I Ching Hexagrams: Meaning, Structure and How to Consult the Oracle

The I Ching, also written Yijing, is the Chinese “Book of Changes”. Its roots go back around 3000 years. At its center are 64 hexagrams: signs made of six lines, each of which describes a situation in constant change. The classic German translation is by Richard Wilhelm (1924).

Originally, the book was consulted as an oracle. Today many people use it as a mirror: a hexagram doesn't tell you what will happen, but describes the situation you are in and the attitude that does it justice.

How a Hexagram Is Built

Each line is either solid (yang) or broken in the middle (yin). Six lines stacked on top of each other give 2 to the power of 6, exactly 64 possible signs. They are counted from the bottom up: the first line is the lowest, the sixth the highest.

Each hexagram is made up of two trigrams of three lines each. The lower one stands for the inner, the upper one for the outer. There are eight trigrams, each with an image from nature: Qian (heaven), Kun (earth), Zhen (thunder), Xun (wind, also wood), Kan (water), Li (fire), Gen (mountain) and Dui (lake).

Each hexagram has a name, a judgment, an image and six line texts. On top of these come the “Ten Wings”: commentaries that tradition attributes to Confucius and that extend the book with philosophical and ethical interpretations.

The 64 Hexagrams and Their Meaning

Each of the 64 hexagrams bears a name that describes a situation, such as “Initial Difficulty” (3), “Waiting” (5), “Standstill” (12), “Deliverance” (40), “Revolution” (49) or “Before Completion” (64). These names don't judge you; they describe dynamics at work in you and around you: beginnings, conflicts, growth, standstill, renewal.

At the beginning stands a pair: Hexagram 1, The Creative, made of six yang lines, and Hexagram 2, The Receptive, made of six yin lines. All the other signs mix these two forces. Some examples of how the hexagrams are read:

• Hexagram 11, Peace (Tai): earth stands above heaven, and the two move toward each other; a time of flourishing.
• Hexagram 15, Modesty (Qian): a mountain beneath the earth; greatness that does not put itself on display.
• Hexagram 29, The Abysmal (Kan): doubled water; the task of staying true in danger, like water that keeps flowing.
• Hexagram 64, Before Completion (Wei Ji): just before the goal; now caution is called for.

No state is final. Every hexagram already carries the seed of its change within it, and that is exactly what the name “Book of Changes” means.

Consulting the Oracle: Coins and Yarrow Stalks

You don't need any prior knowledge, just three identical coins, paper and an edition with the texts of the 64 hexagrams, such as Richard Wilhelm's translation. Here is how to proceed:

1. Phrase the question: ask an open, clear question rather than a yes-or-no question, such as “What is the core of this situation?” or “What attitude is called for now?”
2. Set the values: one side of the coins counts 3, the other 2, for example heads 3 and tails 2.
3. Throw six times: throw the three coins at once and add up the values. Each throw gives a sum between 6 and 9, and with it one line.
4. Build from the bottom up: the first throw gives the lowest line, the sixth the highest.

Sum	Line	Type
6	Yin (broken)	moving, “old yin”
7	Yang (solid)	resting, “young yang”
8	Yin (broken)	resting, “young yin”
9	Yang (solid)	moving, “old yang”

The moving lines, the sixes and nines, are what makes a consultation special. They turn into their opposite: a 6 becomes a yang line, a 9 a yin line. This creates a second hexagram that shows where the situation is heading.

When reading, start with the judgment and image of the first hexagram. Then read the texts of the moving lines, and finally the judgment and image of the second hexagram. If all six lines are resting, only the first hexagram applies. With every text, ask yourself: what of this fits my situation, and what attitude is being suggested to me?

The older method works with 50 yarrow stalks, one of which is set aside; the rest are repeatedly divided and counted off according to fixed rules. It takes considerably longer and requires concentration. The probabilities differ too: with the stalks, a moving yang line is more frequent than a moving yin line, while with the coins both are equally frequent.

Don't ask the same thing again and again. Hexagram 4, Youthful Folly, already says in essence: at the first asking, the oracle gives information; whoever asks two or three times is pestering it. As long as the situation doesn't change, the answer won't fundamentally change either.

I Ching, Human Design and Gene Keys

The I Ching is the basis of two modern systems. In Human Design, the 64 gates in the bodygraph correspond to the 64 hexagrams and carry the same numbers. Its founder Ra Uru Hu cited quantum physics and genetics, which has not been scientifically proven. The 64 Gene Keys by Richard Rudd also build on the hexagrams; Rudd cited genetics, which has likewise not been scientifically proven.

The number 64 matches the number of codons in the genetic code, a parallel that both systems take up. A connection with the I Ching has not been established.

UmbraLux shows your birthday hexagram in your profile, the one that rules your birthday in the Han calendar, and Verus, your AI companion, knows it too; the library explains all 64 hexagrams and the eight trigrams. Meng Xi and Jing Fang taught this calendar of the hexagrams (Gua Qi) in the 1st century BC: from the winter solstice, each of 60 hexagrams rules a little over six days of the solar year. The tradition used it as a calendar, not to read a person. There is no coin oracle in the app: you throw the coins yourself and find the texts of the hexagrams in the book or in the library.

Frequently Asked Questions about the I Ching and Its Hexagrams

What does a hexagram mean in the I Ching?

A hexagram is a sign made of six yin and yang lines. Each of the 64 hexagrams describes a life situation with its dynamics and suggests an attitude; it does not predict a fixed future.

How many hexagrams are there?

Exactly 64. Each of the six lines can be yin or yang, which gives 2 to the power of 6 combinations.

How do I consult the I Ching with coins?

You throw three coins six times; one side counts 3, the other 2. The sum of each throw gives a line, from the bottom up: 6 is moving yin, 7 resting yang, 8 resting yin and 9 moving yang.

What does a changing line mean?

A moving line, a 6 or a 9, shows where there is movement in the situation. It turns into its opposite, and this creates a second hexagram that describes the direction of change.

Can the I Ching predict the future?

The I Ching makes no fixed predictions. It describes tendencies and attitudes; where a situation develops also depends on how you act.