[Mermaid]

I agree with voyager. The best questions are those which direct your thoughts inside yourself, rather than outside.

Sometimes it takes a few days for the answer to come to you.

That is why it's meditative and contemplative, it asks questions of your unconscious which sows seeds for later understanding.
Sometimes you recognise it straightaway and understand what it is trying to show you.

[Trustandlove]

V --

I tried the "should I"; in the instructions it actually says NOT to phrase questions that way....   it says that you can ask "what will happen...."    so I continue to be confused.  I don't mean to use it as a prediction tool; I've had it with looking for oracles.

 ... the first questions I asked gave me more sensible answers, i.e. ones to comtemplate. 

 anyway, to the "should I" one I got:

Cast Hexagram:

4 - Four
Mêng / Inexperience

A fresh Spring at the foot of the Mountain:
The Superior Person refines his character by being thorough in every activity.
The Sage does not recruit students; the students seek him.
He asks nothing but a sincere desire to learn.
If the student doubts or challenges his authority, the Sage regretfully cuts his losses.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

This is a time of interchange between a mentor and pupil.
Whether you are the teacher or the student, it is a time of companionship along a mutual path.
This hexagram also emphasizes the eternal, cyclical nature of the mentor/student relationship -- a mentor is merely a more seasoned pupil, further along on the journey.
A pupil holds within himself the seed of a future Master.

Changing Lines:

There are Three Changing Lines.
The Middle Line applies.

Hexagram Four/Line Four

You are so terrified of being wrong, you leave no room for learning what is right.

Transformed Hexagram:

12 - Twelve
P'i / Stagnation

Heaven and Earth move away from each other.
In the ensuing void, the small invade where the great have departed.
There is no common meeting ground, so the Superior Person must fall back on his inner worth and decline the rewards offered by the inferior invaders.

Difficult trials as you hold to your course.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

It is natural to assume that, if Earth above Heaven forms the hexagram for Peace and Paradise, then the opposite configuration, with Heaven over Earth would represent the antithesis of Paradise, Hell.
Not so.
This hexagram is actually the Dark side of Peace, its unsavory byproduct, Stagnation.
In a time when most of our wants are provided, there is little need for the heroes, the artists, the great thinkers and innovators.
As they recede into the shadows, Idleness, Apathy, and Lassitude come to the forefront.
Peace has become boring, bland, unchallenging -- Stagnant.
Now our attention turns to the quick fix, the instant celebrity, the fad, the one-nighter, the current buzz.
There is no room for depth.
If you are a passionate soul, you must wait for a better time to find kindred spirits.
In these times, they are only curious legends, bas-relief, dead poets.

The only bit that made sense was the changing lines!  That I'm so terrified of getting it wrong that I don't learn to do it right. 

so I don't think asking such questions is particularly helpful...  The hexagram messages by themselves lend themselves to contemplation, just not necessarily in relation to this particular question right now.

I'd welcome thought from more experienced users!

[Storm Rider]

Another thing with the interpretation is that you do not have to understand the entire message as a solution to what it was you asked.

Maybe it is just one line in the six line situation analysis that leaps out out you, as that is one of your current issues, and something that may impact on how you deal with that situation. Maybe that is enough to get you thinking of a different way to deal with your situation than how you have been seeing it.

When we cannot see the answers, sometimes it is because we ask the same question over and over. By doing or assuming the opposite can help us look at it differently. Sometimes, a word, phrase or passage can help with this.

[Trustandlove]

Now that makes more sense!

[Voyager]

Have to agree with SR on that one, it's the changing line which carries the import of it all.
 To be honest I think should in my questions seems to bring me to the answers that help, but it's getting the question out there in a way which is meaningful to you which is important.
 Only you know the deep essence to your question and what the phrasing means to you.
Sometimes I've strayed from my own advice and asked very direct questions, which it answers with no problem in interpretation. And sometimes I've got a very firm shut up and stop asking me the same question response, it always seems to know when you've gone too far.!! xx

[StillStanding]

Question: "How should I proceed now that my wife has moved out?"

Cast Hexagram:
51 - Fifty-One
Chên / Thunder

Thunder echoes upon Thunder, commanding reverence for its father Heaven:
In awe of Heaven's majestic power, the Superior Person looks within and sets his life in order.
Thunder mingles with startled screams of terror for a hundred miles around.
As the people nervously laugh at their own fright, the devout presents the sacrificial chalice with nary a drop of wine spilt.
Deliverance

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

A thunderbolt of Cosmic judgement crashes to earth.
For the common person, it's just a momentary fright soon forgotten, its warning unfathomed and unheeded.
But to one who understands its significance, this thunder is a signal to repent.
Centering the Self, seeking balance, the enlightened person will respect and align himself with this Higher Power, while his fellows remain subject to the whims of every passing storm.

Changing Lines:

There are Two Changing Lines (line 2 and line 5).
The Upper Line applies.

Hexagram Fifty-One/Line Five:

Others run in confusion and terror from the violent thunderstorm.
Fully aware of the danger, you keep to the task that must be done.

Transformed Hexagram:

58 - Fifty-Eight
Tui / Empowering
The joyous Lake spans on and on to the horizon:
The Superior Person renews and expands his Spirit through heart-to-heart exchanges with others.

Success if you stay on course.

SITUATION ANALYSIS:

This is the sign of true companionship.
The principals in this situation exchange energy, ideas and feelings, constantly invigorating and encouraging each other to new heights of Spiritual achievement and Self-discovery.
This exchange is not for the glory of the Team, but for furthering the process of each individual's 'Te', or pure potentiality.

EDIT:
If I read this right, i should respect and align myself with my Higher Power -- continue to Stand? -- while my wife "remain(s) subject to the whims of every passing storm." The changing lines also say "Others run in confusion and terror from the violent thunderstorm. Fully aware of the danger, you keep to the task that must be done." That sounds like my wife's state of mind right now...

As for the transformed hexagram, I should "exchange energy, ideas and feelings, constantly invigorating and encouraging (...) to new heights of Spiritual achievement and Self-discovery". Do you think this refers to our little community, or to my wife?

[Mermaid]

I have had the same experience as V; if you ask it a silly question, or insist too much, you get a telling off. You can, carefully, ask a direct question (will...) and the answers will be there. Sometimes they are so amazing, I remember them for years!

On the other hand, not all the focus is in the changing lines. Sometimes we don't get a changing line. This line links two hexagrams, the second following from the advice of the first. The meat is in the hexagrams.

[Voyager]

general question
How do you get your readings onto here? i've tried to do it from the website and it won't let me copy and paste??
PS Mermaid.....fight you on the changing lines...(except when there isn't one!!)  10 rounds, loser gets to buy all the drinks!!xxx

[Trustandlove]

I copied mine onto a word processing document first, then from there to here.  It sounds convoluted, but that way I get a copy to look at when I need to as well. 

And I do think that I may have got a telling-off with that last round, as in "don't use this for such trivial things, this really doesn't matter in the scheme of things..."

[StillStanding]

general question
How do you get your readings onto here? i've tried to do it from the website and it won't let me copy and paste??
PS Mermaid.....fight you on the changing lines...(except when there isn't one!!)  10 rounds, loser gets to buy all the drinks!!xxx

I haven't had any problems with copying and pasting from the website. Maybe it's a browser issue? I'm using Firefox...