Yi Jing, Oracle of the Moon

Qián-Kūn, Heaven-Earth
    

  What are the potential and qualities of this situation?
Qián. Its Qi is powerful and energetic; it refers to wealth and glory, leadership and taking charge. The laws of Heaven give life its power, endurance and creativity. Qián provides the substrate that gives all things structure and meaning. Qian deals with the mental or intangible.
  Heaven regulates the time and following it gives you the right timing. Look up at the North pole and you will see the entire cosmos turning around it, everything moves according to Heaven's law. Heaven brings the seasonal rains, which benefit all. A person, team or venture with Heaven can reason and judge well and they are known for their strong, powerful appearance.
  天命 tiānmìng, mandate of heaven; destiny; fate; one's life span.
  乾元 qiányuán beginning of creation.

  What is the subject, intent or hope of your question?
  Kūn. She is the embracing mother and the place one calls home, one's territory, family or friends, anyone who acts her way. She is nurturing, receiving, and focused on results. One obtains good fortune. The Earth trigram is like a womb, rich in possibilities, she can nurture things into concrete existence, like a crop, creatures, money, tangible resources, return on investment, but also love and trust.
  She accepts everything, organic or inorganic, and works with it. Proceeds it, nourishes it, and arranges all creatures and objects around each other.
  Many of her creations will perish, many will thrive, but the earth goes on. She has no empty spaces, no end or start, no goal or limit. She is strict and that way creates a balance which restores itself over and over. Things which strive to be perfect. Living creatures seeking health, water free to run, and sunshine free to enter. But even the darkest places she fills with organic and inorganic creations. She traps the water and makes it available for her creations.
  土命 Tǔ Mìng, earth name/destiny: born in an earth year or having a local or popular name - a lasting link to Earth.

  What do you want or need to do, or what will fate cause to happen in this situation?
  When Heaven activates Earth, the change is huge. It is a change which takes a lot of time with or without any end. But this might be the most important meaning of this cooperation: the work of dealing with life, its ups and downs, its possibilities, and especially its impossibilities and setbacks. Also the tough work of refusing when necessary or acceptance when something cannot be changed. It is the hard part of the marriage vow: in health is much easier than in sickness. It is the big neverending work of growing a character, a soul, a strong mind and body, a relation, a vision - until death do us part.
  It is the struggle for survival and finding happiness in a severe world.

The initiative

  When Dui finds itself in a 'Qian' situation, Lake's responsive yin initiative enters a very yang, cold and strict environment. Before each step, you have to hold back and evaluate the situation. Any wrong or careless action can have serious consequences. With humility, prudence and politeness you can still achieve concrete results, but it is not a good time to start larger ventures or to show any accomplishment to the world.
  General: yin initiative in yang potential will need perseverance. Everything around seems too bright, too overbearing. Don't try to compete, but make use of what presents itself to you. When the time is yang, it offers many opportunities and resources, brilliant ideas, but few concrete results. Yin's power is to absorb and then to create from what she gathered.
  You are a good organizer, you oversee the work and inspire others while working hard yourself. You can turn visionary ideas into viable plans.
  Yin at the top line brings the rain: blessings.

    The timing of this change of the initiative:
  春泽有滋息之甘,
  夏泽有长育之利,
  秋泽有西成之望,
  冬泽有寒凝之苦。
  The spring Marsh has the sweetness of growing sprouts,
  The summer Marsh has the profit of steadily raising,
  The autumn Marsh has the hope of harvest,
  The winter Marsh has the suffering of freezing cold.

The subject

  When Xun enters the world of Qian, Wind and Heaven bring changes, but these forces are often too large and intangible for man. The only real change can be in the subject you focus on. With every change of interest, every choice or insight, fate will change its course. Sometimes in big ways, sometimes hardly noticeable.
  When you bring a creation into the world, it needs your love and dedication to grow and thrive, but also your severity and strength because the world can be hostile and dangerous. Heaven gives the strong background in which Wind can play around. Wind is indecisive, but this is the only way to choose, to create. The balance between Qián and Xùn is subtle but rewarding, it is creating your own life or something new unknown.
  General: What you ask about is yin. It aligns with the Earth-line, but the potential in these surroundings or this time is yang. You want (or will) come closer to concrete realizations, but problems also become real. All this is not really easy amidst yang. Yang can be overbearing, through influence or force, so you need to hold on to what you really want, and yet not to force anything.
  Examine when the work can proceed and when it must be held back. Who can participate in your project and who would hinder it. Your project absorbs more energy and resources, and these should be used wisely. Listen to the Earth.

    The timing of this change of the subject:
  春风融和利物，
  夏风散雨收云，
  秋风物物收敛，
  冬风寒水成冰。
  The spring wind is pleasantly warm and good for all Iiving things. (But can be compliant and indecisive.)
  The summer wind dispells the rain and gathers the clouds. (Crops or relations may suffer from dryness.)
  The autumn wind shepherds and gathers the proceeds of work. (It brings happiness.)
  The winter wind turns the cold water into ice. (But it stimulates the necessary growth force for the coming spring.)

