The Translation that Became a Classic: Networking Richard Wilhelm’s I Ging Influence in Scandinavia

1 Introduction

This article aims to examine the direct and indirect influence of Richard Wilhelm’s I Ging ^[1] in Scandinavia, arguing that its uniqueness and authority as a commentary have made it a classic. I Ging is a significant translation of China’s ancient canonical work, Yìjīng 易經, commonly known in English as the Book of Changes. Wilhelm’s German version of Yìjīng is groundbreaking in both style and depth, serving as a translation and extensive commentary on the multifaceted meanings of Yìjīng’s words and visual features. Since its publication, the elaborate content of I Ging has reached readers worldwide, particularly through its connection with Carl G. Jung’s depth psychology^[2] and Cary F. Baynes’s English translation.^[3] Jungian depth psychology has also been essential to the Scandinavian reception of I Ging (Wilhelm 1973, 14). Both Dane Jens Windeleff and Swede Kristine Tranmark Kossman highlights depth psychology in their translations of I Ging (Wilhelm 1973, 11 and 13; 1991, IV-XXIII and 7–9). Specifically, Windeleff, beyond just translating I Ging, dedicated his life to promoting its value as a guidance book.

Since Windeleff’s 1973 translation, his Danish I Ging has been consistently reprinted and republished with the latest edition released in 2021.^[4] In this edition, Windeleff shares his nearly 60-year journey of fascination and dedication to I Ging. In its preface, Windeleff describes a Danish community that regularly gathers to study the Yìjīng using the Danish I Ging translation and performs Yìjīng divination together. In this process, Windeleff claims to have developed a new, effective divination method that mathematically mirrors the traditional Yarrow-Stalk divination’s hexagram line results. Windeleff developed this new divination method after realizing that Coin-Toss divination did not yield the same mathematical results as the Yarrow-Stalks method (12–14). He found that, statistically, his easy-to-execute Stick-Drawing method could replace both the Coin-Toss and the complex, time-consuming Yarrow-Stalk process.

This article explores how Windeleff’s life, since discovering the I Ging, exemplifies its significance in guiding a Scandinavian. Alongside, it will present various texts, artworks, music, and performances related to or inspired by I Ging in Scandinavia, substantiating Wilhelm’s translation’s influence across different periods and modalities. To introduce the journey of I Ging to Scandinavia, this article starts by briefly introducing China’s canonical Yìjīng as a depository of ideas that have inspired multitudes worldwide. This section ends with Wilhelm’s I Ging translation. Subsequently, the article explores how I Ging evolved into a richly interconnected amalgamation of accruing interpretations from its 1924 German publication to the 1973 publication of its Danish translation. After establishing the uniqueness of I Ging, the general Scandinavian reception across different modalities is visually displayed and briefly discussed. Moreover, the article delves into Windeleff and his new divination method in more detail. The main argument of this article is that Wilhelm’s I Ging has had a notable influence in Scandinavia, and Scandinavia’s first translation of Yìjīng from the old Chinese language (Rongen 2002) has not impacted I Ging’s influence. Therefore, I Ging should be considered a classic in its own right.

2 From China’s Yìjīng to Wilhelm’s I Ging

Yìjīng is commonly translated into English as the Book of Changes or the Classic of Changes. It often appears with transliterations of its Chinese name with the following titles: Yih King,^[5] Yi King,^[6] I Ging,^[7] I Ching,^[8] I,^[9] and Zhouyi.^[10] It is an ancient Chinese compilation by unknown scholars that was imperially canonized during the Han Dynasty (hàn dài 漢代) (202 BCE – 9 CE, 25–220 CE) (Redmond & Hon 2014, 181). Since its canonization, the Yìjīng, known as the “classic of classics” in China, has underpinned nearly all of China’s cultural developments for over two millennia.

Its authority stems from its affiliation with revered figures of Chinese culture, featuring 64 hexagram images believed to have been created by Fúxī (伏羲), the founder of Chinese civilization.^[11] These hexagrams are generally arranged starting with the pure images of the unbroken-lined Qián (乾) ䷀ and broken-lined Kūn (坤) ䷁. These are followed by the remaining 62 hexagrams, representing all the possible combinations of broken and unbroken lines. In the edited work, the hexagrams of Fúxī are supplemented with titles and brief statements attributed to notable Zhou Dynasty leaders (zhōu dài 周代 ca. 1050-221 BCE) (Wu 2021, 41–42), such as King Wen (wén wáng 文王) and the Duke of Zhou (zhōu gōng 周公) (Geiger 2013, 608). In its final section, the Yìjīng includes 10 philosophical discussions believed to be written by Confucius (kǒng zǐ 孔子).^[12] This combination of three layers — lined artwork, early interpretations, and later discussions — is called Yìjīng in China and the Book of Changes in the West.

