How to Consult the I Ching

Divination is the art of seeing and interpreting signs in everything around us. The goal of divination is to encourage well-being by helping a person live in harmony with the universe around them. One of the best known systems of divination is the I Ching, or Book of Changes. For some 3,000 years, people have turned to the I Ching to help them uncover the meaning of their experience and to bring their actions into harmony with their underlying purpose. The I Ching consists of 64 hexagrams or six-line diagrams. Each hexagram is accompanied by a text containing folk poetry, historical tales, and commentary. These ancient texts describe the conditions associated with the 64 archetypal patterns of change. They convey the laws and principles pertaining to time and change. The hexagram images reveal the patterns through which change manifests itself in the ebb and flow of time. 

 

The underlying premise of the I Ching is that all events--past, present, and future are interconnected. The future develops out of the present according to a set of fixed laws. To know the present, then, is to know the future. The I Ching counsels timely action in the moment for a given set of circumstances. Each moment has a pattern to it and everything that happens in that moment is interconnected. As a system of divination, the I Ching reflects your current connection with the Tao, or Universe. It serves to freeze the present moment at the time of your inquiry, responding in the form of a hexagram. By evaluating the hexagram that describes your current pattern of relationship, you can divine the outcome and act accordingly.

 

The I Ching is a microcosm of all possible human situations. It serves as a dynamic map, whose function is to reveal one's relative position in the cosmos of events. The hexagram texts address the sixty-four archetypal human situations. The commentary of each hexagram reveals the optimal strategy for integrating or harmonizing with the inevitable for a given condition. It provides the appropriate response to your inquiry. It affords a holistic perspective of your current condition and discusses the proper or correct way to address the situation.
 

The Inquiry
 

To consult the I Ching, one must first frame an inquiry. Formulating an appropriate question and writing it down is a key element in the process of divination. Focusing on a question develops a receptive state of mind and helps you clarify what it is you are truly seeking. It is important to word your inquiry in a concise and clear-cut manner. A vague question will elicit an ambiguous or misleading response. Be specific about your intent, the circumstances, and the scope or nature of the response you desire.
 

Avoid the tendency to ask yes/no or either/or types of questions. A simple yes or no question leaves no room for elaboration and the either/or inquiry is actually two questions. Inquire instead about the nature of the situation, the appropriate attitude and strategy, the outcome of a particular course of action, and so forth. If time is a factor, include this element in your inquiry as well. Appropriate inquiries might be worded as follows:
 

How would it benefit me to pursue a career in _____?
What aspect of my character or attitude is hindering my progress?
Which hexagram best describes my present situation?

I would like the I Ching to comment on my intent to travel to _____ in three months.

 

Casting a Hexagram
 

Once you have formulated an appropriate inquiry, you are ready to "cast a hexagram." Casting a hexagram is the term used to describe the method for generating the six lines of the hexagram. Casting was devised in ancient China as a mechanism for reflecting or mirroring what the subconscious or inner self already knows. The subconscious mind, or right hemisphere of the brain, knows which hexagram best describes your current situation or condition. It knows because it accesses the invisible sea of information that we bathe in daily--the all-pervading frequencies of consciousness immanent in all phenomena. The subconscious has the capacity to analyze or devour information all at once while the conscious mind, or left cerebral, analyzes information one bit at a time. The conscious mind allows us to see only the surface of things. Accessing the all knowing of the subconscious is difficult since there is usually little or no communication between the left and right cerebrals.
 

Various casting methods were devised to resolve this predicament. The subconscious mind is able to gather the information desired and influence the casting, regardless of the method, to indicate the most appropriate hexagram. The original method for casting a hexagram is known as the "yarrow oracle." This method involves the manipulation of fifty yarrow stalks in an elaborate procedure that is repeated six times in order to determine the six lines of the hexagram. A simple "coin oracle" was devised by Chinese philosopher Kuei Kuo Tze some 2500 years ago to replace the complex yarrow stalk method. The coin method requires tossing three coins six times to generate each line of the hexagram. Like a building, the hexagram is assembled from the ground up--the bottom line being considered the first line in the text interpretations.
 

The easiest way of casting a hexagram is to use my online hexagram generator which is based on the yarrow stalk method. The result is the immediacy of the coin tossing method with the reliability of the yarrow stalk method. For a reading, click on the "Cast a Hexagram" button. A small window will appear. Click the "Create Hexagram(s)" button to generate the hexagrams. Red indicates a changing line. A hexagram with one or more changing lines indicates that the situation related to your inquiry will soon be changing. The changing lines will turn into their counterparts, transforming the initial hexagram into a changed hexagram. As a result, you will read two hexagrams. The initial hexagram corresponding to your present situation is read first, followed by the changed hexagram relating to the eventual development. Changing lines usually address the future implications of a particular course of action. They may describe the changes you are likely to experience and how to deal with them.
 

