Okay, so today I decided to mess around with I Ching, specifically hexagram 11. It’s called “Tai,” which roughly translates to “Peace” or “Pervading.” Sounds nice, right? Here’s how it went down.
Getting Started
First, I needed to actually, you know, do the I Ching thing. I don’t have any fancy yarrow stalks, so I went with the coin method. It’s pretty simple:
- Grab three coins.
- Assign heads as 3 and tails as 2.
- Toss ’em six times, adding up the values each time to get a number between 6 and 9.
- Each number corresponds to a line, building the hexagram from bottom to top.
My Throws and Lines
Here’s what I got on my throws (it gets a little messy, bear with me):
- First Throw: Heads, Heads, Tails. That’s 3 + 3 + 2 = 8. An 8 is a broken line (Yin).
- Second Throw: Heads, Tails, Tails. 3 + 2 + 2 = 7. A 7 is a solid line (Yang).
- Third Throw: Heads, Heads, Heads! All 3s, so 9. This is a moving Yang line (solid, but will change to Yin).
- Fourth Throw: Tails, Tails, Tails, all 2, equal 6, This is a moving Yin line(broken line,but will change to Yang).
- Fifth Throw: Heads, Tails, Tails. Another 7, another solid Yang line.
- Sixth Throw: Heads, Heads, Tails. Back to 8, another broken Yin line.
Building the Hexagram
So, putting it all together, from bottom to top, I got:
- Broken line (8)
- Solid line (7)
- Solid line (9) – Changing!
- Broken line (6) – Changing!
- Solid line (7)
- Broken line (8)
That gave me Hexagram 11, with changing lines at the third and fourth place.
Making Sense of It
Hexagram 11, overall, is supposed to be super positive. Things are flowing, harmony, success – all that good stuff. The top three lines are all Yin (earth), and the bottom three are Yang (heaven), suggesting a great exchange and balance between the two forces.
But, those changing lines! That shifts things a bit. They show that the situation is not totally in the peace, some changes is undergoing. So after changes, it will become to Hexagram 5, means “waiting”.It tells me to be patient.
My Takeaway
For me, this whole process was a bit of a meditation. Thinking about the coins, the lines, the meanings…it was a good way to step back and reflect. Honestly, I don’t know if I believe in it, but it was a cool exercise in focusing my thoughts. It will remind me to keep things in a balance way, and be patient.
