Which I Ching Casting Method Is More Accurate: Computer ‘Randomness’ or Traditional Coins?

An I Ching Divination Series: This article explores the core conflict between digital tools and ancient coins, and reveals why your mindset…

If you’ve been seeking a genuine path to mastering I Ching divination, welcome — you’re in the right place.

Before we can explore the complexities of interpretation, we must first build a solid foundation.

While we will explore interpretation in great detail later, our journey must begin here, with the first pillar. Follow us as we build your practice from the ground up.

This article focuses on the first and most fundamental step: How do we obtain an accurate hexagram?

However, under this grand principle of sincerity, modern people face a new choice:

Is digital divination a shortcut to wisdom, or is it a soulless imitation?

The Tools of Inquiry: An Introduction to Divination Methods

To understand this debate, we first need to look at the main ways of casting a hexagram:

1. The Yarrow Stalk Method (大衍筮法, Dàyǎn Shìfǎ)

This is the most ancient and ritualistic method of casting.

2. The Three-Coin Method (六爻/纳甲法, Liù Yáo / Nàjiǎ Fǎ)

As the most mainstream traditional method today, this practice is also commonly known as Liu Yao (“Six Lines Divination”). It greatly simplifies the complex procedure of the yarrow stalk method.

Crucially, and in stark contrast to the older Yarrow Stalk method, time is of the essence in the Najia system.

3. The Time-Based Method (梅花易数, Méihuā Yìshù)

This information can then be converted into a hexagram through a numerical algorithm.

· Step 1: Obtain the Time-Based Numbers You need the details from the Chinese Lunar Calendar for the moment of your inquiry (the importance of time in the Liu Yao / Najia method will also be discussed in a future article), including the Earthly Branch of the year, the lunar month, the lunar day, and the Earthly Branch of the hour. You can find this using a perpetual calendar, for example, by visiting ichingstream.com.

o Earthly Branch Numbers: Zi=1, Chou=2, Yin=3, Mao=4, Chen=5, Si=6, Wu=7, Wei=8, Shen=9, You=10, Xu=11, Hai=12.

o Trigram Numbers (Later Heaven Bagua): Qian=1, Dui=2, Li=3, Zhen=4, Xun=5, Kan=6, Gen=7, Kun=8.

· Step 2: Calculate the Trigrams and the Acitve Line

o Upper Trigram: (Year Branch # + Lunar Month # + Lunar Day #) ÷ 8. The remainder is your upper trigram.

o Lower Trigram: (Year Branch # + Lunar Month # + Lunar Day # + Hour Branch #) ÷ 8. The remainder is your lower trigram.

o Active Line: (Year Branch # + Lunar Month # + Lunar Day # + Hour Branch #) ÷ 6. The remainder is the position of the moving line (from the bottom up).

o Important Rule: If the numbers divide evenly and the remainder is 0, you take the divisor itself as the result (i.e., 8 for a trigram, 6 for the active line).

4. The Computer/Smartphone App Method

This is a product of the digital age. On various apps and websites, a single tap is all it takes to instantly complete the complex casting process.

However, the core controversy of this convenient method lies in the nature of its “randomness.” Unlike the physical events of a coin toss or sorting yarrow stalks, a computer program cannot create true randomness.

The Heart of the Matter: It Works If You Believe It

Many people are skeptical of digital divination, and for good reason. Compared to traditional methods validated over millennia, computer programs are brand new. More importantly, their “randomness” is merely a pseudo-random result based on an algorithm. How can a program connect with the mysterious order of the universe?

Perhaps the key lies not in the tool itself, but in the inner state of the user.

“信则有，不信则无” (xìn zé yǒu, bù xìn zé wú) — “It exists if you believe in it; it does not exist if you do not.” This ancient saying reveals the secret.

Here, “belief” is not blind superstition, but a state of profound focus, sincerity, and complete trust.

From this perspective:

· The Logic of Digital Divination: Although a computer program is pre-determined, the universe we inhabit is itself a vast, interconnected whole. Every event — including your decision to click a button at a precise microsecond — can be understood as part of this grand cosmic arrangement. Therefore, the result that appears to be generated by a program can equally be the universe’s response to your query. Its accuracy depends on whether you believe this connection exists.

· The Logic of Traditional Divination: The same principle applies here.

The Echo of Doubt: Why the First Cast is Key

“To question repeatedly is to show disrespect.”

The core of the answer lies in “motive.”

This shift in mindset instantly shatters the states of “sincerity” and “stillness” required for divination. Every repetition reinforces your doubt, causing your thoughts and energy field to become more chaotic.

So, what should you do if you truly can’t let go of a question? The advice of the ancients is to “wait.” Because the time and space have changed, the corresponding “image” (the divination result) will naturally change as well.

The Pink Elephant in the Room: Battling the Subconscious

However, achieving a state of “true belief” is a process, and it is far more difficult than we imagine.

It’s like the famous psychological experiment: “Don’t think of a pink elephant.” The moment you are told not to think about it, a pink elephant immediately appears in your mind.

This internal conflict and struggle will continue to affect the quality of your connection with the I Ching.

Conclusion: Your Inner State is the Final Answer

So, let’s return to the original question: computer, time-based algorithm, or traditional coins — which is better?

The answer is: whichever tool best helps you enter a state of focus, sincerity, and trust is the best tool for you.

The tool, in the end, is just a raft. Its purpose is to carry us to the shores of wisdom.