Interpreting the Message
 

The I Ching does not answer a question in a direct, logical manner. It responds in the form of a hexagram, which serves as a model or paradigm of appropriate behavior. It provides the framework within which to perceive and comprehend the archetypal condition related to your query. It provides a holistic perspective and comments on the situation or condition. It offers suggestions on the best way to approach this condition. It presents advice for what to do to act in accord with or avoid a particular prediction. You must then interpret the message and determine for yourself the most appropriate course of action with regard to your inquiry. This process engages and accesses the subjective mind and intuitive awareness.
 

When your interpretation differs from the eventual outcome, then reevaluate the commentary in light of what actually transpired. In this way, you develop proficiency in your ability to interpret the I Ching's sometimes paradoxical and enigmatic aphorisms. At times, the oracle will provide an incomprehensible response that does not seem to fit the question posed. When this occurs, the I Ching may be overriding your stated inquiry in order to address a more significant issue, an unstated concern, or unconscious projection. The oracle may also be alerting you to an impending crisis or significant change. Keep in mind, too, that all conditions are transitory. Nothing is permanently fixed or static, so whether you like or dislike the response, conditions will eventually change with regard to your inquiry. Consult the I Ching.

What Shamanism Is Not

When people ask me if I can define what shamanism is, I like to begin by defining what it isn't. Sometimes it is easier to contrast something with what it is not than to define exactly what it is. So in that vein, shamanism is not:
 

Religion. It is important to highlight that shamanism is not a religion, which involves a set of organized beliefs, practices, and systems that most often relate to the belief and worship of a controlling force, such as a personal god or another supernatural being. In an organized religion, belief systems and rituals are systematically arranged and formally established, typically by an official doctrine (or dogma), a hierarchical or bureaucratic leadership structure, and a codification of proper and improper behavior. Unlike religion, shamanism has no dogma, no religious hierarchy, and is a cross-cultural tradition characterized by direct revelation and hands on experience. Shamanism is based on the principle that innate wisdom and guidance can be accessed through the inner senses in ecstatic trance. No intermediary such as the church or priesthood is needed to access personal revelation and spiritual experience. The essence of shamanism is the experience of direct revelation from within. Shamanism is about remembering, exploring, and developing the true self. Shamanism places emphasis on the individual, of breaking free and discovering your own uniqueness in order to bring something new back to the group.
 

Psychology. Psychology is the scientific study of the mind and behavior.  Psychologists endeavor to understand the motivations and intentions inherent within a person's mental and emotional behaviors. It does so by uncovering the hidden agendas and issues at play in a persons actions and choices. Shamanism acknowledges the value of the psychological perspective, however, it does not seek to understand a person's underlying issues and intentions. That is best left to trained psychologists. Indeed, from the shamanic perspective--which is to say a soul-centered perspective, rather than a mental perspective--it is understood that the inner state of the soul is expressed as thoughts, feelings and emotions in the outer, physical realm. The mental and emotional conditions are but the symptoms or manifestation of the inner state of the soul. Shamanism is a paradigm of self-empowerment, which enables people to engage the soul in ways that foster its growth and evolution.
 

Metaphysics. Metaphysics is the branch of philosophy concerned with the fundamental nature of reality and being. The perspective of metaphysics is that everything has a function or purpose and its essential nature is to grow and achieve its purpose. It explores abstract concepts such as cause and effect (karma), the nature of time, the existence of God, the meaning of life, the relationship between mind and body, and the existence of free will. Unlike metaphysics, shamanism is based in personal accountability without the imposition of an all-powerful God or theoretical universal laws that dictate the circumstances of our lives. Shamanism is premised on spiritual sovereignty free of karmic reward and punishment. When presented with a situation, shamanism never endeavors to find what the lesson is, understand its purpose, or comprehend the meaning. Instead, practitioners seek to apply their knowledge and skills to resolve the situation. Practitioners employ time-tested methods for altering consciousness to find clarity and solve problems.
 

What Shamanism Is
 

Shamanism is a cross-cultural, spiritual path practiced in every continent of the world. It is the most ancient and most enduring spiritual tradition known to humanity. It predates and constitutes the foundation of all known religions, psychologies and philosophies. It originated among nomadic hunting and gathering societies. These ancient shamanic ways have withstood the tests of time, varying little from culture to culture. Over thousands of years of trial and error, primal peoples the world over developed the same basic principles and techniques of shamanic power and healing.
 

Shamanism represents a universal conceptual framework found among Indigenous tribal humans. It includes the belief that the natural world has two aspects: ordinary everyday awareness, formed by our habitual behaviors, patterns of belief, social norms, and cultural conditioning, and a second non-ordinary awareness accessed through altered states, or ecstatic trance, induced by shamanic practices such as repetitive drumming. The act of entering an ecstatic trance state is called the soul flight or shamanic journey, and it allows the journeyer to view life and life's problems from a detached, spiritual perspective, not easily achieved in a state of ordinary consciousness.
 

