21
See also: Quan Tangshi 46 ■ Romance of the Three Kingdoms 66–67 ■
The Narrow Road to the Interior 92T
he Book of Changes is
about divination; it is a
kind of oracle. The original
method of divination from which
it evolved is attributed to the
legendary emperor Fu Xi, and was
formalized by King Wen of Zhou
(1152–1056 bce) in a text known
as the Zhou yi. The “King Wen
sequence” describes 64 hexagrams,
possible combinations of numbers
obtained by casting yarrow stalks
or coins, each associated with a
certain situation or circumstance,
to which Wen offered judgements.
Later scholars added comments
in the “Ten Wings,” including the
Great Commentary, which together
with the Zhou yi became known
as the Book of Changes (Yijing or
I Ching, as it is still often called).
The book is often referred to
as one of the Five Classics, with
the Book of Documents (Shujing),
Spring and Autumn Annals
(Chunqiu), Book of Rites (Liji),
and Book of Odes (Shijing). These
Classics are believed to have been
compiled by Kong Fuzi (traditional
dates 551– 479 bce), who is betterknown in the West as Confucius.
Kong Fuzi’s moral and political
philosophy was adopted as the
official ideology of China during
the 3rd century bce.
Much later, in around the 12th
century, shorter writings—either
ascribed to Confucius or said
to have been inspired by his
teachings—were grouped into
the Four Books of Confucianism.A source of wisdom
The Five Classics and Four Books
were the main point of reference for
Confucianism as a state ideology.
The Book of Changes seems an
odd fit for rational Confucianism,
but it was thought to be a source of
great wisdom. It complemented the
volumes of Confucian philosophy,
history, etiquette, and poetry
as a book to be consulted not
only for its prophetic ability, but
also as a model of wise counsel,
describing what the “superior man”
should do in various situations,
and it has remained a source of
wisdom in China (and beyond)
to the present day. ■HEROES AND LEGENDS
TO NOURISH ONESELF
ON ANCIENT VIRTUE
INDUCES PERSEVERANCE
BOOK OF CHANGES (12TH–11TH CENTURY bce),
ATTRIBUTED TO KING WEN OF ZHOU
IN CONTEXT
FOCUS
The Five ClassicsBEFORE
c.29th century bce Fu Xi,
China’s mythical first emperor,
devises a method of divination
with trigrams, the basis for a
Chinese writing system.AFTER
c.500 bce The original Book
of Rites, describing Chinese
rituals and ceremonies, is
compiled, traditionally thought
to be the work of Confucius.2nd century bce A Confucian
canon of writing begins with
the so-called Five Classics.136 bce Emperor Wu of Han
describes the Zhou yi as the
foremost of the classics, and
titles it Book of Changes.960 –1279 ce During the Song
era, scholar Zhu Xi includes
the Four Books, each of which
appeared before 300 bce, in the
canon of Confucian literature
alongside the Five Classics.US_020-021_Gilgamesh_IChing.indd 21 08/10/2015 13:02