"The Essence of Chinese Classics: A Must-Read Confucian Classic - The Book of Changes" Author: Zhou Pengpeng Publisher: Beijing United Publishing Company

In Confucian classics, the Book of Changes is revered as the "first of the six classics" and enjoys an extremely high status. In Taoist classics, the Book of Changes also enjoys the same status as it does in Confucian classics, and is regarded by Taoists as the "crown of the three mysteries." It can truly be regarded as "the first of all classics and the source of the great way."

As the crystallization of wisdom and culture in the long river of Chinese civilization, after five thousand years of development, the "Book of Changes" has become an important element symbol in all aspects of our lives, deeply affecting our lives.

The "Summary of the General Catalogue of the Complete Library in the Four Treasures" once gave the following positioning for the "Book of Changes": "The teachings of the Book of Changes are vast, and they also touch upon astronomy, geography, music, military strategy, rhyme, and mathematics. All the knowledge outside the secular world can be explained with the help of the Book of Changes." It can be said that the influence of the "Book of Changes" is rare in the world, both in breadth and depth, and no other work has ever had such a broad and important impact.

For thousands of years, Chinese scholars have regarded the Book of Changes as a classic worth studying every day and every moment, studying and following the principles in it. Confucius said, "When at home, observe its images and enjoy its words; when on the move, observe its changes and enjoy its divination." Ye Cai, a Song Dynasty scholar, also said, "Pairs of sparrows are on the writing desk, and dots of poplar catkins fall into the inkstone pool. Sitting by the small window reading the Book of Changes, I don't know how long spring has gone." Yu Shinan of the Tang Dynasty said, "If you don't read the Book of Changes, you can't be a general or a prime minister." Medical scientist Sun Simiao said, "If you don't know the Book of Changes, you can't say you know medicine." This shows the great influence and appeal of the Book of Changes to later generations.

However, although the book is called "Yi", there are very few people who can really comprehend and explain this book clearly. From ancient times to the present, there are countless books about the "Book of Changes". Each author tries to interpret the profound ideas in the "Book of Changes" from his own feelings and perspectives, but few succeed. In this regard, Zhu Xi, a master of Neo-Confucianism in the Song Dynasty, once said that "The Book of Changes is difficult to read and is not comparable to other books." At the same time, he also said that "it is the work of saints and cannot be achieved by scholars."

Specifically, the Book of Changes uses the dazzling eight trigrams and sixty-four hexagrams as carriers, and uses the obscure and difficult hexagram and line statements to explain worldly affairs and principles. Although the hexagrams and lines are used as tools and carriers, the Book of Changes is not a work about divination, but more like a summary of the ancients' understanding of the world and life, aiming to guide people to re-understand the world they live in, and then understand its profound philosophy, and obtain a continuous source of life wisdom and motivation for progress.

Even Zhu Xi, a great scholar, said that the Book of Changes is difficult to understand, not to mention modern people who know little about traditional culture. It is no wonder that some modern people regard the Book of Changes as a "heavenly book".

In view of this, we have carefully selected the ancient original source, and also adopted the works of many authors. After careful review, we reproduced the essence of this great work in the form of contrasting classical and vernacular texts. This book follows the order of the sixty-four hexagrams in the Book of Changes, with each hexagram forming a separate section. In the form of three sections, namely the original text, annotations, and translation, we strive to maintain the original meaning of the Book of Changes and strive to build a bridge between readers and the original work, so that every modern person can read the ideological charm of the Book of Changes.