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THE BOOK OF CHANGES
A question.
Six lines.
A new perspective.
Flip coins here or use your own at home. Build a hexagram and explore its pattern as a starting point for reflection.
Build from the bottom up
The first line goes at the bottom. The sixth goes at the top.
How to use ordinary coins
Simple one-coin reflection
Choose which side is heads before you begin. For an ordinary coin, heads means a full, solid yang line; tails means a broken yin line. Flip once for each of six lines, starting at the bottom. This is a simplified reflection method, not the traditional three-coin procedure. It has no changing lines.
Three-coin method
Use three coins together, or flip one physical coin three times per line. This page uses heads = 3 and tails = 2. Add the values, then record one line. Repeat for all six lines. Coin-side conventions vary; stay consistent with the values shown here.
| Result | Total | Line |
|---|---|---|
| 3 tails | 6 | Broken, changing to solid |
| 1 head + 2 tails | 7 | Solid, stable |
| 2 heads + 1 tail | 8 | Broken, stable |
| 3 heads | 9 | Solid, changing to broken |
Changing lines (marked × or ○) reverse in the relating hexagram. This second configuration offers another perspective on the change, rather than a guaranteed outcome. With several changing lines, this page reflects on each position; other interpretive traditions use different selection rules.
Virtual coin flips use your browser’s random-number generator. “Flip the coin” flips one coin; in three-coin mode, three flips complete a line. “Flip All Coins” completes only the remaining coins in your current cast.
Hexagram names and line patterns follow the King Wen sequence. All interpretations here are original modern reflections, not verbatim translations of the classical judgments or line texts. For the historical text, see James Legge’s public-domain I Ching translation. See also a guide to three-coin casting.
Your question and cast stay on this page unless you save to your account, print, or download them. No question is sent to an AI service.