‘DIY’ tips for I Ching divination
The Yijing as a whole is a rather disconcerting book. It can say things we don’t understand, or, worse, things we understand perfectly well but don’t want to know. A reading can be reassuring, can reinforce your thinking, or it can give you a real jolt. ‘I have had this truly… Read more »How to make Yi less disconcerting
One of many interesting things I found in Richard J. Smith’s The I Ching: a biography was an account of Zhu Xi’s approach to divination. Zhu Xi (1120-1200) wrote firmly of Yi’s identity as an oracle, not just a ‘book of wisdom’. In addition to creating the yarrow method we use now,… Read more »Advice from Zhu Xi
Possibly the most Frequently Asked Question about interpreting readings: ‘This line says one thing, but that one says the opposite! How can I make sense of the reading when it contradicts itself?’ It happens a lot: you ask how to go about something, and one hexagram says it’s fruitful to… Read more »‘If, then’
When we approach a reading, we generally have some principles in mind for how the parts of the answer will fit together and work as a whole. In the beginners’ course on this site, I outline the framework I’ve found works best: the cast hexagram’s the basic answer, the relating (changed)… Read more »A framework for readings
How often have you heard someone say they need to consult with Yi (and perhaps need help with the interpretation) because they’re ‘too subjective’ or ‘too emotionally involved’ with the topic? In a way, that can be true. We can be too close to something, too caught up in its… Read more »Yi, emotions and decisions
I wrote before about why we want to do readings for other people – in essence, because we want to help, and we know what Yi gives, and we want to share that. As I prepare for the Reading for Others Class, I’ve really been learning a lot from the in-depth responses people… Read more »Why reading for others can be hard
In 2014, Sheffield’s half marathon was cancelled. It was some kind of last minute organisational shambles: not until the spectators were lining the route and the runners waiting at the start did the organisers report that their water supplies hadn’t shown up, so they couldn’t go ahead. The runners started… Read more »What do you give, when you give a reading?
