Welcome to Raggydax's I'Ching page hosted here at raggydax.com. So to begin, still your mind, relax and concentrate on the question you need to ask. Then click on this link to the I'Ching, and on this link to the Why.

The I'Ching, given its age has to be one of the foundation texts of human civilzation. Variously dated from 3rd millenium and 2nd millenium B.C its oldest surviving copy (incomplete) dates to the time of the Warring States (475-212 BC). The I'Ching indubitably helped inform Confucius in the composition of the Analects. It predates Lao Tsu's Tao Ching and Te Ching, pre dates the Torah of the Bible (550BC) by at least one thousand years. It is probably contemporaneous with the (Akkadian) Epic of Gilgamesh, and The Legend of Etana (2800BC), and the codex of Hammurabi (1750BC).

The aspects which sets this I'Ching apart from others is the simplicity of its use. The paring down of the unessential features, the doing away with the mumbo jumbo. The I'Ching is not and never was meant to be prophetic. Its physical feature, namely the use of three coins: two base metal, one noble is merely a process that is meant to centre the questioner. The interpretation of the resulting hexagaram is completely up to the beholder. Everything else is in the laps of the randomness gods. I have provided, apart from my interpretation under the 21st century heading a comparative line by line reading from four other noted sinophiliacs. Firstly, (a) James Legge (1815-1897) whose Sacred Texts of the East introduced the I'Ching to the West. Then (b) Richard Willhelm's (1873 -1930) whose version has probably been the most successful at popularising the I'Ching for the baby boomer generation. (c) Sam Reifler's, A new Interpretation for modern times, published in 1985 a closer to contemporary version; and lastly (d) Aleister Crowley's (1875-1947) version for the sake of including the less travelled and perhaps more notorious interpretations. While (e) the first panel provides my interpretaion of the line. Whether for fun, or taken seriously the I'Ching has always provided rewards for those of the mind to see them. Relax and enjoy,

Raggydax, 2013

100% HG (Human Generated)