The
Ling Ch'I Ching
was first created by an unknown Chinese scholar who consciously sought to present the world with a more accessible oracle than the esoteric
I Ching
. For centuries the
has been a popular divination device for attaining self-knowledge and wisdom. Like its more famous cousin, the
, the
is rich in poetic language and metaphorical imagery, linking the dynamic principles of heaven and earth with the affairs of people. But the
is far more accessible than the
, focusing on the concerns of day-to-day life and positive accomplishment, with no "moving lines" to interpret. The method of consultation includes throwing twelve coins, which are then arranged in three rows to yield one of 125 possible trigraphs. In the text, each trigraph is represented by a core oracle describing a situation, problem, or event, and its internal dynamic, along with a verse emphasizing the trigraph's more subtle, intuitive qualities. To aid the reader in interpreting the oracle, selections from classical commentaries have been included, as well as the translators' own commentary on the text.