Which method of consultation?

[hilary]

As you'll know if you've read my 'yarrow or coins' page, I have never been attracted to drawn-out rituals: I know they work well for some people, but not for me. Or so I thought.

These days I use the marble method for my own consultations, or even the computer if I really urgently need an answer. (For example, the other day in mid-argument with someone standing behind the monitor, I was able to switch quickly to the reading window and ask 'How can I resolve this?', without my fellow-arguer even knowing. And yes, it worked.)

But a combination of little hints - someone writing that 'the I Ching is not a pill', a suggestion from last month's survey, my own reaction to an I Ching book that suggested you just open it at random - all this drew me back to pick up the yarrow stalks again. I don't believe that methods affect whether the I Ching 'works', but they most certainly do affect the person using them. Sitting on the floor, counting yarrow stalks for 15 or 20 minutes, felt oddly right to me. Perhaps it is just the act of investing time and effort, perhaps the extra time to get a real feel for the question - I don't know. I would love to hear what everyone thinks.

[bobbymac]

I am becoming a big advocate of the I Ching Top that used to be on this site. I recommend it highly. I have found it to give quite better results than the coins.

It is as easy as the coin or marble method, (and certainly esier than the yarrows) but allows for the same comtemplation that the yarrows induce. Further it retains the odds of the yarrow stalks.

Lest you think the top is a fad, it actually has roots in the Han dynasty.

I suggest you give it a try.

[peter]

Yes, Hilary, I also found the method of Yarrowstalks rather slow (Chinese gods pardon me!). On the other hand the method of 3 coins seemed to me rather rough: 3:1 to receive lesser/greater line respectively, and with yarrowstalks probabilities are different: 5:3 for lesser/greater yang and 7:1 for lesser/greater yin. (But I don't know proper applicability of the probability theory to I Ching.) So I tried to made two ways of receiving a hexagram with dice (I feel an irrational liking of different types of dice).
The first method based on probability distribution in the method with yarrowstalks. You need three dice (simple cube dice with 6 sides marked with 1 to 6 dots; I usually use one white, one black and one red dice). You cast them 6 times and get sum of their points, so the minimal number you can receive is 3 and the maximal - 18. Even number symbolizes yin and odd - yang. Numbers for Greater Yang are 3, 7 and 9, numbers for Greater Yin - 4 and 6. Probabilities are similar, but not identical.
The second method is the most quick. You need 6 different dice (differ by color, size or something else) for lines and some of 7th type to receive moving lines. I'll post this method in the next time.

[eileen]

I am quite new to the I Ching. I am not new to using my intuition. I have not studied enough to know which method I sense works the best...I have only tried the three coin method and the computer to date.

I have, though, come across an interesting website that some of you might enjoy. The mention of probability (Peter, August 1, 2001, 01:37PM)brought it to mind.

A fellow by the name of Tony Garillo posted a copy of his Master's Thesis written for an MS in Management from Antioch University Seattle

The address is http://members.tripod.com/~wu_wei2/

If the URL doesn't work, do a search using the term: "Proving the I Ching"

I don't recall if he discusses the method (s) that he employed. He used the results of years of readings, so most likely a variety of methods were used during that time.

[hilary]

Hi, thanks for your thoughts everyone. I especially like the idea of using dice - portable, quick, and closer to yarrow odds than the coins, anyway.
Then again, are the odds important at all, when whatever makes this work is surely not probability law...

Anyway, I just realised I'd forgotten to give a link to the survey about this, so here it is (http://www.onlineClarity.co.uk/html/survey/survey.html). If you haven't voted yet, please do!