Nearly thirty years of working with the I Ching has crystalized into a process for conducting I Ching inquiries. First, we need to ask a question that articulates what we require assistance with. There are more and less skilful ways of formulating our question. Once we are clear on the question, we go through the process of ‘consulting the I Ching,’ which we do by casting sacred coins dedicated to this purpose.
Depending on the complexity of the answer we receive, we may need to consult various sources on its meaning. Chinese writing is made up of three-dimensional images rather than two-dimensional signs, so the same Chinese image can have multiple English translations, all of them valid, and each answer may have several layers of meaning, all often contributing to ‘a bigger picture’.
Often, the process of inquiry is more important than arriving at any one answer. How to respond to our situation often comes to us as we make our way through the nooks and crannies of this inquiry, rather than from the actual ‘answer’. And any real answer we receive is usually multi-dimensional rather than singular. Depending on the complexity of the process, you will be advised on whether one, two or more sessions are advisable to explore this process sufficiently.
