Wikibooks - I Ching Project
I Ching (pronounced as Yi-Ching) is an ancient Chinese book that has been used for divination. The I Ching is also known as the Zhou I (pronounced as Zhou-Yi).
Location Table
There are 64 hexagrams used in I Ching. Each hexagram is comprised of an upper trigram (as shown in the top row), and a lower trigram (as shown in the first column) of the table below:
Trigrams: |
☰ 乾 Qián |
☳ 震 Zhèn |
☵ 坎 Kǎn |
☶ 艮 Gèn |
☷ 坤 Kūn |
☴ 巽 Xùn |
☲ 離 Lí |
☱ 兌 Duì |
☰ 乾 Qián |
01 ䷀ (乾 qián) Initiating |
34 ䷡ (大壯 dà zhuàng) Great Strength |
05 ䷄ (需 xū) Needing |
26 ䷙ (大畜 dà chù) Great Accumulation |
11 ䷊ (泰 tài) Advance |
09 ䷈ (小畜 xiǎo chù) Little Accumulation |
14 ䷍ (大有 dà yǒu) Great Harvest |
43 ䷪ (夬 guài) Eliminating |
☳ 震 Zhèn |
25 ䷘ (無妄 wú wàng) Without Falsehood |
51 ䷲ (震 zhèn) Taking Action |
03 ䷂ (屯 zhūn) Beginning |
27 ䷚ (頤 yí) Nourishing |
24 ䷗ (復 fù) Turning Back |
42 ䷩ (益 yì) Increasing |
21 ䷔ (噬嗑 shì kè) Eradicating |
17 ䷐ (隨 suí) Following |
☵ 坎 Kǎn |
06 ䷅ (訟 sòng) Contention |
40 ䷧ (解 xiè) Relief |
29 ䷜ (坎 kǎn) Darkness |
04 ䷃ (蒙 méng) Childhood |
07 ䷆ (師 shī) Multitude |
59 ䷺ (渙 huàn) Dispersing |
64 ䷿ (未濟 wèi jì) Not Yet Fulfilled |
47 ䷮ (困 kùn) Exhausting |
☶ 艮 Gèn |
33 ䷠ (遯 dùn) Retreat |
62 ䷽ (小過 xiǎo guò) Little Exceeding |
39 ䷦ (蹇 jiǎn) Hardship |
52 ䷳ (艮 gèn) Keeping Still |
15 ䷎ (謙 qiān) Humbleness |
53 ䷴ (漸 jiàn) Developing Gradually |
56 ䷷ (旅 lǚ) Travelling |
31 ䷞ (咸 xián) Mutual Influence |
☷ 坤 Kūn |
12 ䷋ (否 pǐ) Hindrance |
16 ䷏ (豫 yù) Delight |
08 ䷇ (比 bǐ) Union |
23 ䷖ (剝 bō) Falling Away |
02 ䷁ (坤 kūn) Responding |
20 ䷓ (觀 guān) Watching |
35 ䷢ (晉 jìn) Proceeding Forward |
45 ䷬ (萃 cuì) Bringing Together |
☴ 巽 Xùn |
44 ䷫ (姤 gòu) Encountering |
32 ䷟ (恆 héng) Long Lasting |
48 ䷯ (井 jǐng) Replenishing |
18 ䷑ (蠱 gǔ) Remedying |
46 ䷭ (升 shēng) Growing Upward |
57 ䷸ (巽 xùn) Proceeding Humbly |
50 ䷱ (鼎 dǐng) Establishing The New |
28 ䷛ (大過 dà guò) Great Exceeding |
☲ 離 Lí |
13 ䷌ (同人 tóng rén) Seeking Harmony |
55 ䷶ (豐 fēng) Abundance |
63 ䷾ (既濟 jì jì) Already Fulfilled |
22 ䷕ (賁 bì) Adorning |
36 ䷣ (明夷 míng yí) |
37 ䷤ (家人 jiā rén) Household |
30 ䷝ (離 lí) Brightness |
49 ䷰ (革 gé) Abolishing The Old |
☱ 兌 Duì |
10 ䷉ (履 lǚ) Fulfillment |
54 ䷵ (歸妹 guī mèi) Marrying Maiden |
60 ䷻ (節 jié) Restricting |
41 ䷨ (損 sǔn) Decreasing |
19 ䷒ (臨 lín) Approaching |
61 ䷼ (中孚 zhōng fú) Innermost Sincerity |
38 ䷥ (睽 kuí) Diversity |
58 ䷹ (兌 duì) Joyful |
The 8 Trigrams
Each hexagram is made up of two parts, namely an upper trigram and a lower trigram, which are also known as the outer gua and the inner gua respectively. Each trigram is made up of 3 lines, and each line can either be a Yin line or a Yang line. A Yin line is a broken line and a Yang line is an unbroken line. For example, Qian (Heaven) is represented by 3 Yang lines, and Kun (Earth) is represented by 3 Yin lines. The lines are read from bottom to top, and the bottom line is called line 1. For example, line 1 of Zhen (Thunder) is a Yang line, and lines 2 and 3 of Zhen are Yin lines. The order of the lines is important when a hexagram is cast (written down) or read/interpreted. The order is also used when determining the moving line(s).