The outcome

  When Li enters a time of Qian, the outcome will need more work before you can show anything. Fire brings light, but she is the messenger for Heaven's laws and structures. Heaven is severe and Fire demands that everything is organized and clear and concrete, reflecting the light. Rightly so, without order the world would turn into chaos. Creatures need to recognize each other, friend or enemy, kin or stranger, hunter or prey.
  General: When yang meets yin, its shine will decrease, but now things will proceed in a more tangible way. Resources will be used to create concrete results. Things change from giving to absorbing, from ideas and inspiration to processing, from overviewing to being part of the work. And if there are problems, a decrease can be what you need.
  It can also mean that it is time to pass the reins to your guts and intuition instead of your head.

  The timing of this change of the outcome:
  春天无日, 阴雨连绵, 物难发生, 荣中有辱。
  夏天无日, 暗晦阴暝, 火势消灭, 物难长养, 一暴十寒, 凶荒必致。
  秋冬遇此, 愈加速遭, 雨雪连连, 类多愁嗟。
  When there is no sun in the spring, there is a lot of rain and it is difficult for life to manifest itself. In the midst of fame is shame.
  When there is no sun in summer, it is dark as night; the fire dies out and what lives can hardly be nourished and grow large, it goes in fits and starts. There will be lean years.
  If this happens in the fall or winter, progress is even more difficult; rain and snow fall continuously. The people sigh and are worried.

Overview of the lines.
Activating (when the second is different) or stationary (when they are similar)

  An activated Yang line is generally bright and giving.Yang is great for enthusiasm and spreading joy or success, but don’t expect solid results.
  An activated Yin line generally does the work. Yin absorbs and converts resources into tangible results. It brings peace and a sense of security.

  The initiative (top line or Heaven line) is the intention or focus. Your ideas, plans, or what you want, or something that happens and you want to influence it or use its possibilities.
  In this answer the line is activated Yin: this is a good time to work on ideas. Usually, yin at the top is very positive, there is balance between yang and yin, ideas and their possibilities to become reality.

  The subject (bottom line or Earth line) is the 'reality' of your question or the ‘field’ of action. A situation or person, resources, materials, facts.
  In this answer the line is activated Yin: it is too early for clear results; more work is needed. This line is the most difficult to influence, she is careful and follows her own decisions, but she is the one who turns resources into concrete results.

  The outcome (middle line or Man Line) is what you or others or fate cause to happen 'between Heaven and Earth'. It is the outcome of this question. It can be physical or mental or both. If this is a yes/no question, then yang means yes, yin means no. Both can be good or bad, depending on the question.
  In this answer the line is activated Yin: a good line if you need decrease or concreteness, but not for shining results. More work is needed, but your dedication will not be wasted.

  The three helpers
  Each line, active or at rest, summons one of the 8 trigrams as a Helper.

  For an activated line: telling you what you need - or about a problem area or something to avoid.
  For a stationary line: this is what you already have or do or what you don't need. Often we just need a reminder of our abilities. Or it could be what you wish or fear - but will not happen.
  Active lines are the helpers to change things, they listen to intentions, which can come from you, surroundings, or fate. Stationary helpers are part of the core meaning, they are your soul talking, but they also see the impossibilities. They reinforce the overall power of a reading.

  Advice or help for the initiative: Dui, Lake, with her ability to resonate and persuade.
  Advice or help for the subject: Xun, Wind, with her power to choose and influence.
  Advice or help for the outcome: Li, Fire, with her power to discern and create order.
  But when things are not satisfying, it might be that one or more helpers don't help enough - or try too hard. Or maybe you don't listen carefully enough.

  When all three lines change, the trigram changes to its complementary trigram. Yang on its own is giving, bright, assertive and strong and has no trouble inspiring others. But it is prone to deplete itself, it is relentless. When yang meets Earth's yin those ideas cannot yet or not anymore be shown, yin demands that they first acquire a solid reality before they enter the world.
   In this change, all levels find this counterpart of yin. Things change from shiny to absorbing, from infinite possibilities to tangible reality with its limits. This is a good time to do the work in the background of turning plans into concrete results.

  This oracle is NOT according to the Neigua Chuwaili, a chapter of the Heluo Lishu, which is meant to be read and used in Chinese astrology. I found beautiful texts about the trigrams in the Neigua Chuwaili and borrowed them for this trigram oracle. For those who are interested in the Heluo Lishu see the course by Harmen Mesker.
  Many translations from "Yijing astrologie" by Harmen Mesker (Dutch).
  For divining with trigrams, see the video by Tin Yat Dragon