I-ching or Book of Changes

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What is I-ching (Book of Changes)?

Even if today we are mostly interested in its philosophical aspect (see Wilhelm's introduction), the book has been used from the oldest times as an oracle, while it offered

Fu Hsi

Fu Hsi, the divine ancestor,
author of the eight trigrams (pa-kua)

information about the evolution of the events in time or about the positive or negative result of the consultant's actions.

Sovereigns and princes used the book in this direction. Its importance is also proved by its survival from the arson of books ordered by the Chinese emperor Ch'in Shih-huang-ti, in 213 AD

History of I-ching

Tradition has attributed the creation of this unique book to Fu Hsi, the mythical ancestor, who invented many other useful things to Chinese antiquity. It is said that he had been the witness of a miraculous phenomenon that put him in contact with the 8 trigrams (pa-kua), forming the basic structure of the Book of Changes. The legend says that while he was walking on the banks of the Yellow River, he caught a glimpse of a dragon coming out of waters and wearing on his back the signs of the 8 trigrams that he copied by drawing them with his finger, on the sand.

Richard Wilhelm

Richard Wilhelm is the author
of the most known western translation of I-ching (the German one)

King Wen and Prince of Chou also had essential contributions to the present form of the book, regarding hexagrams, titles, Judgments and lines texts.

Finally, an outstanding contribution came from the famous Confucius and his school, who added various comments (Wings).

It is all agreed that this book contains the essence of Chinese spiritual movements and that it has influenced everything that was consequently conceived. Nobody can deny its importance in the Taoism too.

Content of I-ching

I-ching is a collection of essays on 64 linear figures made up of six continuous or discontinuous lines. The continuous lines ______ represent the yang principle, and the discontinuous ones__ __, the yin principle.

The 64 combinations of lines have titles like Creative (Yang), Difficulty at Beginning, Caldron, Marrying Maiden, Progress, Contemplation... that definitely describe typical situations. Each hexagram also contains a Judgment (many times offering oracular predictions) and short texts explaining the significance of each individual line.

I-CHING COURSE FOR BEGINNERS- Learn about the hexagrams, their meaning and the consulting methods by taking our 16-lesson I-ching course.

-> Click here to learn more...

I-ching in Western Culture

The most important contribution to the spreading of this book in Europe was that of Richard Wilhelm. He was a Christian missionary in China and he met Lao-nai Hsuan, a descendant of Confucian school, who effectively helped him to translate the book into German. More than a simple translation, Wilhelm also added his comments to the 64 hexagrams.

Carl Jung

Carl Jung wrote a substantial introduction to the I-ching published in the English version of Carry F. Baynes

Carl Jung suggested a version in English made by Cary F. Baynes, and it was also Jung who added a substantial introduction to this version, where he explained with examples the way the book could be consulted as an oracle. This was the most important contribution to the explanation of the oracular practice to the western culture.

I-ching Today

I-ching is together with yin-yang, Lao-tzu and Tao-te ching one of the most familiar terms to the Western culture. The book is further on used as an oracle, even if many users have difficulties in interpreting its symbolic answers.

Read also:
-> More about the I-ching content (hexagrams, trigrams and so forth) here.
-> Introduction to the I-ching by Richard Wilhelm (HTML).
-> Foreword to the English Version of Wilhelm's Translation by Carl Jung (PDF).
-> Carl Jung and I-ching here.

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