The Yìjīng did not attract significant attention among Europeans until Joachim Bouvet (1656–1730) endeavored to link the compilation with Christian revelations (Mungello 2009, 98–112). Enthralled by the book’s profound ideas, Bouvet shared Shao Yong’s 邵雍 (1011–1077) hexagram structure from the Song Dynasty 宋代 (960–1279) with Göttfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646–1716). Leibniz quickly recognized a parallel connection between the lined images and his concept of binary numbers (Ryan 1996, 59–90). Since Bouvet’s study of the Yìjīng, the Chinese work has increasingly inspired Western ideas and products. Notable examples include Niels Bohr’s (1885–1962) contributions to physics (Adler 2022, 149–50), Carl G. Jung’s (1875–1961) depth psychology,^[13] John Cage’s (1912–1992) Music of Changes (Smith 2012, 204–5), and American counterculture (Redmond 2021, 197–221).

Most Yìjīng-related ideas and products in the West were inspired by Wilhelm’s I Ging or its translations. Wilhelm’s I Ging provided a comprehensive translation of China’s Yìjīng, accompanied by the most extensive Western commentary on its understanding and use (Pfister 2011, 421–63). Wilhelm’s literary prowess likely contributed to the global popularity of his I Ging. According to Smith, Wilhelm developed Yìjīng images into attractive metaphors. For example, hexagram 48, The Well 井, is rendered by him as a well of human life, something that is “endlessly abundant” and “as great and inexhaustible as the world” (Smith Jr. 1981, 783). By combining the extensive content and captivating language, along with his dedication to the principle of change (Hon 2005, 315–36), Wilhelm created a translation-commentary of Yìjīng that has resonated with readers worldwide. A particularly significant reader contributing to the continuous admiration of I Ging in the West, and its eventual introduction to Scandinavia, is Carl Jung, who connected Wilhelm’s I Ging to his depth psychology ideas.^[14]

3 I Ging as an Amalgamation of Accruing Interpretations

Before delving into Wilhelm’s I Ging influence in Scandinavia, the concept of I Ging must be expanded and explained. First, I Ging cannot be seen as just a static object conveying the concept of China’s Yìjīng to the West. This is because of Wilhelm’s extensive commentary and the book’s strong connection to Jung, Cary F. Baynes’s 1967 English translation, and Hellmut Wilhelm’s 1960 lectures,^[15] among other. Second, Wilhelm passed away in 1930, 43 years before the first Scandinavian I Ging was published. This means that the Scandinavian reception is purely self-interpretation without any guidance from Wilhelm himself. Third, the 1967 re-publication of Baynes’s English translation of I Ging has shaped Yìjīng studies outside East Asia to become strongly focused on the psychological interpretation of Wilhelm’s translation. This interpretation has, in many ways, positioned later scholars or translators of Yìjīng as either followers or respondents to the depth psychological Wilhelm-Baynes I Ching. Therefore, in this article, Wilhelm and his I Ging are not considered a static biographical individual or a historical document. Instead, they are considered part of the influential amalgamation known as I Ging, I Ching, Book of Changes, or Changes in the West.

It is important to note that Wilhelm’s I Ging influence extends beyond just his name or the title of his book. In the broader reception of ideas related to Yìjīng in Scandinavia, beyond the direct translations of I Ging, it is more common for artists to reference depth psychology or Jung in their texts. They often have features of their artwork unconsciously inspired by the coalescence of the I Ging amalgamation. Most Yìjīng-related texts in Scandinavia are intended for divination or self-spiritual purposes. They likely would not have existed without the popular relationship between I Ging and depth psychology derived from Jung’s writings. A similar trend is evident in practices and artwork with Yìjīng-related titles. For example, in a Swedish performance featuring Yìjīng divination,^[16] the actor attempts to reach a state of depth psychological “heightened reality” through hexagram inquiry. How could such an act occur without Wilhelm’s I Ging and its worldwide circulation through Jung and Baynes’ depth psychological interpretation of Yìjīng’s divination? Similarly, why is the Yìjīng artwork of Lisa Jeannin so political?^[17] Could it be because she used Kossman’s Swedish translation of I Ging and was inspired by Kossman’s adherence to Wilhelm’s political interpretation of the Yìjīng? Undoubtedly, Wilhelm’s I Ging underlies Jeannin’s artwork. Without it, her artwork might not exist, and if it did, it probably would not be as political without Wilhelm’s influence (Hon 2022, 183–203).^[18]

With Wilhelm and I Ging perceived as interconnected sources among others, the challenge is understanding how this source has integrated with Scandinavian culture. As mentioned, Wilhelm did not travel from Germany to Scandinavia to promote his I Ging, nor have any Scandinavians claimed to have attended his lectures during his lifetime. This implies that the reception of I Ging lacked any direct connection to Richard Wilhelm. Consequently, the I Ging has been received either through others or by self-interpretation. While any interaction between a source and a translator is inherently interpretive (Liu 1995, 1–44), it becomes significantly more intense without guidance or direct linkage to the original author. The interpretation is more profound than if the translator had been explained, lectured, or guided through the original text by the original author. The situation resembles a “fusion of horizons” as per Hans-Georg Gadamer (Gadamer 2004, 305–406). There is a source in the I Ging, a Jungian depth psychology framework for understanding it, and a translator who brings this source into a new cultural context. Therefore, Wilhelm and his I Ging should be considered a complex and layered amalgamation of accruals. Its allure has captivated Scandinavians who sought either a representation of China’s Yìjīng in their native languages or a way to re-imagine ancient Chinese ideas into different modern forms. Consequently, since all Yìjīng-related products in Scandinavia are derived from an imagination of Chinese ideas brought to life by the I Ging text, I Ging has become the classical text in Scandinavia, holding the principal authority on understanding anything related to Yìjīng.

