My book, A Guide to the I Ching was the result of ten years of insights gained in meditation from 1970 to 1980 while working with the Wilhelm/Baynes translation of the I Ching. In 1980, a meditation occurred in which I saw myself walking through Grand Central Station, in New York City. There, I stopped at a kiosk where magazines and books were sold. To my surprise, I saw three books there written by myself. This meditation led to my first book, A Guide to the I Ching.
What is the difference between I Ching, The Oracle of the Cosmic Way, with Hanna Moog as co-author, and A Guide to the I Ching? The Guide is based on experiences in consulting the Wilhelm translation, which is based on the central idea that “changes” rule all of life, and that we are meant to adapt to them in order to bring ourselves into harmony with the Cosmos. Adapting often means that we accept negative circumstances in the hope that things will get better…this is the role of the “superior man.”
I Ching, The Oracle of the Cosmic Way, by contrast, is basically active, in that it shows how we can engage Cosmic help to correct matters on the outer plane. It connects us with our inner truth in regard to each situation. There is no model of “the superior man” that we need to “become.” Instead, we are counseled to “take away” obstacles in our thinking and point of view that prevent our attaining Cosmic help for each situation. In this regard it is active — referring to various kinds of inner action — rather than passive.
On asking the Sage whether we were to discontinue publishing the Guide, we received a clear “NO” for the answer. As the Sage never gave us a “reason,” we cannot answer it here. We can only conclude that it is still helpful to some people, and that is reason enough.