Considered the oldest Chinese book, the Yi Jing constitutes the first Classic. It was the foundation of the education of every official in Ancient China. This work, surrounded by an almost mystical aura, served for millennia as a decision-making aid for the greatest leaders. Today, it is accessible to everyone to help guide us in making the right choices.
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The Yi Jing, or Treatise of Changes, has always held great importance in Chinese thought. First, it is a collection of maxims that bear witness to the millennia-old wisdom of China. Second, it forms the basis of the two greatest currents of Chinese thought: Confucianism and Taoism.
It managed to survive and reach us despite two campaigns of systematic destruction of ancient writings under the emperor Qin Shi Huang and later under Mao Zedong. The Society of Jesus helped spread it in Europe, where it greatly impressed Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz because of its mathematical structure, as well as Carl Gustav Jung, who was an ardent supporter of its use.
One of the books that explains what the Yi Jing is, is The Book of Simplicity—though only its title is simple.
At every moment in life, we are led to make choices—choices that can be difficult to decide upon because of the many factors involved. The I Ching can guide us in making the right decision.
The book is based on the duality between Yin and Yang: the feminine and the masculine, passivity and action. The first is represented by a broken line, the second by a solid line. The combination of six lines creates a hexagram.
All the situations encountered in life can be represented by one of the 64 existing hexagrams. Each of these hexagrams is interpreted by the Yi Jing. Indeed, the same laws constantly apply in the world, and everything can ultimately be related to these 64 cases. However, they can “mutate” into a second hexagram if one line changes, which brings the number of possible configurations to 4,096.
Through a method of casting that involves both the unconscious and intuition, the Yi Jing determines which hexagram to consult and provides a message filled with wisdom to help guide the decision.
Many people offer training courses to learn how to interpret these six lines. Some are very serious, others less so. A good training program takes place over the long term. It is not in two or three weekends that you will understand all the subtleties of the hexagrams. Such training allows you to grasp the nuances of the hexagrams and the interpretation of each line (yao) within them.
I Ching—the Book of Changes—contains a great deal of information, including the Judgment and the Image associated with each hexagram.
The GUANG DAO Association, in Switzerland offers a way to properly learn the Yi Jing. Other schools and associations also teach it very well, although I am not familiar with them.