4 I Ging as a Classic by Networking Its Influence in Scandinavia

In Figure 1, Wilhelm’s influence in Scandinavia is represented as a connective network. This network illustrates the direct reception of Wilhelm’s I Ging and later adaptations with Yìjīng-related titles influenced directly or indirectly by Wilhelm’s work. Only products traceably related to I Ging are displayed meaning that the network can be further expanded. For example, reviewers of I Ging and Yìjīng artwork or performances have been influenced by I Ging. Similarly, concertgoers who sing along to the harmonious couple in the yin and yang song engage with a concept wherein Wilhelm, as the first Westerner, give critical attention to yin and yang as not semantically linked to positive and negative genders.

Figure 1:

Core network of Wilhelm’s influence in Scandinavia. Lines show a direct connection while stripes show different degrees of indirect connections.

The network above illustrates the wide-spanning influence of I Ging in Scandinavia. To support the argument that I Ging has been influential across various platforms, short trivia is provided for each box in the network. Later in the article, a case study about Windeleff and some notable connections to I Ging in Sweden is presented:

1. To Wilhelm’s right in the network is Swedish Sinologist Göran Malmqvist, who fact-checked Kristine Tranmark Kossman’s Swedish translation of I Ging. ^[19]

2. Kossman is the Swedish translator of I Ging.

3. Under Kossman is Lisa Jeannin, who completed her master’s degree in arts with a gallery display of 64 artworks in Malmö, Sweden, based on her understanding of Kossman’s translation of I Ging. ^[20]

4. To Jeannin’s right is Madeleine Aleman, a Swedish performer who claims that her career has been defined by Jungian depth psychology and consultations with Yìjīng. ^[21]

5. Below Aleman is a reference to her solo performance based on the renowned Swedish dream diary, Swedenborg’s Dreams. Aleman’s performance included active Yìjīng divination and oracle interpretation on stage.^[22]

6. Kristine Mann is included in the network because she was born to Swedish parents and encouraged Cary F. Baynes to travel to Switzerland to study under Carl G. Jung. Thus, Mann accompanied Baynes on her first trip to Switzerland and was also an acquaintance of Jung. Baynes translated the most famous Yìjīng-related book in English by translating Wilhelm’s I Ging. Since meeting Mann, they have remained close friends. Mann also authored a book about Swedenborg’s Dreams (Windeleff 2024, 49–54).

7. Under Wilhelm in the network is Eva Skodvin, the first person to publish a book with a Yìjīng-related title in Norwegian.^[23] Skodvin translated the English version of Christopher Markert from 1986, which is based on James Legge’s Yìjīng translation.^[24] Markert’s work mentions Richard Wilhelm as the most profound contributor of Yìjīng in the West and recommends reading Wilhelm’s book (Markert 1986, 13).

8. Below Skodvin is Ole Bjørn Rongen, who translated Yìjīng from classical Chinese in 2002.^[25] Rongen is the first and only Scandinavian to have translated Yìjīng directly from Chinese. He is included in the network because, like Markert and Skodvin, he also reveres Wilhelm for his contribution to I Ging (Rongen 2002, 51–52) and emphasizes that his translation is justified by the lack of a direct translation of Yìjīng into a Scandinavian language (7–8).

9. Connected to Skodvin and Rongen is the Norwegian band NiLiv, who wrote a popular song titled “Yin and Yang.”^[26] While the self-reflected source behind this song has not been researched, yin and yang is a binary concept derived from Yìjīng. Wilhelm was the first Westerner to remove the semantic gendering of yin and yang as a negative female and positive male in his I Ging (Wilhelm 1967, lvi).

10. To the left of Wilhelm is Annelise Garde, who introduced Windeleff to the I Ging.

11. Jens Windeleff is the Danish translator of I Ging.

12. To the left of Windeleff is Per Nørgård, an internationally renowned Danish composer. One of his globally performed compositions is titled I Ching — For Percussion Solo, a roughly 25-min performance based on his musical interpretation of hexagrams 51, 9, 57, and 64.^[27]

13. Below Nørgård in the network is the Danish Jung Institute, based in Copenhagen since 1980. The I Ging is a central part of the institute’s lectures. Additionally, Windeleff has served as a board member for many years and has given several lectures on Wilhelm and the I Ging’s influence on Jung.

14. Below Windeleff is the Danish Yìjīng study group, which he founded around the year 2000 and whose members still meets regularly in 2025.

15. For the Danish Yìjīng study group, Windeleff has proposed a new Yìjīng divination method, which is presented later herein. His method is based upon a mathematical deduction of the Yarrow-Stalk and Coin-Toss divination methods, realized during an Eranos seminar that their mathematical structures differ.

16. The Eranos Foundation, a Swizz academic collective strongly affiliated with Jung, regularly holds lectures about Yìjīng and has funded year-long research projects on Yìjīng.

