A Meaningful Session

What do you experience in a Full Yijing Reading Session?

(note: this is a much longer read, and I hope it’s worth your time,
especially if you’re really considering getting a reading)

Deep Conversations
I have always found Yijing as the best way to reconnect with old friends and get to know new friends. I seem to have manifested a kind of work that I really enjoy: deep conversations that lasted for hours, fun and laughter that infused the entire session, insights unleashed from sudden realizations, and life-changing synchronicities that still have lingering influence both for me and my clients up to this day.

I always appreciate intimate conversations with a few people and quiet moments that stir and satisfy the soul. Doing Yijing sessions definitely have filled my time with such meaning. And doing a business like this is giving so much value to the spirit – a shared benefit of self-discovery and intuitive clarity for me and for my clients.

How Long?
A quick session runs for one (1) hour, while a full session runs for two (2) hours (with a little overtime). It’s enough to cover the essentials: we will read one or two major questions, and do quick readings for follow-up questions. Honestly, because Yijing churns out so many details and insights, one major question can possibly take more than an hour. It’s so detailed and immersive enough to answer your question. (I will do a follow-up post about this)

You will notice that doing Yijing session puts you in the flow. It creates a bubble that prevents the sense of time to interrupt our attention. Masarap magkuwentuhan – sharing stories feels wonderful and satisfying. But of course, life still happens – we need to be mindful of our time and priorities. So a time-check is very useful.

Starting the Session
I started in my poetry classes a ritual practice I called Pagpapaginhawa. The word ginhawa is “breath” in Hiligaynon, and “ease” in Tagalog (both are languages in the Philippines). It is closer to meditation, only it consists of 4 segments: stillness, silence, breathing and gratitude. Later, I adapted this in holding Yijing sessions. This ritual is not just simple and easy, but also quite universal. This practice harks back to my interfaith work 11 years ago, as each segment shares deep resonance with how other faiths pray. In a way, pagpapaginhawa is inclusive, regardless of one’s religious and cultural background.

Permissions First
Since the pandemic has started, most of my reading sessions happen via Zoom. This also means we have the option to record the session. But I ask first for the client’s permission. They can record on their own locally in their computer. Or I can record it and the client can access it in two ways: I can send a copy of it via WeTransfer, or I can upload it privately via YouTube.

This means any session recording is safely and privately accessible only for both me and the client. It helps the client to review their own reading without the hassle of taking notes. It also helps me review past readings to help me improve my own practice.

Some clients prefer not to record the session, and you can do that, too. Some also choose to record the reading segment only, excluding the first part of telling their question and background story. Anyway, taking notes can still help greatly as a memory exercise.

5 Steps
A Yijing reading session follows a 5-step design, and this serves as the backbone of the entire reading process.

Step 1: Inquire 
Step 2: Cast
Step 3: Read 
Step 4: Interpret 
Step 5: Feedback

I wrote a brief written orientation which I send to clients before the Yijing Session. But I will explore in this post a bit of my personal experience and insight on doing each step, so you can get a picture of how the session happens for yourself.

Let’s explore each step as if you are receiving a reading from me right at this moment:

Step 1: INQUIRE
We start to warm up. I am all ears to your specific concerns. If you have prepared a list of questions before the session, we can read them right away. But no pressure if you don’t have a question. Instead, you can tell a background story to give your inquiry a better understanding and context.

You can also choose to just give a specific life area (career, love life, health, money – to name a few) without the need to divulge any personal details if you feel uncomfortable doing so. Yijing still answers accurately without a direct question. You are most welcome to anonymize – no need to name names. You can say “person X” if you want, it’s up to you. I can guide you through this.

Whether you choose to share details or not, I always presume and respect confidentiality. After all, finer details slip out of my memory after some time. I barely remember past readings unless I am reminded. In others words, your secret is safe with me.

Step 2: CAST
If you’re new to Yijing, and this is your first session, I will walk you through the coin method. It’s one of the ancient ways to do a Yijing reading. The other one is the yarrow method, counting 50 stalks made of yarrow (Achillea millefolium), which is quite complicated for beginners. I haven’t tried it myself, as the coin method has been my go-to ever since.

