I Ching: learn more about this ancient technique

The I Ching, also known as Book of Changes, is a work which contains one of the oldest Chinese texts that have survived to this day. It can be understood and studied both as an oracle and as a book of wisdom, as it brings together a set of studies that analyzes the world and man through images of nature.

Initially, the book contained more symbols than words and required rigorous and sensitive interpretation. However, over the centuries, different sages added explanatory texts, although the purer meaning of the symbols was maintained.

The I Ching symbols represent the essential states of nature and the Universe, which allow us to glimpse the interweaving of a very rich energetic network.

The Origins of the I Ching

The I Ching Book has been developed for over 5,000 years. But it is impossible to pinpoint the exact date on which the Chinese captured and delimited, through their perceptions and profound analyses, this knowledge of the laws that govern nature.

Fu Xi, considered the wisest chief of all the tribes, initiated the codes that represent all of the writing interpreted in the I Ching. The sage named each symbol, which today is called a Hexagram.

The Symbols of the I Ching

The symbols are made up of 64 Hexagrams that complete the reading of the I Ching. These hexagrams are figures formed by 6 lines formed from the combination of 8 Trigrams, initially composed of 3 lines. In addition to also considering the two primordial energies: Yin and Yang, which serve as reading codes originating from the interpretation of nature and also from its relationship with man.

The text of the I Ching is the founder of Chinese sciences and arts, including traditional medicines that study and apply their knowledge to the energy structure of the human body. Among them are like acupuncture and also Feng Shui.

The I Ching reflects all aspects of human life, directly relating the dynamics of nature’s evolution, which becomes intrinsic to the evolution of man’s life. It is the subject himself inserted in nature who evaluates, understands and feels his participation in the natural field of action, and guarantees a flow that is always changing, a pure aspect of becoming.

One of the best-known translations of the I Ching into the West is that of the German sinologist Richard Wilhelm, who translated it from Chinese into German and features a rich preface by Carl G. Jung.

In Brazil, one of the most elaborate translations is the work “I Ching – the Book of Changes – Your Energetic Dynamics”, by Alaíde Mutzenbercher, a great scholar and researcher on the subject.

OI Ching as oracle

For its use as an oracle, prior meditation, the ritual, and the precise formulation of the question are important for a good service and a good interpretation of those looking for the answer.

The oracular consultation can be done with the use of 50 sticks, originally from aquileia (Achillea millefolium). As it is a sacred book, the I Ching and the sticks used in consultation were kept in a box of virgin wood, wrapped in silk.

As an oracle or Book of Wisdom, its content is translated through metaphors that suggest new ways of looking at the questions posed by those who seek it.

Currently, consultation with the I Ching is also carried out with simpler methods, with the use of coins, dice and even decks of cards. Whatever the choice of consultation method, the interpretation will bring references from archetypal readings and situations. All perceptions are very particular and present unique interpretations and moments.