17. Stephen Karcher, originally from the United States of America, led the Eranos Yìjīng research project in the 1990s. During this time, he married a Danish woman and relocated to Denmark for around 10 years. Karcher has dedicated his life to deepening the connection between Yìjīng and depth psychology by retracing Wilhelm’s steps and re-interpreting his Chinese sources. Similar to Markert, Skodvin, and Rongen, Karcher also reveres Wilhelm for his contribution. His Yìjīng-related book has been translated into Danish by his brother-in-law.^[28]

The network visualizes the extensive direct and indirect influence of I Ging across various degrees and modalities in Scandinavia. This influence is categorized into three segments: translation, appropriation, and reaction. Translation involves transferring I Ging into a new language or medium. Appropriation refers to those who base their work on I Ging or the Wilhelm-Baynes I Ching, often clarifying or expanding upon their contents. Meanwhile, reaction involves individuals who respond to the popularity of I Ging, especially through its 1967 English translation by Cary F. Baynes. They aim to correct its philosophical content or address potential translation errors from the original Chinese classic. Due to I Ging’s pivotal role in bringing Yìjīng to Scandinavia, its influence goes beyond the names and titles displayed on the network. A wide range of individuals have encountered products directly or indirectly related to Wilhelm’s I Ging. Thus, whether aware of Wilhelm and his I Ging or not, many Scandinavians have been influenced by Wilhelm’s I Ging at some point in their lives. However, why is I Ging influential rather than Y ì jīng?

Undoubtedly, without Yìjīng, there would never be an I Ging. Similarly, without the I Ging, Yìjīng’s global spread would not have been as effective, and much of the Yìjīng-based music, artwork, and performances in Scandinavia might not have existed. This is because, both before and after the publication of I Ging, translations and publications about Yìjīng have been numerous. However, Wilhelm’s work remains as the most complete and authoritative version (Wilhelm 2021, 7). In Scandinavia, this is evident with Rongen’s Norwegian translation of Yìjīng from classical Chinese.^[29] Rongen’s translation is a meticulous attempt at transferring the original meaning of Yìjīng because no such connection previously existed. As a sinologist, Rongen appreciates Wilhelm’s efforts in bringing Yìjīng to the West and acknowledges the Danish and Swedish translations of I Ging (Rongen 2002, 51–52). That said, I Ging is considered by Rongen as a faulty translation because it represents Wilhelm’s interpretation of the original text and focuses more on Wilhelm’s extensive commentary on how to understand Yìjīng. Therefore, Rongen felt compelled to provide a new translation of the Chinese classic. However, alike many other newer global translations of Yìjīng, Rongen’s translation is extremely difficult to grasp compared with the vivid and metaphorically commented I Ging. Thus, despite a direct connection to the original Chinese version, all Yìjīng-related products in Scandinavia have unclear or no connection to Rongen’s translation. Instead, most are connected to I Ging. This raises the question: what is the problem with Yìjīng that leads people to prefer I Ging over a direct translation of Yìjīng?

A dilemma of Yìjīng lies in determining whether it is a literary classic or another form of classic. Primarily, Yìjīng is a series of artworks, signs, or symbols known as hexagrams. Purely visual features cannot be classified as literature. Hence, the question arises: what type of literature are the titles and discussions about these artworks, signs, and symbols? If we consider any form of commentary on visual features as literature, does that mean living is a form of literature, and is that sufficient? The initial texts of titles, oracle sayings, and line judgments are often nonsensical to educated Chinese. While some scholars argue that the difficulty in understanding these texts is because Yìjīng is a poetic text, as Richard Rutt attempted to reproduce in English,^[30] the poetry likely appears in some of the hexagram texts but is not a consistent feature throughout the entire work (Rongen 2002, 60). Since Yìjīng includes visual features such as hexagrams, early potential poetry, or difficult-to-understand comments — all subject to eclectic texts — it cannot be classified as a literary classic. Rather, Yìjīng must be considered a challenging puzzle to solve or a Pandora’s box full of inspiration, serving as a crucial depository of ideas with immense cultural significance in China. Therefore, why is it I Ging and not the great Yìjīng?

The simple answer is that translations of Yìjīng bypasses more than 2000 years of Yìjīng’s cultural development to transfer a nonsensical ancient text into a lingual culture where it does not have much history. Conversely, I Ging is a product of the historically significant Yìjīng that has been reproduced by Wilhelm for German readers with relatable symbolic and metaphoric language. That is, I Ging is a piece of literature based and dependent on Yìjīng’s depository of ideas. As Scandinavia is a German-derived culture using German-derived languages, Wilhelm’s literary ability has resonated with them on a level that the meticulous translation of Rongen has been unable to achieve. Due to Wilhelm’s literary ability, the last five decades have resulted in multiple modal products in Scandinavia, making I Ging the literary classic that is authoritative on how to understand the ideas in Yìjīng.