Doing the coin method requires three (3) identical coins. Shaking and throwing them six (6) times to get and record coin patterns equivalent to specific yin or yang lines is the most analog and manual you can experience in doing a Yijing reading. It is a good interactive, hands-on introduction, but I only do this specifically in Full and Deep Dive Sessions. (I will write more about the coin method in a separate blog post.)

For a quicker approach, I often use Hilary Barrett’s The Resonance Journal, a Yijing software designed to do digital readings for easy retrieval. Being fond of the coin method, I was at first skeptical and hesitant in using this software. I was not even a fan of other Yijing smartphone apps found online. But Hilary’s software won me, because I felt it was so similar to the coin method, only digitally. So more often I use Resonance for Quick and Chat Sessions, and even mostly for my own quick and long readings. You can find the software here.

Step 3: READ
Once we have cast the coins and got the lines, then we identify the main star of the reading, the hexagram. Yijing is an ancient text of 64 hexagrams, a system of six-line symbols, each with a corresponding set of texts, which for some mysterious reasons, strikingly match up as a set of insights to answer your inquiry.

A hexagram has a set of four (4) texts: the hexagram name, its decision remark, its wise action, and specific line statements if they have significant change. I wrote a basic introduction to these texts – an easy reference for you to make sense of what to expect in your reading. These texts are so rich in details that unpacking each of them reveals hidden answers to your inquiry.

And the reading doesn’t just end with texts. Symbols are practically the core of Yijing. Combining broken (yin) and solid (yang) lines into three sets make up a basic trigram, the one you see in the Bagua. When trigrams are stacked in pairs, it creates a hexagram. Each trigram represents a natural phenomenon and carries so many insights associated with them. And a trigram’s position in a hexagram (above or below) speaks volumes related to another trigram of the opposite position.

With both text and symbols in your reading, you can surmise how your reading can turn out: an exciting exercise of connecting the dots, which all happens when we interpret them.

Step 4: INTERPRET
I don’t see interpretation as just explaining or conceptualizing arbitrary ideas. Rather, I approach it more through intuition and imagery. There are no defined lines between these approaches. They are more organic, and insights are more like organisms finding their own way to organize and grow.

In your reading, certain words from your Hexagram text can possibly transmute into different forms. It can be the nearest synonym, or related homophone (same sounds but different meanings). It can also be an etymon (word origin) or an interesting wordplay. As a word intuitive, I can sense these words beyond their inherent meanings. I pay attention to them and listen to their possible associations. This is quite an amazing process, which I will write about separately. In the meantime, you can visit and read this old blog post of mine).

I also interpret your reading through imagery. Words are originally images long before they were written. It works just the same in poetry. Images become alive in the senses and they can bring us a direct experience, and thus new insights.

Step 5: FEEDBACK
Hexagram texts and symbols represent segments in your reading. I take a pause in between them to give you a space and moment to respond. This makes the reading a two-way exchange: I supply the interpretation that resonates with me, and you speak about the connections being revealed to you along the way.

The bridge between my interpretation and your feedback is where synchronicity takes place. The great psychologist Carl Jung defined synchronicity as “meaningful coincidences.” This happens when you begin to see how my interpretation exactly reflects personal details you haven’t yet told me, yet accurately confirm your thoughts or the events you encountered. You suddenly string together all those finer details, turning them into clear, clarifying insights.

In cases where insights don’t easily dawn on you, insight delays actually happen. You need some time to contemplate, sleep on them first if necessary. Ancient diviners once recommended allowing the words of the text, including the symbols, to let them turn and roll on one’s heart. Answers reveal themselves at the right time, and clarity eventually shines, as long as you patiently wait and surrender. I can still guide you via chat so we can process your reading until insights and answers finally dawn on you, clear and exact.

Ready For A Full Reading?
If you’ve reached this point, then I suppose you might be deeply considering getting a reading. I am always grateful, blessed and excited to be of service. Whether Yijing is new to you or not, this post is my way to invite you to this unique experience. If you still have questions about how Yijing works, or anything about doing a reading session, I am more than happy to respond. Send me a message here. Or check out my reading services.

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