My favorite part (so far) of the I Ching is hexagram #56, The Traveler. (Also sometimes translated as The Wanderer and The Sojourner). This principle states that at some point in life, we are all travelers. Some people stay in this state for a short while, while others become lifelong travelers, constantly looking for more they can learn and accomplish, and never feeling committed to a certain place. They are cautioned to set limits for themselves and be humble in their desires in order to find contentment. And to respect those they come into contact with on their travels.
Knowing that the ancient sages believed some people would stay in the traveler state far longer than others helped me feel somewhat validated by my life choices. I'm not eccentric, or non-committal, or however else people want to label me. I'm simply a traveler, and my state of traveling is longer than others. But it's who I am. So there.
According to the I Ching, there are eight trigrams, which represent eight elements on Earth. Two trigrams combine to make up each hexagram. For example, the hexagram "traveler" is made up of the trigrams for "fire" and "mountain." (Fire = line space line, mountain = line space space.) Each hexagram is a unique combination of the eight trigrams (8x8=64). The trigram makeup is similar to the binary number system (pretty cool!), so the ancient oracles would use reeds or coins to count the lines and spaces and come up with the hexagram that was affecting a person's life at that moment. This was supposed to help you understand your journey. At left is a picture of The Traveler hexagram in lines and spaces.
I don't plan on living my life according to the I Ching, but it is interesting how human nature doesn't change as much over time as I once imagined it did.
OMG Becca, why didn't I think of asking you this before. I have been looking and looking and LOOKING for IChing coins here and I can't find them. Could you send me some? I will pay you of course, just let me know how much.
ReplyDelete