5 I Ging’s Influence in Scandinavia: The Case of Jens Windeleff

I Ging, and many Yìjīng-related titles in Scandinavia, can be traced back to Dane Jens Windeleff.^[31] Not only is this the first product in Scandinavia with an Yìjīng-related title, but it is also the most widely spread version because it has a notable presence beyond its native country (i.e., Denmark) in both Norway and Sweden. Additionally, Windeleff’s translation has stood the test of time, with reprints and republications spanning decades, with the most recent version in 2021 (previous versions published in 1973, 1981, 2014, 2018).^[32] Therefore, Windeleff’s Danish I Ging has not only introduced ideas derived from China’s Yìjīng to a Scandinavian audience, but his translation has also been pivotal in spreading the I Ging amalgamation throughout Denmark, Norway, and Sweden.

Being responsible for I Ging’s spread for over 60 years in Scandinavia, it is no surprise that the book has been essential to Windeleff’s life. Yìjīng is often referred to by Windeleff as a guidebook — spiritually, emotionally, and psychologically. I Ging was introduced to Windeleff in the 1960s by his graphology teacher, Annelise Garde, whom he refers to as his gifted and spiritual mother. In our correspondence, Windeleff describes her as an inspirational being. He writes that he had no intention of becoming a translator nor did he have any connection to Chinese ideas when he entered the early 1960s with the primary motivation of becoming a painter. While holding onto the dream of becoming an artist, he pursued a diverse education in fields such as psychology, graphology, and engineering. During this period, Garde suggested he consult Yìjīng divination, as found in the German I Ging, to help him focus on his many pursuits. As soon as Windeleff was introduced to the I Ging, he felt compelled to translate the text into Danish. This was in response to Wilhelm’s literary ability to introduce Chinese ideas to German readers and the popularity of the Wilhelm-Baynes I Ching. Windeleff writes the following in his 1973 introduction:

[Det er nu 50 år siden Richard Wilhelm forelagde sin oversættelse af I Ching eller Forvandlingernes Bog på tysk. Andre oversættelser fra kinesisk var gået forud, og flere fulgte siden hen, men trods dette er Wilhelms oversættelse i tre bøger blevet stående som den eneste autoritative og fuldstændige. Heri ligger også berettigelsen af en dansk oversættelse af Wilhelms udgave. I det sidste tiår har navnlig ungdommen taget bogen til sig, både som visdomsbog og – vel især – som orakelbog, og det skyldes nok ikke mindst den nyere dybdepsykologis behandling af synkronisitetsprincippet, at denne tilegnelse har været mulig; her, som ofte før, har dybdepsykologien dannet de midterste bropiller i formidlingen af forbindelsen mellem Vesten og Østens tækning].

It is now 50 years since Richard Wilhelm published his translation of the I Ching, or the Book of Changes, into German. Before this, there were many translations from Chinese, and there have been many since, but despite this, Wilhelm’s translation in three books has remained as the only authoritative and complete version. Herein lies the reasoning of a Danish translation of Wilhelm’s version. In the last decade, numerous youths have taken an interest in the book, both as a book of wisdom and as an oracle book, and that should, at least, also be credited to the newfound depth psychological treatment based on the principle of synchronicity. That this adaptation has been possible here, as often before, is because depth psychology has created the central bridge-pillars in conveying a connection between Western and Eastern thought.^[33]

I Ging’s connection with depth psychology enticed Windeleff to dedicate much of his life to introducing and propagating the book to his fellow Danes. In a rush to share the wise words of his Danish I Ging translation, Windeleff faced rejection from publishing houses in the late 1960s. Although offended by the rejection, he decided to further his education in Switzerland to strengthen his authority as a translator from German to Danish. Windeleff moved to study psychology at the renowned Jung Institute in Zürich in 1970 and returned to Denmark two years later to attempt publishing his Danish I Ging translation again. With a higher education in German and psychology, which had popularized the echoes of Yìjīng throughout Denmark, the publishing company Thaning & Apple agreed to publish the first two books of Windeleff’s I Ging translation in 1973.

Publishing the Danish translation of I Ging was a significant milestone for Windeleff. In the 1970s, Denmark experienced an energy crisis, which hindered him from finding work as an engineer until the end of that decade. During this period, Windeleff also translated the third and final I Ging book into Danish. However, no companies saw any benefit of adding that supplementary translation to the first two, which were already in circulation. In the 1980s, Windeleff served as a coordinator for the Danish government’s solar energy project and was an active board member and lecturer at the Jung Institute in Copenhagen. While he frequently lectured about I Ging and emphasized Wilhelm’s importance to Jung’s depth psychology, his involvement with I Ging shifted from being his primary focus to an important hobby. However, two decades later, at the end of 1990s, the popularity of Yìjīng peaked in Denmark and Windeleff founded a Yìjīng study circle, which still (2025) regularly meets for seminars and to collectively perform Yìjīng divination.

The Yìjīng study group was important for Windeleff as it rekindled his focus on I Ging, not just textually but also in practice, given the importance of Yìjīng divination to many members. In response, Windeleff invented a new divination method that the group adopted when interacting with the Danish I Ging. Since Windeleff introduced his new divination method to the group, it has become the Danish group’s approach to Yìjīng divination. Sincerity toward Windeleff’s method, and through the efforts and aid of the group’s members, led to the publication of the third I Ging volume in 2018. In 2021, the set of Wilhelm’s I Ging I-II-III was compiled together with the introduction of Windeleff’s divination approach. This marked the first time that I Ging, in its original three-volume structure, has been published in a Scandinavian language.

