An hexagram casting app for the Nanjing Method

[Sparhawk]

I don't post much, lately; I haven't for years like I used to in places like here in Clarity or my blogs, but I wanted to share something I created that perhaps some will find useful. Back in 2008, I wrote a little essay titled "A Proposed Alternative Milfoil Divination Method of the Yijing". Being hosted in Academia, I get to know how many people find and read my paper. It's been there for years and has always received sporadic readings. However, I have seen a spike of readings lately, which I find very curious. It tells me that a lot of new people are becoming interested in the Yijing. That inspired me to finally put my last remaining neurons to work and create an online app based on what is called the <b>Nanjing Method</b> of casting hexagrams. It took me about a week of coding and testing but it is working okay now.

This method uses the yarrow stalks counting but it treats moving lines differently and only one moving line is used, and that is, if and only if, the moving line falls on a line that is available for change. Just read the article for more information. The results page also has additional information for your guidance.

The app accepts text for a question and you can download the hexagrams created. It does not, however, link to any text or gives any interpretation. It is just a tool for casting hexagrams based on the named method.

Please visit here: nanjing.oraculis.com

I hope you find it useful and enjoy it.

Luis

 

[surnevs]

Hi Sparhawk, I noticed that, trying your program, that you only let the line chosen in the primary hexagram affect the secondary or evolved hexagram:

Only the chosen topline has been changed in the secondary hexagram, while the second Nine has been left unchanged
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My understanding is that all the changing lines in the Primary hexagram will find themselves changed in the secondary hexagram (in which only the Judgement is to be taken into consideration)

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and that, in the primary hexagram, the fifth line must be taken into special attention, not meaning that the other changing lines is to be ignored....

I know that the NanKing-rule is more complicated than that, as it can be understood by this PDF from Birocco's Homepage.

But I'll hopefully not here clame for sure that it is to be understood this way.....

 

[Sparhawk]

Hi Surnevs. Yes, I used that paper as a base for my own paper. Please read it to follow the logic of why I posted it as it is. The short answer to your question is this:

This method uses the yarrow stalks counting but it treats moving lines differently and only one moving line is used, and that is, if and only if, the moving line falls on a line that is available for change.

However, in another discussion I had with Joel Biroco (Steve Marshall) last night, he pointed to something Russel Cottrell posted, also many years ago, that I will try to incorporate to my app.

 

[Sparhawk]

I modified the app to include the proper rules for changing lines as they appear in Russell Cottrell's website. A thank you to both Joel for pointing to Russell and to him for the rules.

 

[surnevs]

On #4. I can see that Richard Rutt's version differs a bit:
R.C. :
R. R. :
If the indicated line is a changeable line, that line statement in the base hexagram is the oracle. No notice
is taken of other changeable lines. (% attached)

At least I can't see in Richard Rutt's version that the new hexagram formed shouldn't be affected by other changeable lines. But that's my look at it - if R.R. had it implicit what Russell Cottrell points out ??? Maybe, maybe not.

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ADD: In a story (pg. 185, R.R.), something that could point toward Russel Cottrell's "point 1" advice:

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- because here, line three stays unchanged in the secondary hexagram (19). (I haven't noticed that detail before, so thank you, Sparhawk for your link, on #4)

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More on the subject: E.L. Shaughnessy, The Origin and Early Developtment of the Zhou Changes, pg. 250-264, Brill, Leiden 2022 (you can Download the book via Open access, right top)