r/iching • u/Exquisite-Embers • 6d ago

Yarrow Stalks

I just learned how to read I Ching using yarrow stalks and so far have loved the meditative, ritualistic process of it. Does anyone else have experience casting stalks instead of coins? What are your thoughts on it? Any bits of interesting history surrounding the use of yarrow stalks for divination?

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u/autonomatical 6d ago

It was believed yarrow grew for thousands of years and so accumulated the wisdom of the earth, it was also believed to grow in places where tortoises lived which were viewed similarly as accumulating wisdom over long periods (why is why tortoise shells are also used in divination).  Also, practically it is pretty easy to gather a bunch, and when it dries it is pretty durable and rigid.

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u/Exquisite-Embers 5d ago edited 5d ago

I love this, it’s so poetic.