In order, the eight trigrams are:
Number | Trigram | Traditional Chinese | Simplified Chinese |
---|---|---|---|
1 | ☰ | (乾) Qián (Heaven) | (乾) Qián (Heaven) |
2 | ☷ | (坤) Kūn (Earth) | (坤) Kūn (Earth) |
3 | ☳ | (震) Zhèn (Thunder) | (震) Zhèn (Thunder) |
4 | ☵ | (坎) Kǎn (Water) | (坎) Kǎn (Water) |
5 | ☶ | (艮) Gèn (Mountain) | (艮) Gèn (Mountain) |
6 | ☴ | (巽) Xù (Wind) | (巽) Xùn (Wind) |
7 | ☲ | (離) Lí (Flame or Fire) | (离) Lí (Flame or Fire) |
8 | ☱ | (兌) Duì (Lake or Marsh) | (兑) Duì (Lake or Marsh) |
Circular Arrangement (Early Heaven)
For the purpose of divination, the 8 trigrams may be arranged in a circle, and ordered as follows:
Anti-clockwise Direction
- ☰ (乾) Qián (Heaven) pointing South, at the top of the circle
- ☱ (兌) Duì (Lake or Marsh), pointing South-East
- ☲ (離) Lí (Flame or Fire) pointing East, on the left-hand-side of the circle
- ☳ (震) Zhèn (Thunder), pointing North-East
Clockwise Direction
- ☴ (巽) Xùn (Wind), pointing South-West
- ☵ (坎) Kǎn (Water) pointing West, at the right-hand-side of the circle
- ☶ (艮) Gèn (Mountain), pointing North-West
- ☷ (坤) Kūn (Earth) pointing North, at the bottom of the circle
Dui ☱ 2 |
Qian ☰ 1 |
Xun ☴ 5 |
---|---|---|
Li ☲ 3 |
Kan ☵ 6 | |
Zhen ☳ 4 |
Kun ☷ 8 |
Gen ☶ 7 |
The Moving Line
Whilst a Gua gives an initial understanding of the present situation, the Moving Line is used to obtain a deeper understanding of the present situation, by understanding the current stage that a person is at in a given situation, as well as a future potential situation. When the Moving Line is converted to its counterpart (that is, a Yin line is converted to a Yang line, or a Yang line is converted to a Yin line), a new Gua, the approached Gua, emerges. A line in a Gua is also known as a "Yao" in Chinese.
The 64 Hexagrams (Gua)
Host Of The Hexagrams
Core Hexagrams
Interpretation
Explanation Of Hexagrams And Lines
Casting Hexagrams
There are many ways to cast an I Ching hexagram. The ancient yarrow stalk method will take about half an hour to obtain a hexagram. The modified method, as described by Alfred Huang in "The Complete I Ching", takes about five minutes and is much more convenient.
- The Ancient Yarrow Stalk Method
- The Modified Yarrow Stalk Method
- The 3-coin Method
Xuan Kong Da Gua
The I Ching hexagrams have been used in other areas of Chinese culture, including Feng Shui, such as Xuan Kong Da Gua (玄空大卦).