The Yilin in 2007

[sparhawk]

Just in case you missed it, a very interesting note from Harmen: The Yilin in 2007 (http://www.i-tjingcentrum.nl/serendipity/index.php?index.php)

Luis

[pakua]

Are there any English translations of Yilin ? I searched Abebooks, Zenbooks, etc but nothing showed.

[sparhawk]

None that I know of. Harmen, LiSe and perhaps others in the group, are slowly doing it though.

L

[bruce_g]

I loved Harmen's article on beliefs.

I hope he, Lise and others will continue to study and translate the Yilin. What little I've read was provided to me by LiSe, and turned out to be hugely beneficial to me for the year which followed the reading.

[sparhawk]

Hi Bruce,

Yes, I commented on that posting too. Perhaps Harmen is correct in his reply to my comment. Although I certainly agree the answers come from the inside and meaning is subjective, etc., I still think, let's call it "belief" if you wish, that the Yi is independent from the querent and may as well decide to dissociate from him/herself in consultation, thus "refusing" a "meaningful" answer.

L

[bruce_g]

Luis, yes, I have twinges of disagreement with what Harmen says about belief, but at the same time I can understand what he means, or at least I think I do, and from that framework, I can agree.

[bruce_g]

Hi Luis,

I responded to Harmen's entry. Will go ahead and post it here, since I don't know if Harmen will post it there.

Hi Harmen,

I can only half agree with what you've said. The Yi itself is a construct, which emulates observable natural phenomenon. Granted, "fire" is only the name we give to fire, and "wind" likewise is only a name for what is observed. But neither fire nor wind are constructs merely of what we read into them as being; they actually are what they are and do what they do.

When we use the Yi to consult, fate (another word for an observed phenomenon) in effect points to one or more of those natural phenomenon. We can't read or interpret that fire is wet nor that water is dry. It is what it is.

What is read into is how fire or water relate to our moment, r.e. our question. Whether there is actually universal direction, council or advise is another subject, but it's safe to say a hexagram differs from a blot of ink.

As for reading or interpreting effectively for another person, one must have or make a connection with that person before specific details of the reading can be given. In this sense, an effective interpretation is as much reading the person as it is reading the Yi. Otherwise, all an interpreter can offer are more metaphors to explain Yi's metaphors.

So, while I agree that reading into Yi's answer is what gives an application, I have to disagree that Yi's answer is purely subjective.

Warm regards, Bruce