Reading the I Ching involves casting coins or yarrow stalks to build a series of 6 lines called a "hexagram". Each line is either Yin (the passive or feminine force) or Yang (the active or masculine force). The resulting hexagram is then looked up in the I Ching itself, to yield a passage describing what each of the 6 lines means. There are 64 possible hexagrams, each of which can be further broken down into groups of 3 lines called "trigrams". One of the most fascinating aspects of I Ching readings is that each line in the present hexagram may be old, indicating that it is about to change from Yin to Yang or vice versa - by inverting each of these changing lines, we can generate a hexagram depicting the immediate future.

The I Ching intrigued me, not so much because it is a very ancient book, the culmination of many great minds and a great culture, but because it was largely couched in symbols. Apart from being a book of wisdom in the ancient Chinese tradition, the I Ching was also consulted on questions of state, warfare and personal decision making. It is this aspect of it which is dealt with here. Consulting the I Ching does not present us with statements of what will happen as a fated future. The wisdom behind the book does not see the future as unalterably fixed, but rather like a constantly shifting flux similar to the seasons, with which we can interact. What we receive in a consultation is like a conversation with a wise and experienced friend, who through their experience might point out that if we take our present course within the situation as it stands, the results might be in a direction we do not wish - but if we take another attitude circumstances could change, then we can act more forcefully and effectively.

The philosophy of I-ching is focused on the idea of change. Change is eternal - both for the comical and the human world - and therefore it is necessary to know in due time how to adapt to it. We can see here the oracular function of I-ching, namely that of connecting our activity to the temporary conditions and to correct those tendencies that couldn't be successful in a given social or comical context.

On the other hand, there are some key themes of I-ching philosophy, which we also find in the Taoist philosophy.