6 Windeleff’s New Divination Method

As discussed previously, I Ging has undoubtedly been an important part of Windeleff’s life as a guidebook. In I Ging, Windeleff was introduced to the two most prominent divination methods for users of Yìjīng: Yarrow-Stalk divination and Coin-Toss divination. Yarrow-Stalk divination is considered the ancient authentic method employed by Chinese diviners for over 3000 years ago. In a brief description of its function based on the Wilhelm-Baynes translation (Wilhelm 1967, 721–23), a diviner collects 50 yarrow stalks to begin the divination process. One stalk is then discarded, leaving 49 stalks. These 49 stalks are randomly separated into two piles. Subsequently, one stalk is saved from the right bundle, and each bundle is further separated by collecting four stalks at a time. In each bundle, a diviner stops collecting stalks when there are four or fewer stalks left (it should never be zero or five). Then, the collected stalks were set aside for later use, and the remaining stalks were combined from each bundle, with the spare one from before to count their total number. The result is either 4 (5) or 8 (9). Number 4 is considered a complete form and is, therefore, assigned the numerical value 3 (yang). Meanwhile, number 8 is considered a double form and is, therefore, assigned the numerical value of 2 (yin). Subsequently, the number is written down, the non-discarded stalks are collected, and the process is repeated. This implies that 49 stalks are necessary to start the divination. This time, first, the stalks are separated into two bundles, and then one stalk from the right bundle is saved before starting to collect stalks four by four. Again, when only four or less stalks are left in each bundle, they are combined with the spare, and the numerical values (4 = 3 and 8 = 2) are written down. The process is repeated one more time, and the result are three combinations of numbers 2 and 3, which results in either 6, 7, 8, or 9. Specifically, 6 and 8 should be drawn as a broken line __ __, whereas seven and nine should be drawn as an unbroken line _____. Additionally, write from the bottom to the top, and the divination process is repeated, starting with 50 stalks, five more times, to gain the six lines required for a hexagram. Note that number 6 is commonly referred to as old-yin and should be changed to its opposite line and that number 9 is called old-yang and should be changed to its opposite line.

As described above, the Yarrow-Stalk divination process is tedious. To ensure its proper ritualistic completion, certain stances, hand holding, and more spiritual propriety are required, making it a time-consuming process. Therefore, the ancient Chinese reinvented the process by introducing a Coin-Toss divination method. As described in the Wilhelm-Baynes translation (723–24), Coin-Tossing is a simple replacement of the Yarrow-Stalk process where one shakes three coins in one’s hand and drops them down in front of one another: “heads” = 2 and “tails” = 3. With each throw, the combined total is 6, 7, 8, or 9, allowing us to draw a hexagram line. By throwing the coins six times, we can determine all the lines for a complete hexagram.

Undoubtedly, the Coin-Toss divination method was an attractive option for Windeleff. He was busy with numerous daily responsibilities and, not being from China, the ritualistic aspects of ancient Chinese divination did not hold the same significance for him as they do in Chinese culture. The proper execution of Yarrow-Stalk divination can be considered a Chinese cultural feature. Therefore, Windeleff naturally chose Coin-Toss divination since he was told that it bears the same results and would more quickly locate a hexagram to guide him. Not only does Windeleff prefer the Coin-Toss divination method for himself but he also preferred it when teaching others on how to perform Yìjīng divination. It is almost impossible to captivate people’s interest in the classic when it starts with a tedious and technical process requiring many rounds of practice to master. Therefore, the Coin-Toss divination method is a viable option as it produces the same numbered results as Yarrow-Stalk divination. However, there is one feature of Yìjīng divination that was overlooked in the invention of Coin-Toss divination, and that is the changing lines. It turns out that, in Yarrow-Stalk divination, there is a three times higher likelihood of receiving an unbroken line that changes to its opposite (the old-yang, number 9) than a broken line that changes (the old-yin, number 6). Meanwhile, Coin-Toss divination provides an equal likelihood for changing lines to occur. It must have been a shocking fact for Windeleff when he learned about this difference in 1991.

In 1991, Windeleff attended a week-long Eranos seminar about Yìjīng. During the seminar, the speaker, Rudolf Ritsema, informed the audience that Coin-Toss divination does not possess the same probability structure as Yarrow-Stalk divination. Perplexed by Ritsema’s remarks, Windeleff found an opportunity to calculate the statistical difference between the two divination methods on a train ride between Copenhagen and the Danish city of Jylland. As a professional engineer, Windeleff is no stranger to numbers. After hours of calculations, he realized that the probabilities for broken and unbroken lines, as well as changing lines, in Yarrow-Stalk divination are as follows: 1/16 (6), 7/16 (8), 3/16 (9), and 5/16 (7). That is, not only was Ritsema correct in pointing out the difference in probability structures between the two divination methods, but there was also a substantial difference. In comparison, Coin-Toss divination works with numbers 2/16 (6), 6/16 (8), 2/16 (9), and 6/16 (7). Astonished by the mathematical difference, and aware that insisting others to only use the Yarrow-Stalk divination method was impractical given the widespread preference for the easier Coin-Toss option in virtually every Yìjīng-related book, Windeleff set out to create a new divination method. This method, he states, is as easy to perform as Coin-Toss divination but preserves the mathematical probability structure of Yarrow-Stalk divination (Wilhelm 2021, 12).

