I Ching

Originating from ancient China, the I Ching or Book of Changes is one of the world's oldest and most invaluable documents.

A timeless oracle, the I Ching is a divination guide which possesses the uncanny ability to communicate with anyone who seeks its counsel. Based on 8 fundamental trigrams, it extends to 64 specific hexagrams to aid you in your destiny or provide an answer to your questions.

Like the Tarot, the I Ching connects with ones unconscious in some mysterious, inexplicable way.

To better understand the I Ching, read Carl Jung's forward in The I Ching Or Book of Changes: The Richard Wilhelm Translation rendered into English by Cary F. Baynes.

What you need to know

Yin (form): Dark, feminine, earth (broken line)

Yang (essence): Light, masculine, heaven

____ (unbroken line)

____

____ Heaven (ultimate yang)

____

Wind

yang

yin

A glimpse of Yin and Yang--Master Michael Leone

I Ching 101

The forces of Yin and Yang are relatively opposed yet eternally intertwined and interdependent.

When a force or condition reaches its extreme, it becomes the opposite.

Yin (form): Dark, feminine, earth, the anima (broken line)

Yang (essence): Light, masculine, heaven, the animus

____ (unbroken line)

yang

yin

8 Trigrams

____

____ Heaven (most yang)

____

Wind

Fire

Earth (most yin)

Valley (lake)

Mountain

Water

Thunder

When consulting the I Ching oracle, a hexagram is built one line at a time, from the bottom up, by throwing three coins.

One side of the coin represents yin (dark / tails), the other yang (light / heads).
Yin counts 2 and yang counts 3.

Throwing three coins at once makes four combinations possible:

Heads (yang) or Tails (yin) may be substituted using standard coins.

3 yin (2+2+2)= 6
changing yin

2 yin, 1 yang (2+2+3)= 7
pure yang

2 yang, 1 yin (3+3+2)= 8
pure yin

3 yang (3+3+3)= 9
changing yang

changing yin __ __

pure yang ---------

pure yin

changing yang ---------

Example:

Hexagram #1

Heaven

over

Heaven

Initiating,

The Creative

Consult the I Ching chart to find the Hexagram.

The only way out . . .

The farther you go . . .

Michael Farnum

is within . . .

ZEN HEALTH BY MICHAEL

The less you know . . .

I Ching