Interpretation of Chinese Traditional Culture Classics
---Experiences about the I Ching
Summary:
Through Teacher He’s interpretation of the I Ching With detailed explanations, group discussions on the Yao Ci, and the sixty-four hexagram square circle diagrams drawn by myself, I changed from a person who did not know much about the traditional Chinese I Ching culture to a person who has a strong interest and can apply what I have learned to people in life. Below I will talk about my own experience from two aspects: my current rough understanding of the I Ching and the practical application of the I Ching in life.
Text:
"The Book of Changes" is the theoretical source of natural philosophy and humanistic practice in the traditional thought and culture of the Han nationality. It is the crystallization of the thoughts and wisdom of the ancient Han nation and is known as the "Great Way". "The origin" and "the first of hundreds of classics", the idea of ??yin and yang harmony in the "Book of Changes" is an important content of our traditional culture. Its purpose is to explain the changes in the movement and stillness of yin and yang in the universe. The Book of Changes is a philosophy, a natural philosophy, a social philosophy and a philosophy of life. It is the foundation of Chinese culture. Its content about the Five Elements and Bagua has been used by later generations as an important basis for "Feng Shui". The "Book of Changes" is the way of neutralizing changes, the art of advancing and retreating, the pros and cons, the gains and losses, survival and death. The first one that can truly represent the five thousand years of Chinese civilization is the "Book of Changes". 1
I think the "Book of Changes" talks about things that are very essential to the Chinese people, and we should follow this rule to solve problems. For foreigners, "one is one, and two is two." But in China, "one is two, and two is one." It is not too absolute, but depends on the situation. In life, there are good times and bad times. But whether in good times or bad, it can cause a lot of confusion. I think the sixty-four hexagrams actually presuppose sixty-four situations in life. The sage cleverly hides the answers to life's confusions in the hexagrams and lines. Therefore, the "Book of Changes" is actually a set of equations for answering questions. People who are in good times can easily get carried away. If they do not stick to the right path, they will not be able to live in peace and prosperity for a long time. This is the attitude towards life and the principle of life. So, what should people do when they are in adversity? When people are in poverty, it is difficult for them to win the trust of others, even for sages and sages, because this is how the world is and how people's hearts are. The social environment is bad and corrupt, and it is difficult for saints to make a difference. Even so, we should still be optimistic, see the light, work actively, and exert our subjective initiative. But you must take the right path to get out of trouble. People should not give up on themselves in adversity, but should correctly and actively seek breakthroughs in order to achieve success. Regarding the "Book of Changes", we should get rid of the "five misunderstandings" and establish the "five new concepts", that is, the "Five Righteousness": correct name, correct position, correct source, correct origin, and correct meaning. For the Yi culture, we should inherit, innovate, enrich, and develop it to realize the "four modernizations" of the "Book of Changes": modernization, scientificization, popularization, and globalization. 2
Let’s talk about the application of I Ching in real life.
Although Yu Jiawen, the CEO of Super Curriculum, is only a newly graduated college student, he has his own understanding of the "Book of Changes" and applied it to company management. During interviews, he often asked candidates a question: "Your dad stole 100 yuan from someone else, do you want to go to the police station to report him?" He said bluntly: "Those who say yes, I will deny it. This is the way in China. Filial piety comes first, and reporting your father just for 100 yuan is unfilial. But if you ask: Do you want to report your father for being a traitor? At this time, I need you to say "yes", because loyalty and filial piety are not absolute when facing a national crisis. When the country is in good health, filial piety comes first, and when the country is in crisis, loyalty is more important than filial piety. I need my employees to know how to act according to the times."
The ancient Book of Changes is defined by Chinese traditional culture as the most profound and meaningful. As a mysterious source of culture, Chinese intellectuals and entrepreneurs have always hoped to find the password to success in the Book of Changes. Huang Ru, the president of Jinyuan Group, is a master in this area. He has always insisted on studying the "Book of Changes" and applied this research to his own investment decisions and business management.
We can see the following advertising text on the real estate brochure of Century City that Jinyuan Group has sold: "There is Feng Shui theory in ancient Chinese philosophy, which integrates natural science, aesthetics, anthropology, and sociology. Ethics and other contents focus on the harmonious coexistence of man and nature in order to achieve a life of happiness, wealth, longevity and happiness, confirming Century City's position in the natural pattern, facing the sun, with mountains and rivers at its back, and the superior nature of wind and water. The conditions are a rare treasure place for hiding wind and gathering energy."
From these words, it can be seen that Huang Rulun is indeed using the Feng Shui theory of the Book of Changes. In fact, he not only uses these mysterious theories. Convince customers and serve as a guide for your own decisions. When it comes to choosing locations for real estate development, Huang is obviously different from other developers. When he first entered Beijing, Huang Rulun looked at the terrain almost every day for half a year. There were many seemingly prosperous areas, but Huang Rulun was not interested in them, and others were not interested in them. , but he was thinking over and over again. Century City used to be a famous dirty wasteland in Beijing. When you walked in, there were potholes on both sides, and mosquitoes and flies were flying everywhere. Huang Rulun walked back and forth several times, and even his leather shoes were rotten. Many developers didn't even take a look at it. Even the city government's plan was to consider it as a sports venue, and it was controversial, so it has been shelved. After careful inspection, Huang Rulun determined that the Feng Shui here was good and decisively decided to use it as a development site for Jinyuan Group.
The Book of Changes is profound and profound. It is said that: the sky has stems and the earth has Kun, the sky has two rituals and the earth has two poles, the sky has four images, and the earth has four seasons. Yin and Yang correspond to each other and restrain each other. Yi Dao integrates the Dao of Heaven, the Dao of Earth, and the Dao of Humanity, and uses the principles of Yin and Yang and Tai Chi to connect humans and all things in heaven and earth into an organic and harmonious whole. 3 Everything has laws to follow, and the mysteries of the universe here need to be studied and developed unremittingly. What we can do now is to carry forward the quintessence of the country, inherit the classics, and absorb the teachings summed up by Teacher He’s lifelong research. The wisdom of the I Ching is to grasp the code of the universe and life simply and quickly, and then follow the trend according to its laws, avoiding many tragedies that should not happen, and achieving a happy life with a prosperous career and a happy family. After personal experience, I also sincerely hope that the Chinese nation's I Ching culture can be carried forward with the positive efforts of the older generation and our new generation.
References:
1 Gong Ke, "The Book of Changes is the Source of Chinese Culture", Journal of Beijing Union University (Humanities and Social Sciences Edition), March 2011
2 Chen Fujin, "The Modern Significance of the Philosophy of the Book of Changes", Zhouyi Research, May 16, 2014
3 Li Youliang, "Lectures on the Book of Changes", Journal of Hunan University (Social Science) Science Edition), 2014, (3)