In honor of Windeleff’s invention, and instead of retelling the new divination method, here is his own introduction to the method from 2021, translated from Danish to English:

[Formentlig er det sådan, at de faciliteter i Selvet, som kan svare et spørgende menneske i divinationssammenhænge, er rimelig ‘large’ med hensyn til tekniske ufuldkommenheder i proceduren. Uden tvivl kommer det vigtigste også igennem med møntoraklet. Men det er en unik tilfredstillelse at benytte en fremgagnsmåde, som stokastisk svarer til den, individuationsarkitekterne for 3000 år siden fastsatte. Jeg har derfor i studiekredse indført en ny procedure, som er lige så hurtig som møntoraklet, men i overenstemmelse med det gamle røllikestikleorakel:

Man finder og skærer sig 16 tynde, lige store pinde eller stilke, f. eks. af bambus eller lignende, og maler otte af dem som ubrudte yang-linjer, og otte av dem som delte yin-linjer. Tre af yang-pindene og en yin-pinde forsynes med en særlig bemaling for at indicere, at de er bevægede linjer.

Ved orakeltagningen ruller man alle 16 pinde i hånden eller i et bæger, mens man ser bort, og udtager en pind. Den første pind er den nederste linje i hexagrammet. Den udtagne pind stikkes tilbake til de 15 andre, og proceduren gentages nu yderligere fem gange indtil alle hexagrammets seks linjer er fundne og noterede. Det er vigtigt, at udtagne pinde hele tiden går tilbage til bundtet, således at der altid trækkes en blandt 16 pinde.]

Now, it is such that the internal faculties of the individual, which is what one seeks to connect with during a divination process, deal with the “greater scheme” of things. Undoubtedly, in this sense of greater, despite the technical flaws of the Coin-Toss Divination technique, it gives acceptable results. However, there is something remarkably satisfactory about adopting a divination method which, stoically, parallels the results probabilities as intended by the divination architects for more than 3000 years ago. Therefore, I have introduced a new divination method in the Danish Yìjīng group, which is equally as fast and convenient as the Coin-Toss method, but with the accuracy of Yarrow-Stalk Divination:

The primary materials are 16, equally large, sticks or stalks, for instance, of bamboo. Paint eight of them with an unbroken yang line and the other eight with a broken yin line. Then, three of the yang sticks must have an added changing line of another color to mark that they represent a changing line, and one of the yin sticks receive the same changing line treatment.

To perform divination, you should prepare the sticks in a bucket, a cup, or in your hand. Then, look away from the sticks or close your eyes and roll the sticks around in the container or in your hands. Once you are ready (still with your eyes closed or looking away), you choose one stick to separate from the bundle and then you can look upon your choice to see your hexagram line. This is then the bottom line of your hexagram. Then, you return the chosen stick to the remaining bundle of 15 and repeat the process five more times until you have received all the six lines needed for your hexagram. It is important that there are always 16 sticks in the bundle before a hexagram line is discovered. (13–14)

Windeleff’s divination method combines the mathematical precision of the original Yarrow-Stalk method with the speed and ease of the Coin-Toss method. With his creative element of personalizing the 16 sticks, Windeleff’s Stick-Drawing method emerged as the leading Yìjīng divination method among Denmark’s Yìjīng enthusiasts. His new divination method is not only a creative and unique adaptation of Yìjīng, but the existence of a Danish community that regularly practices Yìjīng divination is also remarkable. Few communities worldwide dedicate themselves to Yìjīng guidance, particularly in a collective setting. Typically, Yìjīng is used as a personal guide, with others joining only to seek interpretations from a Yìjīng scholar or diviner. Wilhelm’s I Ging translation has been instrumental in the lives of Windeleff and many other Danes who are part of the active and ongoing Yìjīng community in Denmark.

7 I Ging in Sweden: Kossman, Art, and Theater

The I Ging have also been influential in Sweden. In the Swedish translation of I Ging by Kossman, Wilhelm’s text is utilized as a guide where practicing Yìjīng divination is said to lead individuals to a heightened reality (Weiss 1991, 5–9). Liselotte Weiss, the author of an additional foreword to the Swedish I Ging, describes this heightened reality as a superior conscious state achievable through Yìjīng divination. To Weiss, humans are complex spiritual beings, not confined to our spatial and temporal bodies. In her foreword, she presents humans as incorporeal existences who can access their cumulative spiritual knowledge by practicing Yìjīng divination (5).

The Swedish I Ging includes Carl Jung’s foreword written for the English translation of I Ging. Thus, the emphasis on divination is much greater in the Swedish version than the Danish due to the additional forewords and its deliberate connection to the Wilhelm-Baynes I Ching. In contrast, Windeleff’s Danish I Ging translation distinctly emphasizes Wilhelm and deliberately footnotes any ideas related to Jung to distance his I Ging translation from the English I Ching (Wilhelm 1973, 11 and 13). In his 1973 version, Windeleff hardly mentions depth psychology and avoids the topic of divination. However, this changes significantly in his 2021 publication, which includes a much longer translator’s note that features his new divination method. Due to these distinct approaches, Scandinavia has ultimately received two different I Gings: one following the Jungian I Ching interpretation by Baynes and another staying closer to Wilhelm’s original publication.

