From its first appearance in the first words of the Yi, the creative flow through the four characters yuan heng li zhen is tangible. Its power is felt in the other five hexagrams with the whole, uninterrupted formula. But the natural cohesion of the four-word formula can also be felt… Read more »Theme and variations
My reading for this past week was hexagram 4, Not Knowing, with no changing lines. I appreciate getting unchanging hexagrams: it seems to me that Yi’s making allowances for me, giving me just one simple thing to keep in mind. I take it as an invitation to reflect. The issue… Read more »Hexagram 4 and seeking meaning
All meanings of the name of this post are intentional, as I really don’t know the first thing about Chinese etymology. But in my ignorance, I just stumbled over something wonderful in the first line of Hexagram 4, Not Knowing. Hexagram 4, line 1 speeds the young ignoramus on her… Read more »Not Knowing etymology
Each Sunday, I cast a reading for the week ahead – sometimes just asking for something to be aware of, sometimes asking for advice. This week I asked for advice, and received Hexagram 4, Not Knowing, with no changing lines. This was pretty baffling. Lately I’ve been working very intensely… Read more »Layers in a weekly reading
My reading for this week is Hexagram 4, line 1: ‘Sending out the ignoramus, Fruitful to make use of punishing people, Fruitful to loosen fetters and shackles. Going on in this way is shameful.’ I think the way my brain is(n’t) working just now is a nice illustration of the… Read more »Brain fetters (and hexagram 4)
This entry is a follow-up to my post on ‘Life lessons from Yi‘ a few weeks ago. Like that one, it’s more personal-journal-ish than I usually write, but I hope it’ll provide a couple of ideas you can use yourself. (Please let me know what you think of this style… Read more »Weekly I Ching reading
There’s a phrase in the Judgements of hexagrams 31 and 44, along with 4, line 2: ‘taking a woman’. Its usual interpretation is ‘taking to wife’, though it’s the same word used to mean ‘take by force’ or ‘capture an animal’. What are we to make of the phrase? And does it mean something different in readings for men and women? And what have translators and commentators made of it?
