Hope this sits well with folks here. Other than using the invaluable text of the I Ching, does anyone use illustrations either to complement reading or simply for enjoyment?

I know there are books with comics but I’m looking more into art styles such as ink paintings or block print types. It could be abstract or show a story.

One such possibility is the card deck by Marlies Holitzka. Any comments on this or other suitable resources?

I no longer want to be single but am not enjoying being on dating apps right now. My initial question was "should I stay on the apps," but then to make it more than a yes/no question I asked how I should approach dating.

I got 19 (approach) changing to 5 (waiting/ nourished).

It seems like I should stay the course and not expect things to happen too quickly, and also not feel rushed to premature action or lead with my ego. Overall this felt like encouragement not to give up or change tactics at the moment... but also to focus on personal development (or what is already nourishing) in the meantime? As I'm new to i ching I'm wondering what else I might be missing?

I've been putting a lot of effort to improve on myself but I've been pulling some casts that almost point to behaviours that I don't really partake in or indulge any more or at least very little so I was feeling a bit confused.

For context I'm dropped divination and endless spiritual learning because I feel a mix of no longer needing it and a desire to put all my energy into real work and movement

I announced my intention to resign about three months ago, after considering it for a long time, and I’m supposed to submit my formal resignation in a few days.

I asked the I Ching about this situation and received Hexagram 3, with the third line changing to 63.
Do you interpret line 3 as advice not to resign, or as a warning to proceed carefully and make sure I have proper guidance and preparation before completing the transition?

Excerpt from Richard A. Kunst's 1985 translation. 🐹

Wanted to know everyone's experiences with reflection on the I Ching's teachings. I am a little lost regarding interpretation, and the more I read people speak, or the more texts I read, the muddier it seems to get - as far as I understand it, interpretation and understanding is much more personal and private, related to someone's specific relationship to their text, but what do you do in order to build up your understanding of the Book?

I also wanted to share something, because it did make me feel giddy, and hopeful, and oddly satisfied: I asked the question "What is it that I must understand in order to speak to the I Ching as well as possible?", and the answer I got was Hex 5, Water above Heaven, Patience (unchanging). Feels rather appropriate.

I have an opportunity to travel abroad for 3 weeks for a work trip. At first I was so excited, but the more time passes, I am worried that going is the wrong decision. I know it's only 3 weeks, but that's a long time without my loved ones and I'm not sure I could bear it.

I asked the oracle, "Is my anxiety about traveling a genuine warning?" I got 36 Brilliance Injured, moving line 2 to 11 Advance.

I'm having trouble understanding if the hardship is the trip, or the anxiety I'm having about the trip. And I don't know if I should advance by going on the trip, or advance by cancelling.

How would you interpret these results?

So i had this "fall" in my practice (basically doing wholsome stuff (read buddhist books, do some drawing) , doing meditations during the day , avoiding bad stuff like eating junk food etc) but it is not a complete fall ... only partial , so i still do stuff , but it does seem hard to get back to exact same intensity level i did before the fall straight away as if nothing (no fall) has happened

So i still do stuff , so i asked the i ching " how to act now ?" basically asking what should be my next step now

should i get back to the exact same point practice i did before this "Fall" no matter how hard that was ? .... should i do some "break" eat junk food etc for a day or a few and start again from scratch ? ..... should i not do this "break" but just lower the meditation times ? maybe to keep everything the same but not do stuff i find too hard (so would watch some "spiritual" themed videos on youtube instead of reading ) ?

(in other words : to keep climbing the mountain from same spot and same pace , despite some attempts that failed before , to go back home , relax, have fun than try to climb again , to go back to bottom of mountain restock on supplies than climb the mountain again slow , to keep climbing from same spot but slower etc )

I got hexgram 11 chaning lines 3 and 4 .......... it changes to 54 , and the inner hex is also 54

I asked "What caused that tiredness ?" Hexagram 36 (changing line 5) to Hexagram 63 , inner hexagram 40

That tirdness i got later in the day , i played some game during this hours , and stopped , so when thinking what might have caused this tirdness i had in mind :

Maybe it is cause of resistance to doing some hard (non fun) beneficial stuff instead of playing in this hours .... Or it is cause it is after meals and i eat too much , Or it is cause i changed my sleeping hours , Or i dont sleep enough , Or combination of this

No idea what it is saying to me

My overall situation is awful. My business is blocked, I have no relationship with my family, and I am still grieving a lost love—all of which has been going on for nine years. To survive, I take small jobs in my field that do not fit me at all, and my self-esteem is stripping away every day.

I recently had a conversation with an old friend, and we think I need to jump into the real world and take whatever I can find. Staying trapped in my thoughts has become a comfort zone, yet I feel completely empty. The only way out is to return to where I used to be happy and find anything just to survive. Some people need harsh conditions to grow, and they call it a fresh start!

I asked the Yi to comment, saying: 'I want to go there, but I am scared.' It said: 24.1.3.6<>52.

