I Ching by James Mannion
The I Ching is used by many people today as a popular parlor game, but it also has its roots in a rich spiritual and philosophical tradition. The two most influential Chinese belief systems, Taoism and Confucianism, can be found within the I Ching. Lao-Tzu, the first Taoist to whom the writing of the Tao Te Ching is attributed, was inspired by the I Ching, and Confucius is believed to have written the commentaries that comprise about half of the text.
The I Ching can be translated into English as the “Book of Changes,” the “Classic of Change,” and the “Oracle of Change.” It is said to be more than 5,000 years old — 3,000 of those years in written form. This makes it one of the oldest written documents in the world. Like Tarot cards and Rune stones, it had greater significance in its ancient past, but its potential power has not diminished. It is the spiritual nature of mankind that has sadly deteriorated. People used to be more in tune with the unseen realms and have an open mind to the fantastic.
For those with an open mind, there is much to learn about yourself from fooling around with the I Ching. Whether it taps into something already within you and gives you food for thought, or whether divine properties are at work, who knows? Either way, there is much wisdom and insight to be gleaned. If it worked for the eminent Dr. Jung, it can work for you.
Some New Age teachers believe that we have many soul mates. In fact, we travel through lifetimes in herds, playing different parts: the husband one time, the wife the next, the child in another, and so on. These people believe that the soul mate can be of the same or the opposite sex, and not necessarily a romantic partner.
Jung, in his memoir Memories, Dreams, Reflections, recounts how he would sit for hours at a time under a tree posing questions and looking up the answers in the I Ching. He found the answers were always applicable to the questions and stimulated further reflection on the problems and situations with which he was concerned. Granted, the maxims and aphorisms in the I Ching are, as is the case with much Eastern thought, cryptic in nature and open to interpretation, and perhaps they tap into our collective unconscious. That is why the I Ching has had the staying power to last five millennia.
Cynics would reduce the I Ching to the level of the fortune cookie in a Chinese takeout joint, but it goes far deeper than that. And if it is merely a tool to get you thinking about something, so be it. That has great value in this age of decreasing attention spans and insular, provincial thinking.
