advice for a newbie?

[ohsozen]

hi.

i've been studying tarot for about 1 1/2 years now, but feel like i want to learn more. i was thinking of studying the I Ching, but really have no clue where to start or how to get started. what materials do i need? what's a good way to begin learning? i know when i signed up for this site i was able to download a pdf course-- i'm about to read that right now. but once i'm done with that brief intro, i was looking for good reading materials that help to explore the topic more in depth. any suggestions?

thanks. :bows:

 

[ginnie]

Learning by doing

You'll first learn how to ask a question and get your hexagram.

The real obstacle is that the categories of thought (the hexagrams) do not correspond with our own. They do not correspond with Western categories of thought, and I understand they do not correspond with Chinese categories of thought, either.

The ancient Chinese observed some things occurring in certain patterns and developed a system of pictorial writing in order to record their observations. It was the priests who did this work, keeping libraries of their observations. They were observing patterns in how this universe works. They saw the universe operating along acausal lines. And that to us means, roughly: non-rational lines.

If I were you, I'd buy a copy of the Richard Wilhelm hardcover edition of the I Ching and read the foreword, which was written by Carl Jung, the man who coined the word synchronicity. He explains all this really well.

On the practical level, you have to have enough free time to devote yourself to this study. Also, it's the work of a lifetime. Confucius was once quoted as saying that if he had his whole life to live over again, he would devote himself entirely to studying the I Ching.

Good luck ! ! !

 

[marien]

Hi ohsozen,

I agree with all of Barbra's advice absolutely. And as someone who has also studied Tarot, I've found the I Ching to be far more profound. My advice would be to take it slow and keep it simple. Start with Wilhelm and avoid the gimmicky, watered down translations that have flooded the bookstores. I learned it all on my own (fifteen years before I came to this website), though the resources here will help you . The casting is easy (no complicated layouts like Tarot); it's the interpretation that can get tricky. I usually try to focus on the images like a story, or sometimes they come in all directions like dream images, so I write them down and let them sink in. The I Ching experience is really personal, and lends itself to a lot of different approaches. After you've used it awhile, you can develop a kind of shorthand where you grasp things intuitively and have a conversation through a bunch of readings. Sometimes an answer will apply to the next hour, other times-- a month, a year, or a lifetime. Pretty amazing. But like Barbra said, it requires your free time and dedication- a life's work if you will. But the rewards are immense.

Hope it works for you!