Yijing Research · Harmen Mesker
Exploring the Yijing through its sources.
Research, translations and lectures on the Zhouyi, Wenwang Gua and the history of Chinese divination.
Research meets practice
Yijing Research × Nourishing Destiny Academy
Harmen Mesker and Johannes Bloemsma bring classical Chinese sources and practical experience together in courses on the Yijing and Wenwang Gua.
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Yijing Research
Harmen Mesker
Historical sources · Translation · Research
Nourishing Destiny Academy
Johannes Bloemsma
Practical application · Teaching · Guidance
Latest writing
Recent contributions
New work and observations from the research archive.
Research areas
Explore the Yijing
Original texts, their transmission, and the different ways the Book of Changes has been studied and used.
From the archive
Selected research
Articles, translations and critical examinations of the sources.
Translation Notes · 19 Jun 2005
The salient
The character dui 兌 from hexagram 58 is an old character with many meanings. One of those meanings is ‘happiness’ or something similar, and this is how it is most often translated.…
Read article →Translation Notes · 5 Dec 2014
Hexagram 07, line 4
師左次.無咎. Zuo 左: in its ordinary meaning ‘the left side’, but already on oracle bones used as a loan for zuo 佐, ‘to assist, to help’. and you 佑, ‘to assist, to protect’. The 漢語大詞典 says, ‘用兵則居次方位’: ‘in…
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Translation Notes · 14 Mar 2018
Hexagram 09, line 4
有孚血去. 惕出. 无咎. It has been more than a year since I wrote my last Translation Note. This has mainly to do with one word: punctuation. The original Chinese text does not…
Read article →Video lectures
The Fascinating World of Wenwang Gua
Historical divination cases explained through original Chinese sources. Follow the reasoning behind the judgments and the methods used.
Explore the video library →文王卦
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Original source-based cases
The Wenwang Gua video series
The latest four episodes, updated automatically from the YouTube playlist.
01The Fascinating World of Wenwang Gua (4): Wild Crane on Intention - 2
02The Fascinating World of Wenwang Gua (3): Wild Crane on Intention - 1
03The Fascinating World of Wenwang Gua (2): Seeing an Officer
04The Fascinating World of Wenwang Gua (1): The Sick Child
Latest public uploads in the Wenwang Gua playlist. Watch the complete series on YouTube ↗
About the researcher
Harmen Mesker
Studying the Yijing since 1982, Harmen works with the history and language of the Zhouyi, early Chinese sources and traditional methods of divination. His research and teaching bring textual study and practical experience together.
Read the full biography and recommendations →Research and teaching
Beyond the articles
Books, lectures and courses are all part of the continuing study of the Yijing.
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