I Ching the Book of Changes & How to use it as a Meditation Guide

Opportunities to find deeper powers within ourselves come when life seems most challenging. Joseph Campbell

Yes, the I Ching is just a book. A book that has been circulating for thousands of years in many different forms. The wisdom that resides in this book has been the foundation text of Chinese philosophy and wisdom throughout the ages. It is believed that the I Ching came into being in the Zhou Dynasty, around 800 BCE. This ancient book of divination is based on eight symbolic trigrams and sixty-four hexagrams. These are interpreted in the principles of yin and yang. It was also included as one of the five classics of Confucianism. In the 17th century, it was discovered by Jesuit missionaries in China who decoded the text for the Western world. It has always been considered the book of sages and its writings have influenced Taoism and Chinese Buddhism as well. The mythologist and author, Joseph Campbell describes the I Ching as “an encyclopedia of oracles, based on a mythic view of the universe.”

Meditation

There are a few ways in which to read the sixty-four hexagrams in the I Ching. The coin toss is the oldest method. There are a number of sites and apps that you can read and or download to learn more. I found an app by Brian Browne Walker that I use daily in my meditations. I haven’t tossed the coins in years. Instead, I sit quietly and contemplate a question I might have or I simply ask for guidance. Without looking at the screen I quickly scroll through the hexagrams and randomly stop at one. Most of the time the hexagram is relevant to my question, other times, it might not be, but the words are always profound, lyrical and at times stunningly accurate..

There are a number of different ways to meditate. I prefer to be quiet and settle myself first with my breathing and clearing my mind. When I first began to meditate I explored many different options. I had too. I didn’t know what I was doing or what I needed to do. The one thing I did know is I had to quiet myself if I was going to survive. After eleven, successful, years our home furnishings company was on financial life support and I would be there soon if I did not find a way to calm myself and explore a path to a new beginning. I turned to meditation. And it changed my life.

How do you corral a million scary thoughts running through your head with a breath? You keep breathing. In the beginning, I had to physically leave my negativity in the other room. I would take my palms and literally brush the fear off my body. Leaving it where I stood and walk into the next room to meditate. Make no doubt, this is a commitment. Those first sessions would last two minutes, that’s not a type-o. It’s a process. You want to encourage yourself. You want to be kind to yourself. This is not the time to beat yourself up with should of’s – and gee I wish I would have thoughts. You brushed all that off in the other room. Leave it there.

Staying mindful and on track. I use a visual that I have called on for 25 years to bring me away from intruding thoughts and back to my breath. The visual is this: a path is scatted with fall leaves representing the random thoughts that are interrupting the meditation. I have an old exaggerated Chinese straw broom, and with this, I brush aside the scattered leaves. Clearing the way for a new breath.

The Hexagram

The hexagram below came up a few days ago. It was so profound. It was not related to a question I had asked. It was an answer to a thought. The night before I kept thinking about the word Grace. In fact, I looked up the definition: Grace – verb – do honor or credit to someone or something by one’s presence. My definition – to be present with Grace in all that I attempt.

賁

Hexagram 22: PI

GRACE

Inside, the strength of
simplicity and self-knowledge.
Outside, the beauty of
acceptance and gentleness.

This hexagram encourages you to cultivate a quality of grace in your relationships and in your general way of being. In this way you gain a power greater than any other to open a way through obstructions in your dealings with others. Good fortune is yours if you concentrate on bringing more grace to your thoughts and actions now.

It is human nature to want to use forceful ways to try to get what we want from others and from life. Our egos encourage us to act aggressively, to speak boldly, to intimidate others, to “buffalo” our way through difficult situations. This false power can be momentarily satisfying to our ego, and temporary victories can be won in this way, but genuine power and lasting progress come from a different kind of strength altogether.

They come from inner strength, which is characterized by a steadfast devotion to the principles of humility, simplicity, equanimity, and acceptance. By gradually letting go of the vain, bullying energy of the ego and accepting the quiet guidance of the Higher Power, one acquires the substance that makes ongoing good fortune a possibility.

This is a time to relinquish self-important maneuvering. Instead, return to stillness and contemplate the inherent wisdom of the principles of the Sage. By practicing quiet strength within and gentle acceptance without, you acquire a grace that dissolves all barriers to progress.

When I read this hexagram I was overcome with a sense of calm and hope. We face challenges throughout our lives as the quote from Joseph Campbell says. Every day is an opportunity for us to reinforce our spirit. To look for the deeper powers within ourselves. We might be only one voice. One thought in a morning meditation. One breath away from Grace.

Please, let us in on any secrets you have for meditation. I know there are a few masters out there! Do share with us…Namaste