Ask Once, Sincerely

Reading it step by step

This is the last page of the first part. We've learned yin and yang, the trigrams, the six places, what the verdict words mean and how to cast. One question is left: what kind of asking counts as consulting? The answer is in the judgment of Meng (Youthful Ignorance). Its image is a spring at the foot of a mountain, its vapour rising into mist so you can't see clearly: exactly the state of someone who comes to ask.

First: "the young seek me": you come to ask; the I Ching doesn't come after you. A teacher doesn't chase students down the street. The student turns up with a question. Consulting the Changes is the same: get the question clear first, and make it about your own life. People sometimes want to cast about whether a war far away will break out, or whether a candidate on television will win. Those aren't your questions; you don't stand in that place, and you can't carry that responsibility.

Second: "the first casting is answered; again and again muddies it": one question, once. Casting again because you dislike the result is like telling a teacher, "I didn't like that, please say something else." Someone once asked whether they could recast after an unwelcome reading; they might as well open the I Ching and pick a hexagram they like, which would be quicker. Drawing temple fortune slips until you get a happy one is the same thing. The usual practice is to wait at least a season, three months, before asking about the same matter, once circumstances have changed. If the reading is poor, go home, work on yourself, and prepare more.