (Zhen): shock comes, then laughter, and he does not let fall the sacrificial ladle. 52, Keeping Still, Mountain (Gen): keep the back still, and let thought not go beyond your situation.

53, Development (Jian): a tree on the mountain; slow, steady progress, as a bride goes to her husband's house. 54, the Marrying Maiden (Gui Mei): a girl who enters a house not as its first wife; undertakings bring misfortune. 55, Abundance (Feng): the king at the height of fullness; do not grieve, be like the sun at midday. 56, the Wanderer (Lü): fire on the mountain; the stranger keeps caution and reserve.

57 to 64: the Gentle to Before Completion

57, the Gentle, Wind (Xun): influence that penetrates like the wind, gently and without pause. 58, the Joyous, Lake (Dui): joy that is shared, friends talking and practising together. 59, Dispersion (Huan): wind over water; dissolve hardness and selfishness. 60, Limitation (Jie): the lake holds only so much; fitting limits, but never limits that gall.

61, Inner Truth (Zhong Fu): sincerity strong enough to move even pigs and fishes. 62, Preponderance of the Small (Xiao Guo): the flying bird should not climb; small things may be done, not great ones. 63, After Completion (Ji Ji): all in its place; good fortune at the start, disorder at the end. 64, Before Completion (Wei Ji): the little fox, nearly across, wets its tail; the passage from disorder to order calls for care.