易經 — Yi Jing

The Book of Changes

The Yi Jing, or Book of Changes, is an ancient Chinese work built around 64 gua — six-line images formed from yin and yang. It has been used for centuries for divination, reflection, and understanding how situations change.



Ancient Commentary on the Origins

說卦

Shuo Gua
Explanation of the Nature of the Changes
An ancient explanation of yin and yang polarity, the Ba Gua (Eight Trigrams), the 64 Gua (Hexagrams), and the meaning of “Changes” in the Yi Jing.



The 64 Gua

Ancient Commentaries

文言

Wen Yan
Wenyan
An extended discussion of Qian and Kun — Heaven and Earth, the first two gua.

 序卦

Xu Gua
Sequence of the Gua
Begins with Heaven and Earth and walks through why the gua follow one another in the received sequence.

 繫辭上

Xi Ci Shang
Appended Remarks, Part One
The first half of the broad philosophical discussion of the Changes: change, images, words, divination, sages, and the workings of the world.

 繫辭下

Xi Ci Xia
Appended Remarks, Part II
The second half of the broad philosophical discussion of the Changes, continuing its reflections on how the Yi works and how it is used.

 雜卦

Za Gua
Miscellaneous Hexagrams
A terse comparative review of the gua, pairing and contrasting them almost like mnemonic flash cards.

Appendices

翼

The Ten Wings
Where each traditional Wing appears in this edition.

 起卦

Casting a Gua
Ways of forming a reading with the Journal, three coins, or the traditional yarrow-stalk method.

 人

Fu Xi
In the traditional story, Fu Xi gives the Yi its first language: the lines and the Ba Gua (Eight Trigrams).

 人

King Wen of Zhou
Traditionally associated with the sixty-four gua, their received sequence, and the Judgment texts.

 人

Duke of Zhou
Traditionally associated with the six line texts attached to each gua.

 人

Confucius
Traditionally associated with the Ten Wings, the ancient commentarial layer used throughout this edition.