The
I Ching (; ), also known as the
Classic of Changes or
Book of Changes in English, is an ancient
divination text and the oldest of the
Chinese classics. Possessing a history of more than two and a half millennia of commentary and interpretation, the
I Ching is an
influential text read throughout the world, providing inspiration to the worlds of religion, psychoanalysis, business, literature, and art. Originally a divination manual in the
Western Zhou period (1000750), over the course of the
Warring States period and early imperial period (500200) it was transformed into a
cosmological text with a series of philosophical commentaries known as the "
Ten Wings." After becoming part of the
Five Classics in the 2nd century BC, the
I Ching was the subject of scholarly commentary and the basis for divination practice for centuries across the Far East, and eventually took on an influential role in Western understanding of Eastern thought.