What is I-ching?

I-ching or the Book of Changes is one of the oldest books of the ancient Chinese scriptures.
It consists in 64 short essays on the lineal figures named hexagrams.
Each hexagram is made of six yin and/or yang lines as shown below:

__  __
__  __
_____  Hexagram 54 - Kuei Mei / The Marrying Maiden
__  __
_____
_____

The yin is represented by a broken  line__  __ and the yang as a continuous _____ one.
Each hexagram has a name (tag).
Each name points to a specific life situation, human attitude or object.
Each hexagram is assigned a so-called Judgment in the form of a short statement sometime followed by an advice.
The statement refers to the future and is related to the consulter question. The advice instruct the consulter on how to act in order to avoid a danger or attain his/her goal.

One may consult the I-ching oracle through casting coins or yarrows or even online through this device (see the instruction on the left).

Online Resources:
- James Legge version - http://baharna.com/iching/legge/
- Richard Wilhelm version - http://www2.unipr.it/~deyoung/I_Ching_Wilhelm_Translation.html
- Carl Jung's introduction to the Wilhelm/Baynes version - http://www.iging.com/intro/foreword.htm
Explains the content and the consultation methods, and gave an example of interpretation of the answers.

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Special thanks to Dan Enright for this great script!