What can I achieve with the I Ching?
Possibilities
Now that is a positive question! So much better than 'what can the I Ching do for me?' After all, whether you use runes, tarot, the I Ching - or indeed consult a psychic or a reader - the power actually to bring about change stays with you. The I Ching is simply an oracle: it answers your questions. Its answers bring you into contact with energies that are fundamental and unchanging, but at the same time absolutely, vividly connected to your present situation. It brings deeper insight - and that in turn empowers you to make changes for the better.
I have seen the I Ching help to bring harmony to relationships, and deepen and strengthen spiritual practice, reassuring or challenging as the need arises. It's also been known to guide lawyers through important cases, offer very practical business advice, and help with investment decisions.
Does this sound to you like an incredible diversity of subjects? Perhaps it is… but I have a feeling that we respond in this way only because we have lost the connection between everyday life and spiritual practice. The I Ching restores this - which is one reason why it is so constantly stimulating and challenging to consult.
Relationships
In practice, I have found that most people value the I Ching for its ability to help in their relationships. Its answers are extraordinarily sensitive to the nuances of human relationships: parents and children, soulmates, wives and husbands, business partners, friends…
Personally, the support and guidance I've received from the I Ching in relationships is beyond price - including a valuable friendship that was well on the way to becoming enmity before I asked how to rescue it! You can ask for advice to hold in mind during a particular conversation (a crucial business meeting, reaching out to a friend, asking for a raise...). You can ask for guidance in growing (or rescuing) a relationship. Also, you can ask where a relationship might be headed if you put your heart and soul into it. Readings like this can reveal tremendous possibilities, and can also save people a lot of heartache.
This is not the same as the 'genuine clairvoyant psychic will find you your soulmate' gobbledegook! Used with sincerity and respect for the other person's privacy (very important!) the I Ching can bring greater understanding of the other person's feelings and how the situation looks from their perspective. Negotiate the current issues with a sure touch, be prepared for the challenges ahead, and create the relationship you want.
Try asking…
- 'How can I help him?'
- 'What do I need to do to get on better with her?'
- 'Where are we headed in this relationship?'
More on the I Ching and relationships.
Personal growth
The I Ching's ability to describe mental and spiritual conditions with such subtlety is of immense value in personal growth. It brings you gently to a realisation of the truth about yourself, reassuring you or prompting you in response to your needs.
In a way, every reading falls into this 'category', because every reading is about greater awareness and connection. You never know what subject will suddenly open out into broader vistas. At the same time, when you ask the 'big questions' you need to be prepared to have answers focus in on practical specifics.
For example:
- 'Please show me an image of myself at present'
- 'How can I become less easily upset?'
- 'What is happening here?'
- 'Why do I feel like this?'
- 'Please speak to me about the next year of my life.'
Open readings, just asking what you need to know, serve growth well, just because they allow the I Ching to draw attention to whatever we're not seeing. A good regular divination practice is to make a regular open reading - once a week is a good fit for me. The Members' Area, accessible when you join as a Friend of Clarity (free), contains some useful downloads to support a regular practice.
When you are ready for it, asking
'What is my purpose in life?'
can bring an extraordinary release of energy. An especially powerful combination is to ask two questions: one about your purpose, one about your unique gifts. The two readings tend to work together in revealing ways.
More on personal growth with the I Ching.
Achieving goals
It doesn't matter what kind of goal you're aiming for: emotional equilibrium, better sales figures, attracting a soulmate, a pay rise... . If you can aspire to it, you can ask the I Ching for advice on how to attain it. Simple 'How to...?' questions help you see the way to your goals and bring about the positive changes you want.
Simply ask:
'How can I reach this goal?' 'What is holding me back?' 'How can I overcome this obstacle?'The I Ching can support you in testing out options, in finding the best broad approach to take, or in creating a more detailed strategy. Actually, it's hard to imagine a question that wouldn't help with strategy. So often these are the most powerful questions to ask, and bring you the most dramatic results.
More examples:
- 'What effects would this change have?'
- 'How can we achieve this target?'
- 'What if I went on this course?'
and so on!
Decisions
The I Ching is especially invaluable when you confront big decisions, such as moving house or changing jobs. These decisions have such a wide range of possible effects that you can't possibly anticipate them all. The I Ching will help you to stop worrying and take control of the decision-making process by giving you a clear picture of what would be involved.
For example:
- 'What would it mean for us to live here?'
- 'What about doing this?'
(Please note that Clarity doesn't offer help with financial or medical decisions - not because the I Ching can't answer such questions, but because I lack the expertise to interpret its answers confidently!)
Anticipating the future
It is only natural that the profound insight into the present that the I Ching offers you should also cast light on future possibilities. What it does not do is predict some inescapable future, as if your freedom of choice meant nothing. Instead, it offers a means of examining your options, through questions such as:
- 'What would be the effect on my workload if I took this on?'
- 'How would this affect my partner?'
- 'What would be the impact of this change on customer relations?'
If this sounds like something you could use, go ahead and learn how to consult the I Ching