Yi-Blog

I was just commenting on Hilary's blog about the issue of where answers are coming from in consulting the Yi (I Ching):

That's a great question and I wish it could be answered in some logical way (that wasn't a request, Chris... :) ) My shifting belief is that we tap, through the Yi, into a shared pool of wisdom; a pool that contains all that is, has been and will be, in all its variations. That we are able to exercise some free will in our destinies is not a case of "creating information" as we go but a continuous "lane shifting" in in a universe where all possible scenarios are contained. This is not to say we are predestined in any way since the "lane shifting" randomness contained in said universe is just too great, if not infinite. In my believe, we can think of the Yi as a cosmic GPS device that tell us where we are at a given moment and an indication of where to go from there to reach a given goal. Mind you, Chris' theory that any hexagram applies to all situations and vice-versa is perhaps correct in this context but, as such, a Yi answer works as a catalyst for the comprehension of a situation and thus giving a directional clue.

Some other days, perhaps most, the romantic in me truly believes is talking to a live immortal with a sharp sense of humor. He/She is more tangible and immediate to my feelings this way.

L

I certainly don't pretend to know the answer nor does Hilary, or anybody for that matter, but I don't believe there are "wrong" answers to the question. The undeniable and historical fact is that the Yi works, it has for millennia and will work like a ticking swiss watch for the archeologists of the year 3,500 that unearth the remains of our long gone and flawed society.

Technorati Tags: I Ching, Yijing

That little square thingy with my rotating Yi-Toons you see to the right of the page is available to steal. If you like it and want to include it in your page, just copy and paste the code below in your design. Get one!

<embed src="http://www.mentalaxis.com/fl8/badgr2.swf?limit=25&framecolors=#ffffff,#535353,#000000,#000000,#e0eeff&waittime=5&framealphas=0,0,0,100,100&badgrmode=1&userid=21633004@N00&rows=5&columns=5&rolling=no&displaytime=3&framescaling=1.05,1.01,1.65,1.16" height="190" width="190" bgcolor="#cccccc" /></embed>

Sometimes I think of the Yi as a lacquer box that is continuously being painted, over and over again, with the shellac of every question posed to it, every interpretation and commentary. The box is disproportionately thicker with glossy lacquer than the actual wood that supports it, to the point that it cannot be opened and the real essence, the spirit of the Yi inside the box, is to all denied. We feel and intuit what's inside the box but do not really know it. The lacquer is transparent to a point; we can see the content of many layers down and under the surface until they become too dark to discern. As it is, we are still too far away from what's contained in it.

...I couldn't help myself from noticing, albeit post-fact. Yesterday I uploaded a new Yi-Toonbased on a comment made by Lindsay, a fellow forum member, on Clarity.

Associating different smells with Yi hexagrams is an inspired idea, perhaps the most intriguing olfactory breakthrough since the invention of Smell-o-vision in 1958. I imagine walking down the street, sniffing the sweet fragrance of Hex 61, the heady aroma of Hex 44, the luscious odor of Hex 50, or the acrid smell of Hex 18. But how do hexagrams feel? Do they also have tactile qualities - heft, temperature, texture? Are some solid, some liquid, others gaseous?

If you look at the three hexagrams on top you will notice that a "sweet fragrant"hexagram (61) needs three changing lines to become a "rotting smelling" one (18), but it takes only one changing line for the "luscious odor" hexagram (50) to become rotten and smelly... That 50 depicts a cauldron, as in a sacrificial vessel but also as a vessel where foods are prepared, is not lost to the irony either.

Technorati Tags: cartoons, I Ching, yijing