A Companion to Yi Jing Numerology and Cosmology
Nielsen, BentThis edition can be ordered. No arrival date is confirmed.
Unlock the lost numerical soul of the Yi Jing beyond Western moral interpretations.
This volume rescues the Xiangshu tradition from obscurity, focusing on the mathematical and visual structures of the Yi Jing rather than its ethical teachings. Organized as a bilingual encyclopedia, it maps the intricate web of hexagrams, trigrams, and numerological charts that underpin ancient divination. By prioritizing the 'image and number' framework, it offers scholars and practitioners a rigorous technical guide to the cosmological mechanics that Western translations have long ignored.
This work revitalizes the Xiangshu tradition of Chinese esoteric studies, shifting focus away from dominant Western ethical interpretations toward the mathematical and visual structures of ancient divination. It stands as a technical counterpoint within the broader field of comparative cosmology and Yi Jing scholarship.
📝 Description: A Companion to Yi Jing Numerology and Cosmology
💎 Expert review
📖 Why choose it
Why this book is worth reading
Scholars and serious practitioners seeking to understand the cosmological mechanics behind the Yi Jing will find this volume indispensable. It offers a rigorous technical guide that rescues the 'image and number' framework from obscurity, providing a bilingual encyclopedia of hexagrams and trigrams often ignored by Western audiences. If you feel that standard translations have reduced this ancient text to mere moral instruction, this book unlocks its lost numerical soul. It is essential for those ready to engage with the intricate web of visual structures and divination mechanics, offering depth and precision that purely philosophical approaches lack.
⭐ Reader reviews
Reader rating
Exactly what I was looking for. A text you study rather than simply read. Will be gifting a copy to a friend.
I've read excerpts online before, but having the full text is different. The material is presented clearly and the structure makes it easy to revisit key passages. It connects ideas I'd only seen treated separately elsewhere. Delivery took a bit longer than quoted. Solid, if not essential.
Bent Nielsen delivers a vital corrective to Western Yi Jing scholarship by prioritizing mathematical structure over ethical teaching. This bilingual encyclopedia provides necessary clarity on Xiangshu traditions, mapping complex numerological charts with academic rigor. However, it does not suit casual readers seeking accessible divination advice or those preferring moralistic interpretations of the text. The technical nature and encyclopedic format demand patience. It is best reserved for researchers and dedicated practitioners who require a deep, structural understanding of the cosmology underlying the hexagrams, rather than those looking for simple spiritual guidance.
❓ Frequently asked questions
📖 Who should read this
Scholars of Chinese philosophy, divination practitioners seeking technical depth, and historians interested in the mathematical roots of I Ching cosmology.
🎯 Key themes and symbolism
Xiangshu Numerology
Hexagram Cosmology
Bilingual Encyclopedia
💬 Quotes from the book
“Translations have been biased towards the yili ('meaning and pattern') tradition.”
“A major new reference work is organised as a Chinese-English encyclopedia.”
📜 Historical context
📚 Glossary
- Xiangshu
- Yili
- Pinyin
📔 Questions to reflect on
- How does the numerical structure of a hexagram alter your perception of its symbolic meaning?
- What patterns do you notice when comparing the Xiangshu cosmology with Western numerological systems?
- In what ways might mathematical precision reveal aspects of divination that moral interpretation obscures?
✍️ More books by this author Nielsen, Bent
All books by this author →
🏛 Books from this publisher Routledge
All books from this publisher →
89
You might also like
See more →
91
91
