I Ching and Astrology.

                                                 The Clock
 
The 'I Ching Clock' featured in this program was a suggestion of the dutch astrologer Gerard Dijkman who also provided Ed van Zon with a copy of 'The Astrology of I Ching' by Dr. W.K. Chu and W.A. Sherrill (ISBN 0 7100 8144 8 - c  and  0 7100 0258 0 - p) for the necessary astrological data.
The clock is merely a nice feature. Readers who are interested in the data and calculations involved, are referred to the above book. 

Chinese astrology uses four interrelated cycles. They are:

The Jupiterian-Solar cycle.
It takes jupiter close to twelve years to complete its orbit round the sun. To the earthly years of this 'great year' the twelve 'Eartly Branches' are appointed, which coincide with the more popular image of the twelve symbolic animals: the Rat, the Ox, the Tiger, the Hare, the Dragon, the Snake, the Horse, the Sheep, the Monkey, the Cock, the Dog and the Pig.
Likewise the traditional ten 'Heavenly Stems' coincide, in pairs, with the five 'Elements' of the chinese astrology: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. Combining the Elements and the Branches gives rise to a sixty-year cycle called the 'Sexagenary Cycle'.
This has been the foundation of the chinese calendar for nearly fifty centuries.

The Earthly-Solar cycle. 
This is a subcycle of the former, based on the earthly year, and coinciding with the occidental Zodiac system.

The Lunar-Earthly cycle.
This is again a subcycle of the former, based on the moon's monthly orbit round the earth.

The apparent Solar-Earthly cycle.
This is a daily cycle based on 'true time'.

The four cycles, when applied to a person's hour, day, month and year of birth, give rise to the 'Four Pillars of Destiny', whereby his or her future - according to astrology - is unveiled.
I Ching astrology uses these Pillars to calculate a person's 'Earlier Heaven' (or 'natal') hexagram and the subsequent 'Later Heaven' hexagram. Usually the latter will be the first's exchanged hexagram.

Click Clock settings under Astro to enter longitude and time-zone at your present locality.
Click Preferences under Edit if you want the window floating.
The I Ching clock of course relies on the Mac's internal clock, so this should be indicating the correct time. You can also display 'true time'.

'True local time' depends on the moment of sunrise and thus varies with longitude within your time zone. Correct time, which is the time public life runs by, does not. Usually the difference will be less than an hour, but some time zones are wider. The whole of China, for instance, lies within one time zone, so if you're living there, the deviation may have increased accordingly. 
Of course you should always indicate whether or not you're in a daylight saving period. 

The clock will show natal hexagrams of the male and female newborn - in the dark and light section respectively - in the present two-hour period at your longitude. 

                                       The Natal Hexagram

Click Natal hexagram... under Astro and enter the data of the person whose natal hexagram you want (click the numbers of date and time to make the adjustments).
Now if you happen to know the true local time of this person's birth, you fill the box 'Location & time standard' with zeros and blanks.
Most of the time however, you will have to rely on the correct time, and the data in the box should be entered accordingly to obtain the correct result.
This result is reliable if you're working post world war II. Before that time, the keeping track of it was subject to local variations that should be taken into account but are beyond the scope of this program.
Now click OK.
Two hexagrams appear, each with an inversed 'controlling line'.
They symbolize the subject's life path in six- and nine-year periods, always counting upward from and up to the controlling line, starting with 'Earlier Heaven' and switching to 'Later Heaven' after the completion of it.
The Image and the Judgement of each hexagram may already give clues (like my natal hexagram being Disintegration), but specifics naturally come from the Lines that each summerize a six- or nine-year period. May your auspices be good!


                                                                         Christiaan Freeling.
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