Hi, being fairly new at this i hope to learn as much as possible. i tried the electronic i ching on the site and asked the question, 'what do i need to become a wise woman/a shaman? the answer was hex 14 changing line 6 into 34. my question here would be, 1. how appropriate was my question and 2. how do i interpret the answer? thank you so much.

Hi Carol-

You don't mess around do you? I have absoutely no advice or response to your actual question above, yet I do think that if you really have a serious wish to be a wise woman and shaman, then asking the yi such questions is a great way to begin! Much luck! - Brian

Hi Carol,

I think you received a truly beautiful answer to this question. Hexagram 14 consists of the trigram Fire on the outside, and Heaven on the inside. Fire can mean 'connection, being attached to'. It's on the outside of the hexagram, which can suggest that, as a shaman, you would need to see your connection with the outer world. How are you attached, and how do you two cooperate? And, as Fire, how do you shine on the outer world, your surroundings?
Heaven inside can mean creativity, the will to create and to give life. It is the inner trigram, which suggest that creative processes mainly work inside for a shaman.

So, the answer to your question could be: 'What you need is connection with the outer world, your surroundings, and to discover creativity within you, not outside yourself'. Blessings from Heaven will come from this.

Best,

Harmen.

Hi Carol,

In addition to Harmen's insightful answer, I'll offer something else.

34 expresses the idea that greatness for a shaman can not be separated from rightness. The kind of power you are seeking is not useful unless its connected to wholeness. That's the meaning of greatness. Its not something to be used to gain just personal power or influence. Its not even about what becomes of you, but of what active creative forces comes from you and through you.

Wishing you power and peace on the journey.
Candid

Hi Carol...

No one has addressed your first question yet, and that is the question here that has my little "mind tendrils" all abuzz right now. When I first read your post, my immediate response was, "Is this a trick question?" "Is this a test?"

Someone who aspires to be a wise woman and shaman has, no doubt, already amassed enough wisdom at this point to transcend the need to be a doctor, lawyer, fashion designer or used car salesperson. And it would seem that such a person would aleady possess enough wisdom to know the answer to the question you posed to the I Ching.

However, you did ask. Further, you also asked the question, "How appropriate was my question?" That's where I got the feeling this is a trick question...or a test...or maybe a question offered to the rest of us to ask ourselves. *grin*

How appropriate is it for a wise woman who aspires to dispense her wealth of wisdom (Hex 14) to those who seek it from her to consult a greater wisdom (Hex 34)? Very...I would think. The very action speaks of the humility required to do so, and the blessing of the benevolent giving and receiving of the changing line 6...the giving of wisdom and receiving of love...and the giving of love and receiving of wisdom says to me...you go girl!

Thanks, Carol, for posing this question.

Peace, love and understanding,

Val

Hello Carol,

As everyone else has said long before I got here , this is a beautiful answer to a wonderful choice of question. When I think what I've been pestering the poor oracle with lately...

I think you might get an interesting angle on this if you look at where both your hexagrams come from. 14, Great Possession, arises from 13, People in Harmony, which is to do with community - specifically, I think, with enlarging your idea of what 'your group' is. So the great possession can be individual gifts, but it can also be the great energy generated by free giving and sharing between people, which somehow always multiplies well beyond the sum of its parts. The ideogram for 'possessing' shows a hand holding an offering: in other words, the whole idea of 'possessing' is not only to hold something, but also to give it. In the context of your question, this suggests to me that part of what you need is the inheritance of a tradition, freely given.

The Image for 14 is also beautiful, and simple. There is the end of hatred and spreading of goodness and gentleness, and 'yielding to heaven, resting in destiny'. If this is what you are here for, then allow it to be.

Great Vigour (34) arises from Retreat (33): a withdrawal from society and influence in order to collect yourself and preserve your individuality. 34 is a hexagram of maturity and autonomy, a clear and distinct sense of who you (and perhaps also why) you are. Individual conviction, coming to meet the great tradition, perhaps?

When interpreting the I Ching, the focal point of the answer is almost always the moving line, the 'pivot point' of change. This one is utterly straightforward. What you need - and what I am sure you must have - to be a wise woman and shaman is the power and protection of a heavenly source.

I hope very much you'll stay around. This is quite a letter of recommendation you've brought with you...