Are times mentioned in hexagrams metaphorical?

[august moon]

Is there a general consensus on how metaphorical are specific times mentioned in hexagrams? For instance, if 7 days is mentioned, is this a metaphor for a short period of time or a long period of time? Is 3 years a metaphor for a long period of time or a short period of time?

And what are people's experiences of the specificity of months or seasons mentioned?

 

[soft_helion]

the numbers are used in different ways. sometimes they are used as figures of speech, to represent general rather than specific quantities. in the daodejing, "ten thousand" means "infinite." so I think when the i ching says "three days" (hex. 18) or "three times" (hex. 35), this means "several."

they can also have numerological significance. for instance, "in the eighth month, misfortune" -- 8 is the number that yields a yin line.

I have found that the oracle tends to play fast and loose with its own contents. for instance, I received 35 (an audience with lord kang) right before I got called for a job interview. so I think it depends on the context. generally you should assume that everything is a metaphor -- usually even the different "people" mentioned are metaphors for situations or emotions -- but every once in awhile something will pop out (i.e. a correspondence between "eighth month" and something significant happening in october or august) that uses the text in a very literal way. these synchronicities, in my experience, help you to interpret the messages the oracle gives you, and also show its playful side.