Looking at each of them, the picture answers a question in the sense of an all-embracing inspiration.īy throwing three coins six times you can find the six lines of the hexagram. It is, rather, a window of intuition and a symbol of the rhythm of life. But in my opinion the I Ching is not an oracular book, as there is no future in the sense of a logical development. The I Ching can be consulted as a book of divination and for understanding the future, into which the present will evolve. Is the I Ching an oracular book, as is so often maintained? Questions such as 'Where do I stand? Why am I in this situation? What will it result in? What should I do?' have occupied the mind of man from time immemorial. The Book of Changes is, it is true, a very profound work, but it does not present modern understanding with greater difficulties than any other book that has lived on into our day and age after a long journey from antiquity. It depicts the universe as a cosmic whole, in which nature and man are part of a single system. The whole of Chinese life is deeply pervaded, right down into everyday life, by the influence of the I Ching. It is thus no wonder that the two main branches of Chinese philosophy, Confucianism and Taoism, have their common roots here. It contains the wisdom of the millennia, which is still valid for many today. Undoubtedly the I Ching is one of the most important books in world literature.

The major part of it is attributed to Wen Wang from the 12th century B.C., a sage and founder of the Chou Dynasty.īut its origins are lost in the mythical past 6000 years ago. The I Ching is the oldest book in the world. Again and again I Ching is also used as an oracle book, providing answers to such questions as 'Where do I stand?' or 'What shall I do?' But is that what it is really about? Jürg Conzett here says what he thinks of it and why the book fascinates him. It takes you into ancient China's cosmological and philosophical world of ideas and with its 64 symbolic hexagrams stimulates people to search their souls to this day. In this video Jürg Conzett, the founder of the Sunflower Foundation, acquaints you with one of mankind's most important and oldest books – the Chinese book of wisdom I Ching.

Book of changes i ching