‘How to Make Change a Working Part of your Life’
with Stephen Karcher
ou know this already: owning a copy of the I Ching doesn't change your life. Not if it's gathering dust on a shelf.
So when I invited Stephen Karcher to talk at an online meeting, I suggested this as a theme: making the oracle a working part of life. Getting the book off the shelf, letting the Book of Change do its work of enriching and deepening and radically changing your life.
The complete recording and transcript of this event is now available on CD (Windows only) or for immediate download. And to give you a taste of it, you can watch some free excerpts online.
The event was a huge success. Stephen's a very practical diviner, and as you'll hear, he spends a lot of time giving straightforward (but eye-opening!) answers to people's questions about the nuts and bolts of divination. But he also plunges into the deeper issues - what divination really is, what it's for... - with inspired enthusiasm.
"Dear Hilary,
I never did get to thank you for "Hostessing" that wonderful Webinar in the UK with Mr. Stephen Karcher! That is the real beauty of The Net, to be able to bring all this learning into our homes around the world, just like Mr. Karcher had come in to teach us himself!
I felt it was such a success. The format was great because it was all based on questions & concerns that we were interested in. He based everything that he taught & spoke about on what we asked for & then we still had a chance to ask further questions as we went along. The few hours felt like minutes because it was fast paced & the learning was second to none!
It wasn't like someone just got up & spoke about the subject of The I-Ching. It was very personal & interactive and I feel like everyone was able to get exactly what they needed from it. It was my first Webinar and a truly enjoyable & learning experience!
Sincerely,
Lori Singer"
USA
I'd love to sum up the experience for you - but I'm not sure where to start! Look - here are just some of the questions Stephen talked about:
- What do you do or what do you think when you absolutely disagree with what the Yi seems to be telling you?
- In your studies of the I Ching, what was the insight that gave you the greatest shift in understanding?
- What do you do when you get two changing lines that seem to be opposites?
- What are the 'Pairs' and why are they important?
- What is 'heaven's mandate'?
- What are 'crossline omens'? How do they work in practice? (Note: Stephen's ideas have evolved since he published Total I Ching...)
- Since Yi isn't a yes-no oracle, when you want to know ‘do I do this or don’t I?’ what do you ask? (Watch the excerpt below!)
- Do you ask about your health at all, and if so, how do you phrase the question?
- I've become addicted to online casting. Am I missing something?
- What do you mean by 'spirits', and are these the same thing as ghosts?
- Do you think it’s important to have a physical connection between the person you’re doing the reading for and the means of consultation, like the coins or yarrow?
- What has chaos theory got to do with the Yijing?
- When one translation says one thing, and the next one has a totally different message, what do you do?
- Are there some questions that don't work, or questions that it's wrong to ask?
- How many translations would you recommend you look at for a reading?
- When you have a whole range of things the second hexagram could be in a reading, how do you decide how to look at it?
- What are some first steps to getting confident about my answers?
- Would you just plunge into the confusion of a reading and see which parts caught your eye, or do you have a part of it that you habitually look at first, to start to orientate yourself?
- Is it possible to change heaven's mandates?
But actually, just listing the questions like that, I haven't given you more than a taste of the full, two and a half hour event.
There was the issue of yin being presented as evil in the Wilhelm/Baynes translation - and how yin and yang might relate to evil, if they do at all...
Stephen talking with passionate energy about the Great Enterprise as we looked at that big, dramatic reading from Yi ...
...many people's questions flowing together into an in-depth discussion on individuation and ego, and building a personal myth with Yi, and whether it's possible for this myth-building to descend into fantasy and self-delusion...
...and not to forget the wise, funny story of the rainmaker, which really brought it all together for me.
Here are a few free snippets from the event for you to watch and listen to now. Just turn up your speakers and click a link. (These extracts open in new windows: close the window to get back to this page.)
- About heng, fixing the omen (2 minutes)
- Finding the real question (3 minutes)
- Bad questions? (4 minutes)
- Yi and building your personal myth (7 minutes - this one will take a bit longer to load over slow connections)
"Talk about value added!!
Just wanted to say thanks for a truly awe-inspiring maiden voyage, Hilary. It was a real delight to hear Stephen in his own words present this fast-paced and wide-ranging seminar, with thought-provoking questions and comments from the participants (I was the silent one in the back of the room...).
I’ve just downloaded the transcript — thank you for the fully tabbed table of contents for easy navigation and all the bonus goodies. This is SO much more than my money’s worth. I am eagerly awaiting the next event."
Jane Chandler, USA
When you order, you get a username and password to download the recording and transcript immediately. You can also order both recording and transcript on CD - though this is only compatible with Windows computers, sorry. The price is £7 (about $11.13 or €8.82) for instant access to the downloads, or £12 (about $19.08 or €15.12) to get the CD posted to you as well.
(The £7 price is set in UK £ sterling, so the price given in US$ and Euros will vary slightly with exchange rates. Please click here for a live currency converter; you can also use it to find prices in Australian and Canadian $.)
If your internet connection is slow, and you're on a Windows computer, I'd recommend you get the CD. The recording files include over 200 minutes of voice chat and text chat and web pages, and they are very big: 3 files of 30MB each!
Included on the CD and in the download area:
- full video recordings of the event to play back on your computer
- complete audio transcript in pdf format, with a clickable table of contents for easy browsing
- A 'Resources' file with links to the books, websites and journal Stephen mentioned during the seminar
- The reading layout: the technical basics of Pairs and crosslines explained
- The sixteen token method: how to use it, and the probabilities of getting the different kinds of line
Bonus! 2 weeks' free access to Change Circle
Change Circle is Clarity's private community, where I Ching enthusiasts share readings and pool their insight and experience. You can skim through all that's included here.
How to make Change a working part of your life includes two weeks' free access to the complete Change Circle (regular price £5/month), giving you ample time to explore the resources, get to know people, and decide whether you'd like to stay on. (Please note you will not be re-billed automatically after your two free weeks.)
Steps to get your recording and transcript:
- Choose whether you want your recordings on CD (you also get instant access to download them), or just as a download.
- Fill in your details and complete your order
Depending on the payment method you chose, you'll be taken to secure servers at either Worldpay or Paypal. - As soon as your order is processed, you'll be given instant access to login and begin downloading the screen recordings and audio transcript
- If you also ordered the CD, I'll get it in the post to you within two working days. After that, delivery times depend on postal services, but you should get your CD within a few days in the UK, and inside two weeks in the US or Europe.
"This was two unique learning experiences in one.
The first one was a real initiation rite; it allowed me to stand behind Stephen Karcher, the master alchemist, to look over his shoulder at invaluable instruments and procedures to decode the symbology embedded in the hexagrams. And from there discover the intelligent underlying dynamics of the voices of the spirits we summon for a dialogue on the unknown, through coins, yarrow stalks or marbles.
The second one was a revealing, new understanding on other far-reaching reflections of the Yi. I had been always used to deal with the Yi as a lantern to shine outwards and illuminate the external universe surrounding me and my circumstances, like an extension of myself. Instead Stephen took us to recognise the Yi as a way inwards, a means of self-transformation by the inner work you nurture when the omen is allowed to nest and mature in "your heart-mind so that it begins to act as a guide on the voyage of life," that is to open the gates to the Way, to stay in harmony with the nature of events we have to face along the years.
This was a breakthrough experience - for the gates to a deeper perception of self, not just enhancing divinatory skills.
I just would like to add: Bring him back again!"
Hernando Sabogal, Finland
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