Was wondering if anyone else has had a similar experience. Something is possibly developing in my life, and I have been asking questions about it. But some of the answers have been a bit contradictory and confusing. In analysing the questions and the answers I suddenly realized why. Without realizing it, I was wording the questions trying to get Yi to tell me the outcome. Now of course I know better, but in this case my subconscious got the better of me. From this and past experiences, I have come to a conclusion. There are only 2 types of questions that Yi will give a good answer to, those asking what do I need to do, and those asking what do I need to know. There may be some other variations, but I do believe, at least for me, that Yi will not answer yes or no questions, nor will it play fortune teller. If I ask the right questions, it will give me insight and tell me the best path to take, thats it. It will not guarantee the outcome, nor will it help me to control other people or the future. It is up to me to have patience and faith and trust that I will end up where I need to be. Just wondering if anyone else had this same relationship with Yi.

Mostly



--K

seeker: this is a very wise post. to be honest, i have used i ching in times of distress and never received helpful answers. usually, as you write above, because i have been asking for fortune-telling. it doesn't work.

from a place of inner connectedness, when i ask what's the best approach, or request an image of what's happening in a situation, i get good insight.

There are ways the I Ching can be a "fortune teller" though.
e.g. I asked once "Will I get the job?" the answer was 56.5 ....and sure enough, it came through. And many times, it has quite accurately alerted me to coming events/influences in general.

The times when it seems most unlikely for the Yi to play fortune teller is in the arena of relationships. That is just my opinion. The dynamics of human relationships are too complex for definitive longish-term answers. In the case of relationships, I thnk the Yi speaks mainly to present possibilities. There is a quality of immediacy in these replies, subject to (sometimes rapid) change.

And actually, any time we repeatedly question with great emotion (as we are likely to do with relationships where we have an investment in it working out well) the water seems to get muddied.

That said, I thnk there are times when the answer of the I Ching will speak to long -term destiny....maybe even in relationship. Through the years, any time I have gotten 14.6 or 53.6, it seemed to foretell of conditions that were long-term and fruitful, something ordained and certain.....and it has proven itself out.

Ditto Kevin...

Nicely put, all four of ya. Nothing like "experiencing it for yourself"...
;-)

- Jeff

Hi Micheline
If I asked if I was going to get the job and I recieved 56.5 changing to 33, I would have interpreted that as I would not get the job, I should retreat but I would establish myself in some other place besides there. Did you get other changing lines too, so that it didn't change to 33? Or do you disregard the second hexagram? Or does 33 not always mean "to retreat"?
Pagan

Hi Pagan,
I saw, and see, 56.5 as success in establishing a place for yourself while "on the road."

At the time I spoke of, I was in graduate school and not finished with my studies, but there was a part-time job in my field available (noted on the bulletin board at the university) and I applied for it. I REALLY wanted it, and needed the income.
56.5 said I would "shoot the pheasant with one arrow." BOOM. I got it.

At the time, I dont think I even considered the 33 resulting hexagram. BUT, yes, I think 33 can at times also mean something like: "Whoa! now you can relax a bit, take five, you did it."

AND it now makes even more sense when I look back, because getting that new job meant I could leave this other dept store parttime job which I hated and was desperate to get out of! ; )

In any case though, looking for a job is usually a "wandering" type of thing. I would always tend to see 56.5 as denoting a successful end to the search. a time when you can finally relax.

Hi Micheline,
Boy that is a breath of fresh air about hex 33. Lately I have been asking the IC (too often I am afraid) about getting a job. I keep getting different answers but they always change into 56. I don't want to travel and have no plans to do so. Do you think that 56 is always about travel? When you got 56.5, it wasn't in a "foreign place" or out of town, was it? It was just somewhere new??

Hi Pagan,
No, I dont thnk 56 is always about travel in the traditonal sense...and no, it wasn't for me....when we are looking for a job, we are, so to speak, "pounding the pavement," knocking on new doors....

and all of us are strangers in a strange land when looking for a new place to hang our "hat" professionally.

It can be so nerve-wracking...I really wish you well.
Didn't you just change locations anyway?

When you said you keep getting 56 as the resulting hex, it made me think that maybe you are not "settled" yet as to WHAT you are looking for? OR, it could be that 56 is just the backdrop for your job search in general...you are in the process, on the road....

BUt the advice in hex 56 is very good for job seekers, things like: keep an open mind, be accomodating to new ideas, don't get entrenched in any one way of doing this, keep a sense of adventure alive. Those are all essences of the traveler, in my opinion.

You are obviously such a bright and articulate woman. I know there has to be a place that needs you and your talent.
All the best, MIcheline

Micheline...

It seems I've had the same experience as you regarding 56. I've related it to employment situations for years. I got it a lot when I worked in film and television production which is very temporary work... unless you get on a long running series, of course.

And the following is a rather recent plea for help here on the forum re: 56.2.6 and then feedback on the Yi's answer:

<blockquote>Hi there...

I really need some help with this. I'm in panic mode and can't see this reading subjectively.

My unemployment claim was just denied by VA because they say I left my employer voluntarily. My hours were reduced. It was no longer a full time job, and I couldn't survive if I stayed in that town any longer (unemployment was hovering somewhere around 12% and climbing, and everyone was crying the blues).

I have the right to file an appeal. I asked the Yi what I should say in the appeal, and the answer was 56.2.6. Were they telling me what to say? Or were they telling me to not even bother?

Thanks so much for any help you can give me.

Love,

Val</blockquote>

When I finally had my hearing, the question on the judge's mind appears to have been did I behave as defined in 56.2 and lose my job simply because of lack of work or did I lose my job because of the misconduct defined in 56.6. That either/or question and how she arrived at the answer filled most of the four-page final judgment.

The Yi was telling me the judge's focus so I would know what to say on my appeal. I didn't realize that, but that's okay because my employer actually answered the question herself by stating I had done an excellent job and by not providing a sufficient reason for not providing me with subsequent work.

Love,

Val

I copied the sample questions from the site
and asked one that seemed odd to me - because I
am not seeing this person or even talking with her
but I think about her at times. So I asked the question, what does this person think of me? and the answer was
again pretty surprising -
#10 with changing lines at 1, 2, 4 and 6.
The changing line at #4 was the one that really
got my attention.
Nelson