About the I Ching

I am writing this quickly because I have to go to a party. Forgive the brief and frantic tone. I want to expand on this later.

The I Ching is a divination method involving flipping coins to receive a “hexagram” with special interpretations depending on details of the coin flips. The method does not tell the future, your fortune, or predict outcomes as such; instead, you should consult the I Ching regarding a course of action you are planning to take and it will advise you on whether you will be successful and how to be successful.

Like all major texts there are many translations of the I Ching; I am using here an old one laden with numerous shortcomings but which was nevertheless easily accessible to me when I made this tool. The tool is independent of the translation; one could use my software alongside one’s preferred translation so long as it is marked up correctly.

Lastly, a remark about the design.

I believe that the point of making software is to study/meditate on your subject. It’s a way of understanding, just like painting, poetry, or music. Simone Weil said this, probably.

But like any art, software also requires active choices on the part of the artist. As poetic form is concerned with vocabulary, meter, prosody, enjambment, etc., the form of software involves circumscribing the ways people can interact with the digital artifact. I intentionally made certain choices in the interaction design, like not having a “reset” button because I want to discourage users from trying again if they don’t like their casting.

–Carmel, 13 Feb 2026