I-Ching
The I Ching, also known in
the West as The Book of Change, may be the oldest book in the world
and is one of the fundamental books of the classical Chinese culture.
Every element of the Chinese culture is considered to have been influenced
by this book or to have influenced it. Originating thousands of years
ago among the courtly shaman-diviners of ancient China, it springs out
of the unconditioned consciousness of primeval humanity.
Its antiquity is traditionally considerable. It seems to be the creation
of the cultural ancestor Fu Hsi, a demiurgic being, of a remarkable
nature (a dragon) who might have created the first eight trigrams -
pa-kua - and the oracle with fifty yarrow stalks. I-ching is the
only book saved from the arson ordered by the first emperor Ch'in Shih-huang-di,
in 213 AD. The emperor used to read the book as an oracle.
In Chinese, "ching"
means book. 'I' means change, or changes. Thus the name may be translated
as The Book of Changes. But 'I' means not only change, it also means
permanence, or the unchangeable. The Book of Changes views all of the
changes that we go through, as well as the world, as an unfolding
of the nature laws and principles of existence. Study of
the I ching thus makes it possible for us to adjust our individual
human activities and situations within the larger context of harmonious
interactions between people, nature, and the cosmos.
The I ching is a practical guide through the perplexities and insecurities
of daily life. It roots our actions, experiences and expressions in
the fundamental ground of existence. It's beautiful commentaries help
to give us the moral strength we need to fulfill our ideals. The loveliness
of its images provide endless joys of meditation, study and contemplation.
The heart of the book is in its images. There are sixty-four in all.
Age-old traditions describing the images through the medium of imaginative
verse helps to disclose the underlying themes. And, in addition, a great
number of philosophers have written commentaries about the images in
the I Ching. The legendary contributions of Confucius, or Kung-fu-tse,
from about 500 B.C. are the most celebrated, but there have been
many others of comparable scope and quality. The images have been interpreted
from the point of view of many of the world's religions.
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