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| The I Ching |
The I Ching is an amazing book. It dates back to about to about 200 BCE. It even survived the Qin Dynasty's book burning. It is full of the idea of the Chinese philosopher Confucius. Sceptics might look at this book and think it not possible. But the book is a really magical book which provides deep wisdom when all those around you seem panic-stricken and crazy.
How it works is: you throw three coins, six times. The coins, how they land those six times, build up an image of six lines. The total amount of the coins forms either a yin line or a yang line. The little drawing formed from throwing the coins is called a hexagram. Once you have thrown your hexagram for that day, you have to refer to the BOOK, or the oracle.
Now in this book there are 64 hexagrams with individual readings, and within the 64 readings there are another 6 pieces of wisdom. So often you get a very significant reading to you daily coin throw. Often it is better for your daily coin throw to a question to ask, and that way your answer is much more precise and detailed.
My copy of I Ching has a foreword by Jung. Jung believed in synchronicity (to Freud's dismay) Synchronicity is part of the idea of the I Ching. Synchronicity is the way the universe provides what you need when you need it when you are involved in work needed to be done (but what is provided comes when you need it)
What is remarkable is the book seems to be very in touch which questions asked, and like a guiding parent, it shines insight on your puzzlements when you really want an answer to something. It so often calms you down and assures you of greater workings, when very often you feel stuck and frustrated with something unsolved in your heart.
It is called the book of Changes because our lives are always on the go. We cannot avoid change and this book has a grasp of what is beyond this great change. It helps us connect with something greater than our petty minded self and reminds us of glories of the universe and its great powers. I find this book a magical one, because so often its answers seemed to have understood my question very deep down, as if the god itself is right inside me, giving me understanding of the puzzle I have thrown at it.
Other posts of interest:Ernest Hemmingway: Bookcase Puzzle in Cuba
Katherine Mansfield: How to live life in BLISS
Transformation and Victor Hugo: "To love another person is to see the face of God"
Kafka’s Metamorphosis: How Art can be as Captivating as Dream
The Arabian Nights: how storytelling can nurture a love story
Daniel Maximin: "Poetry is Emancipation"
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