The introduction of the Danish and Swedish I Ging translations has had an impact on Scandinavia, influencing various modalities. In Denmark, I Ging can be traced alongside Windeleff’s life, his lectures at the Jungian Institute of Copenhagen, and the Danish Yìjīng study circle. In contrast, assessing the influence of I Ging in Sweden is more challenging. However, there are two noticeable results from the Swedish translation of I Ging. One is Madeleine Aleman’s work, which has used Yìjīng divination in a 2012 performance about Swedenborg’s Dreams.^[34] While the application of the Changes is directly used in this performance, Aleman states that all her work, comprising 38 artistic crafts and shows and 21 lectures and dialogs throughout Sweden, China, Spain, and several other countries, strongly employs the inspiration or use of the Yìjīng and Jungian depth psychology. In her general artist statement, she mentions “Aleman is strongly influenced by psychology and spirituality. To access layers beyond intellect and craftmanship, Aleman practices Carl Gustav Jung’s technique ‘Active Imagination’ and divination with the Chinese oracle [Yìjīng].” No other sources of inspiration are mentioned in her statement, making Wilhelm’s I Ging, as an amalgamation, the single most important source for Aleman’s life and work.^[35]

The other significant influence of Wilhelm’s work beyond his direct I Ging translation in Sweden is evident in the artwork of Lisa Jeannin. As she completed her education at the Malmö Art Academy (1996–2001), Jeannin showcased her collection of 64 artworks based on her interpretation of the Swedish I Ging.^[36] The art was initially drafted in her notebook during her master studies and then recreated on a gallery wall in Malmö, Sweden.

Showcasing her artistic interpretation of I Ging in an art gallery in Malmö marked the beginning for Jeannin’s long and ongoing career as an artist. Her work is known for its inspiring and provocative nature, featuring her eclectic, confusing, and lucid contemporary artwork. Reviews note that Jeannin’s eclectic artwork has a strong political undertone. Given that Wilhelm’s I Ging is known for its strong political focus,^[37] Jeannin’s 64 pieces of art demonstrate how Wilhelm’s perception of the world continues to resonate across different generations, cultural environments, and artistic mediums.

Jeannin is one of at least three people in Scandinavia who believe art is intrinsically connected to the Changes. In Eva Skodvin’s Norwegian transcreation of the Yìjīng, 79 copies of traditional Chinese paintings are included.^[38] The original English author, Christopher Markert, strongly believes that the pictographic effect of Chinese characters is essential in reading the Yìjīng (Markert 1986, 12). As English or Norwegian does not have the same pictographic features as Chinese, these paintings were added to bridge the text to imagery. Similarly, Henning Hai Lee Yang’s republication of his Norwegian Yìjīng from 1995, which serves as a manual for fortune tellers, features numerous pictures and images related to China and Chinese spirituality to create a similar visual effect to Skodvin’s Yìjīng.^[39] Conversely, Jeannin’s art maintains a more direct connection to Wilhelm’s I Ging politics. While Yang’s and Skodvin’s imagery is traditional Chinese or related to Chinese spirituality, Jeannin’s work is distinctly political.

8 Conclusion: I Ging as a Scandinavian Classic

This article has explored Richard Wilhelm’s I Ging influence in Scandinavia over five decades. The central argument is that I Ging has been traceably influential beyond its native culture across different modalities. The main discussion focused on Windeleff and his new divination method, with details about Kossman, Jeannin’s artwork, and Aleman’s performance, while also illustrating I Ging’s broader influence. In Scandinavia, I Ging is not just a book introducing China’s Yìjīng; its captivating literary style and enriching commentaries have guided lives and inspired products across multiple modalities that have been life-defining for the artists. Consequently, even as a translation of China’s Yìjīng, I Ging has achieved a classic status in Scandinavian cultures, maintaining its influence even after a direct translation from Chinese to a Scandinavian language was made by Rongen.

Regardless of Wilhelm’s intention to translate the meaning of Yìjīng into German, he effectively created a literary work with descriptive, metaphorical, and symbolic interpretations of Yìjīng’s 64 hexagrams, along with extensive commentaries. Thus, I Ging is not a direct translation of the ancient Chinese understanding of hexagram images as conducted by Rongen and scholars such as Richard Rutt and Richard Kunst.^[40] Given these contrasting translations in mind, I Ging is better understood as a new interpretation of the 64 hexagrams, based on its early texts and Chinese scholarship, aimed at serving and inspiring 20th century Germany.

It is likely that the Germanic-derived culture and languages of Scandinavia underlie the popularity of I Ging in the region. While I Ging escaped a solitary German fate through its connection with Jungian depth psychology, it is Wilhelm’s literary ability that ensured I Ging’s enduring and extensive influence in Scandinavia. Despite its intrinsic connection to Yìjīng, I Ging’s influence across many decades and various modalities, even when new translations of Yìjīng have been published, arguably renders Wilhelm’s work a classic in its own right.