Hexagrams as Life Situations
An Approach to the 'I-CHING'
by Frank C. Fung ( 1st published in December, 2004. )
Section 3 : Hexagrams as Life Situations
Topic I - The [ SELF ] in Life Situations :
In the writings of the 'I-CHING' , each of the 64 Hexagrams is representive of a { Life Situation }, and the [ SELF ] is identified as the subject-matter of the current investigation.
And people & things, are generally put into five (5) categories, relative to the [ SELF ] :
- Controllers of the [ SELF ] ,
- Controllees of the [ SELF ] ,
- Mother of the [ SELF ] ,
- Children of the [ SELF ] ,
- Peers of the [ SELF ] .
Topic II - Controllers of the [ SELF ] :
These are people and things that controls the [ SELF ] .
- And these would include teachers, supervisors, the boss, the law, government, the king, etc..
- But this may also include the bad influences, the extortionists, government 'red-tape', the tyrrant, or the conspicuious persons that lay a trap for the [ SELF ], etc..
Topic III - Controllees of the [ SELF ] :
These are people and things that the [ SELF ] controls.
Topic IV - Mother of the [ SELF ] :
These are people & things that give rise to the [ SELF ] .
- And these would include the mother, the motherland, sources of energy for the [ SELF ] , family inheritance / support, education / growth opportunities arising from family background, etc..
Topic V - Children of the [ SELF ] :
These are people & things that the [ SELF ] give rise to.
- And these would include sons & daugthers, flow of talents from the [ SELF ] that gives rise to money, etc.
- Alternately, it can also be the juvinile son that breaks the law and gets the [ SELF ] into trouble.
Topic VI - Peers of the [ SELF ] :
These are people & things that are like the [ SELF ] .
- And these would include brothers & sisters, clansman, fellow students, co-workers, etc.
- But at the same time, these can also be people and things that share & use the money belonging to the [ SELF ] .
Topic VII - The 64 Hexagram Life Situations :
Each of the 64 Hexagrams is then representaive of a { Life Situation } . Each then gives indications as to :
- Whether the [ SELF ] is strong, talented, motivated, stubborn, persuavsive, etc.
- Whether the [ SELF ] has a strong king, a weak king, a tyrrant, or find himself in a state-of-no-government, etc.
- Whether the servants of the [ SELF ] are helpful, or do they fail terribly when depended-upon.
- Whether the [ SELF ] has trouble at the home-front, such as the wife & the concubine fighting.
- Whether the [ SELF ] has the energy / resources / support to take on the task-at-hand, because 'controlling-others' and the 'flow-of-talent' 'zap' energies from the [ SELF ] . The [ SELF ] may have become exhausted / tired.
- Whether the [ SELF ] has the proper opportunities / channels to make use of his talents towards money-&-fame.
- Whether 'peer-groups' are supportive of the [ SELF ] or do they stand-in-the-way.
- And so-on-and-so-forth.
Topic VIII - Line Changes in the 64 Hexagrams :
In the ceremony for the [ Consultation with the Lords Above ] ( 
) , two (2) primary indications are always sought :
- the Hexagram that is representative of the { Life Situation } that the [ SELF ] find himself in,
- whether each of the six (6) 'Lines' of the Hexagram changes to the 'opposite', i.e. :
- from a { 'Yin Line' } to a { 'Yang Line' } , or
- from a { 'Yang Line' } to a { 'Yin Line' } ;
or does the 'Line' remain intact.
In very general terms :
- If none of the six (6) lines of the Hexagram changes, the 'Status Quo' is maintained.
- If one (1) to five (5) lines changes, it is a move towards a different { Life Situation } .
- If all six (6) lines change, this would be a change towards the opposite { Life Situation } .
Thus, any one of the 64 Hexagrams is, and always remains, a possibility that the current { Life Situation } may change / move-into in the next round.
Topic IX - Study of the 'I-CHING' :
To this extent, the study of the 'I-CHING' is a study of the different { Life Situations } .
And it always serves a dual purpose :
- It permits a better and more precise interpretation of the readings arising from a { Consultation with the Lords Above } ceremony, which shall be discussed in the next Section,
- Familiarization with the 64 Hexagram { Life Situations } permits one to draw parallels to problems we face in our daily lives, so that we can be more aware of the risks involved with our actions and decisions.
original dated 2004-12-18