The shamanic practitioner traverses the inner realms in order to mediate between the needs of the spirit world and those of the material world. It is an inward spiritual journey of rapture in which the practitioner interacts with the inner spirit world, thereby influencing the outer material world. From a shamanic perspective, all human experience is self-generated. Experience is shaped from within since the inner world is a microcosm of the outer world. Each human being is a hologram of the universe. Essentially, we are the universe experiencing itself in human form.

Shamanism and Music

Shamanism and music combined thousands of years ago. By observing nature, shamans perceived that the power of sound could be used to help and heal others. The first drums and musical instruments were put to shamanic use, as were many of the early singing traditions. According to Tuvan musicologist Kira Van Deusen, "In a shaman's world music operates in several ways. It helps the shaman and other participants in a ceremony to locate and enter the inner world, opening the inner, spiritual ear and eye. Musical sound calls helping spirits and transports the shaman on the journey. Both the rhythm and the timbre of musical sound help heal the patient through the effects of specific frequencies and musical styles on the human body."(1)

Music is an essential tool in shamanic ritual and healing work. Music is the carrier of the specific intention or desired outcome of the ritual. Music is used to contain the energetic or spiritual aspect of the sacred space, which is defined physically by the assembled people who participate. Dance and song propel the ritual process forward by providing a vehicle for self-expression within the sacred space. Together the musicians create the necessary container that channels the energy generated by the performance in ways that the shaman can guide toward the ritual's intended outcome.
 

Three elements are constantly interacting in communal healing rites: the shaman who guides the flow and pattern of the ritual, the musicians who contain the sacred space, and the gathered people who participate. Interaction between all three elements is necessary to maintain the energy, flow and intention of the ritual.
 

Music is also used to crack open the part of the self that holds emotions in check. For example, in funeral rites among the Dagara people of West Africa, drumming and singing are used to open the mourners to grief. Grief is then channeled in such a way that it will convey the newly deceased soul to the afterlife. Without the help of the drummers, musicians and singers, the powerful emotional energy cannot be unleashed. If not channeled properly, grief is useless to the dead and dangerous to the living. According to Christina Pratt, author of An Encyclopedia of Shamanism, "This musical container of the ritual space must be maintained continuously. The musicians do not rest as long as the ritual continues, though the ritual may last one to four full days."(2)
 

Shamanic Music
 

Shamanic music is traditionally performed as part of a shamanic ritual; however, it is not a musical performance in the normal sense. According to Scottish percussionist Ken Hyder, who has studied with Siberian shamans, "musical considerations are minimal in shamanic performance. The shaman's focus is on the spiritual intention or the energy of what is being played. When the performer concentrates on the spiritual aspect of playing, it allows the music to become very loose, spontaneous, and innovative." Hyder explains, "My approach to music making changed decisively following my experiences in Siberia. For me it starts with the dungur [drum] and the expanded possibilities of variation arising from its superficially apparent instability. And it continues to open up with other musicians being equally free in themselves and in the context of a group. That opening up has the capacity to expand and expand further making the playing fresh, different and spontaneous each time."(3)
 

Shamanic music is improvised by the shaman to modify movement and change while actively journeying into the spirit world. It is a musical expression of the soul, supporting the shamanic flight of the soul. Sacred music is directed more to the spirit world than to an audience. The shaman's attention is directed inwards towards communication with the spirits, rather than outwards to any listeners who might be present.
 

Another way that the shaman expresses their experiences in the spirit world is through their physical movements in this reality. In their journeys, shamans are often flying, running, crouching, stalking and fighting unseen spirits. All of these movements are acted out for all to see in a shamanic performance.
 
A shaman uses various ways of making sounds to communicate with the spirits, as well as relate the tone and content of the inner trance experience in real time. Sound is regarded as one of the most effective ways of establishing connections with the spirit realm, since it travels through space, permeates visual and physical barriers, and conveys information from the unseen world. Shamans may chant, clap their hands, imitate the sounds of birds and animals, or play various instruments. Of particular importance are the shaman's drum and song.
 

Each shaman has his or her own song. It announces the shaman to the spirits and proclaims, "this is me; please help me." The song is usually sung near the beginning of the ritual and is often accompanied by drumming. Singing brings the heartbeat and body into resonance with the song similar to entrainment with the pulse of the drum. As the shaman's song invokes the intended spirits, the shaman comes into resonance with these spirit energies as well.

Shamanic experience can be expressed in many ways: through writing, art, and film, however it must be created after the fact. The one artistic medium which can be used to immediately express shamanic trance without disrupting the quality of the shamanic experience is music. The shaman's use of sound and rhythm is an audible reflection of their inner environment. This is the traditional method for integrating shamanic experience into both physical space and the cultural group.

1. Kira Van Deusen, Singing Story, Healing Drum: Shamans and Storytellers of Turkic Siberia (McGill-Queen's Press, 2005), p 108.
2. Christina Pratt, An Encyclopedia of Shamanism (The Rosen Publishing Group, 2007), p. 128.
3. Ken Hyder, Shamanism and Music in Siberia: Drum and Space. Tech. 11 Aug. 2008. Web. 28 Feb. 2012.