I Ching Oracle
How this oracle works
The I Ching is a way to ask a clear question and notice the pattern of change around it. Treat the reading as counsel for reflection, not a fixed prediction.
- Ask. Put one situation or decision into the question box. Open questions tend to make room for a more useful response.
- Cast. Choose one line at a time or cast all six. The cards build the hexagram from the bottom line upward.
- Read. The six lines form the Cast hexagram. Changing lines show movement and transform into the Becomes hexagram.
The card lines
Red and black cards give the lines their yin or yang quality. Courts are changing lines, so they also show what is in motion.
● Red pip · young yang
● Black pip · young yin
◆ Red court · changing yang
◆ Black court · changing yin
Save and share
Save adds the completed reading to Past readings in this browser on this device. It stays local, so clearing the site data or using another device will not carry it over.
Share copies a link containing the six drawn cards and the question you entered. Anyone with the link can reopen that reading, so leave out private details if you plan to share it.
Why cards instead of three coins?
Three coins produce four outcomes: young yin and young yang each occur 3/8 of the time, while changing yin and changing yang each occur 1/8. This deck keeps those four outcomes nearly the same: each colour has 20 pip cards and 6 court cards, so a pip line is 20/52 = 5/13 (38.5%) and a court line is 6/52 = 3/26 (11.5%).
Red and black remain evenly balanced, and the total chance of a changing line is 12/52 = 3/13 (23.1%), close to the coins’ 2/8 = 1/4 (25%). The small difference comes from fitting the pattern to 52 cards; drawing six cards without replacement also creates a slight dependence between lines that independent coin tosses do not have.
Read the judgment, lines, and governing line in the light of the question you asked. You can save a reading or return to it from Past readings.