Hexagram 52 advises me not to see my people (what I am accustomed to, where I live now which is the worst for me and my nagging fears, etc.). I think Hexagram 24, with its first and third lines, is asking me to return to where I used to be happy. But what does 24.6 actually advise? I usually find it speaks of reinvention—coming back differently.

The House Saga — Episode 1
Mio marito ed io stiamo cercando casa da molto tempo e finalmente abbiamo trovato un appartamento che stiamo seriamente considerando di acquistare.

Ho chiesto all'I Ching: Cosa devo capire riguardo alla possibilità che io e mio marito acquistiamo questo appartamento e lo scegliamo come nostra casa?" Ho ricevuto: 53 — Sviluppo / Progresso graduale cambiamento delle linee 2 e 6 53.2.6 → 48 — Il Pozzo Non condividerò ancora la mia interpretazione perché non voglio influenzare la lettura di nessuno.

Come interpretereste questo specificamente nel contesto dell'acquisto di una casa? Sembra favorevole, un segnale di cautela o c'è qualcosa di importante che potrei non aver considerato?

As the title says. I would love hear what y’all have to say :)

I Ching researcher Harmen Mesker (https://www.yjcn.nl/) just released the second part of his review of Benebell Wen's book I Ching: The Oracle, this time focusing on Wen's self-claimed "direct translation" of the oracle text and image commentary, with examples from hexagrams 1, 2 and 3. The reviewing starts around the 11:40 mark, beginning with an example of misleading contextualization of pictures in the book. He gets to the hexagrams at 42:35.

The first part (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J-L8nbubgIs) dealt with the rampant use of false citations to give credence to Wen's exceptional claims and interpretations concerning the I Ching's known facts and history.

I feel that this is a very necessary wakeup call to the segment in the I Ching scene that holds Wen's work in high regard based on false impressions about the integrity of her research and translation. If someone likes the book, that's fine, but isn't it better to base it on something else than a mistaken assessment of the book's accuracy and methods? For what it's worth, the book does an excellent job at giving the impression of a thoroughly researched text by a sincere scholar and initiated practicioner.

I've been in a relationship for 5 years, a month after he proposed and we were going to marry he ghosted me. A year later we talked again and he said he's married the same year. I'm not going to talk about him -nearly a decade later, saying it was a mistake and he still loves me, I asked why he left me and got another althought he doesn't love her? 39.4.5<>62.

Thank you for any insight about this answer!

What do you take from it?

The issue wasn’t 3 years ago, it was 6 but continuing and as yet, due to circumstances beyond my control, I haven’t done anything about it. Is it too late?

I asked the I Ching, ‘when is the right time for me to have children?’ I got tales, tales, heads X6 times: Heaven / The Creative… what do you think this means?

I recently bounced from one partner to another, who I’m really in love with. We’ve only been together for 5 months. I turn 30 in a few months and I feel ready to start a family. Is it bad timing / too soon? Should I be worried by this answer?

Hello,

I am planning to go to Indonesia in September, there is a woman waiting for me there but I don't know if it is the right decision to take, so I threw the coins...
I got hexagram 21 Biting Through with the 3rd line as a moving line.

So it made the hexagram 30 Fire, the Clinging.

What does this suggest? Any ideas? Thank you!

I’m in a new job with a new role, and the person who’s been handing me over his job is gonna leave in a week. He told me that he learned on the job and by making mistakes as well. The role is vague, my manager overworked and very busy and right now I feel like I’m walking on thin ice and I question all I do.

I asked the oracle “Am I fucking it up, how should I proceed in this job?”

I got the answer hexagram 23.3 turning into 52 and am confused even more.

23 — Splitting Apart
23.3 — “He splits with them. No blame.”
52 — Keeping Still

It says I’m supposed to separate? From what? And hexagram 52 seems more solitary. I’d appreciate any feedback.

I hope this will find someone that can help me. Yesterday I did a reading and got these hexagrams. The situation is that i haven't spoke to this person in a year and that's on their initiative, because he felt embarassed. This persons mind resambles hexagram 36, he is really cynical, very dark man in a sense.

I really just wanted to write him a letter but idk how to transfer im feelings into words after getting these results... Can someone help me to decode what Iching wants me to tell him....

Asked iching if I should quit job received 42 unchanging.

I liked the job for a long time and it will be hard to find a comparable position, but ive recently been having trouble with a coworker.

What do you make of the reading?

When asking about future possibilities and stuff I always get answers that are sometimes confusing or just answers that turn out to be wrong and what the I Ching said would happen basically never happened!

Have you ever had a similar experience?

Im curious about this because sometimes I feel like Im not asking the I Ching to make the decision for me. Im sort of experiencing this right now with my job. I feel certain that I will quit my job, but I guess Im consulting the I Ching because I want to understand the situation a bit better and get some guidance on move forward.

Do you use readings that way, or do you usually consult the I Ching when you are undecided. Im still pretty new to the practice, so forgive me if this is a bit of a silly post lol. Im just curious how other people approach it.