Susan Lee is a former editor and attorney who has been a student of the I Ching for nearly two decades.

During those years, she has collected and studied dozens of versions of the I Ching and the Tao Te Ching. She gives seminars on getting started in the I Ching, and does individual readings, in person and via the internet, as well as posting The Daily Yi.

Susan Lee shares how she began The Daily Yi:

 I asked the I Ching a simple question --- Should I do a blog?

           I cast the coins. The first three lines were yin lines that gave me “earth” as the lower trigram. The next two lines were both yang.

 I hesitated before throwing the final line. I knew that another yang line would give me “heaven” as my upper trigram, and that would give me the hexagram “Standstill.”

             Receiving that hexagram signals a time of stagnation and decline - in other words, a downturn and slump.    It was a message I really did not want.

            At seminars I give on the I Ching, I am frequently asked about this phenomenon --- consciously wanting a particular outcome while throwing the coins.  The question is, “Should I try to keep what I want out of the process?”

            My belief is that there is no reason to try to remain neutral. You can’t, in any case. I think that if you really want something, that desire is part of the message you are sending out to the Universe when you ask your question. You can’t truly separate that from the question itself.

            However, you can’t carry that desire for a particular outcome to the extent of “redoing” a coin toss, just because it results in a message you don’t want to hear.

 My advice usually is, "Accept the message the Universe is giving you.  If your mind just will not stop rebelling at the message, try looking deeper for the meaning it is trying to impart. Ask again tomorrow, seeking clarification and further explanation."

So, taking my own advice, I calmed my mind and threw the coins for the final time.  A yin line. I had dodged the “Standstill/Stagnation” bullet.  The hexagram I got was “Gathering Together.”

            “Gathering Together” carries a two-part message.  First, positive change will only be accomplished by harnessing the collective strength of groups in pursuit of principles dedicated to the common good.

            The second part of the message was that my progress as an individual would depend on my efforts to deepen and strengthen these principles in myself.

            I had one changing line, Line 2, which contained the clearest message:

            “Letting oneself be drawn

Brings good fortune and remains blameless.

If one is sincere,

It furthers one to bring even a small offering.”

            As the Wilhelm/Baynes translation explains this line:

            “In the time of Gathering Together, we should make no arbitrary choice of the way. There are secret forces at work, leading together those who belong together. We must yield to this attraction; then we make no mistakes. Where inner relationships exist, no preparations and formalities are necessary. People understand one another forthwith; just as the Divinity graciously accepts a small offering if it comes from the heart.”

            My intent in starting booksofchanges.org is to reach out to others interested in the I Ching, to share my experiences with this ancient text, and invite others to share theirs. I believe we “belong together.”

            Therefore, I “yield to this attraction” by undertaking these communications. I trust that the Divinity will accept this small offering from my heart.

                                                                                         Susan Lee