Three Interpretations of the Book of Changes

The official name of the Book of Changes, as we usually call it, is Zhouyi. * * *, a total of 64 hexagrams, each with its own words. There are 6 hexagrams under each hexagram, 386 hexagrams under * * (one hexagram for Gankun), and some remarks.

Speaking of the Book of Changes, many people's first impression is "fortune telling". It can be said that the Book of Changes was originally used for divination. During its development for thousands of years, it was interpreted by Confucianism and Taoism, and then merged with China's profound traditional philosophy.

The interpretation of the Book of Changes is mainly based on the word "Yi". There are at least three popular explanations:

1. Change (easy). Everything is constantly changing. The Book of Changes divides the development of everything into four stages, namely, "Shaoyang, Sun, Shaoyin, Taiyin" and "Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter" and "Germination, Growth, Maturity and Decline".

2. unchanged (not easy). This is a bit difficult to explain, which can be understood as "truth" unchanged and "Tao gives birth to one" unchanged; Specific to the individual, it can be understood that the goal of life should not be changed at will, but should be persevered.

3. simple. The purpose of the Book of Changes is to reveal the truth of the development and change of all things, understand the truth of change, and do everything with ease and simplicity.

A major feature of China's traditional culture lies in its great inclusiveness, which is manifested in polysemy in words. One of the main effects of this feature is the uncertainty of literal meaning. The same word or sentence can be interpreted in many ways, so that researchers can express their opinions and give full play to their strengths. This is particularly prominent in the study of the Book of Changes.

Here, take the divination in the second divination "Kun" in the Book of Changes as an example:

The divination in Kun Gua goes like this: "Yuan Henry married a horse. A gentleman has friends, he is fascinated first and then wins. He has friends in the southwest and lost friends in the northeast. He is from Zhen Ji. "

Among them, the understanding of "winning first" is different. Literally, it is generally understood as "getting lost at first, but later finding the right direction". This explanation does not explain why "you will find the right direction". Another explanation can be understood as "if you are in a hurry, you will get lost;" You won't get lost if you follow (do). This explanation will make people understand the truth of "winner", and the understanding behind it is also very philosophical.