Jiao's Yi Lin

Jiao's Yi Lin is a poetic divination text traditionally attributed to Jiao Yanshou of the Han dynasty, though the authorship is debated. It systematizes the combinations of the sixty-four hexagrams in the I Ching: each hexagram expands into sixty-four outcomes, creating 64 × 64 = 4096 oracle lines in total. The text is often written in four-character verse, turning abstract hexagram logic into vivid imagery and scenes.

The story line with the I Ching

The I Ching focuses on the structure of hexagrams and line statements, while Yi Lin works more like a corpus that turns hexagram meaning into readable poems:

• it supplements the hexagram with scenes, objects, movement, and outcomes
• it makes divination easier to read as “image” and “moment”
• it became an important source for later image-based and divinatory reading traditions

How this app uses Yi Lin

When you cast a result, the app shows the matching poem for the “primary hexagram → changed hexagram” pair.

1. First, pick up the key images in the poem.
2. Then compare them with your question and current situation.
3. Finally, return to the hexagram and moving line for a full reading.

Translation note

The English text is a direct, readable translation from the Chinese edition. The Chinese version remains primary; the English is for reference only.

• Reading order: image first, then question, then hexagram and moving line.
• Source note: the English version is a direct translation from the Chinese Jiao's Yi Lin text and cannot fully convey the original nuance; use the Chinese as the authoritative text.