A Brief History of the I Ching
The I Ching is a philosophical system which dates back to ancient Chinese civilization. Though the exact origin of the I Ching system is unknown, legend tells us that it was originally given to Fu Hsi, a Chinese sage who was that country's first emperor, having united all the Chinese people for the first time. This same Fu Hsi is also credited with bringing the Chinese people out of the evolutionary stage of the hunter and gatherer and into the new agricultural age.
Legend further states that Fu Hsi found the eight trigrams on the shell of a tortoise, and from these eight "trigrams," a stack of three lines, each of which have specific attributes relative to the Earth, Mankind, and Heaven, he derived the sixty-four line figures that the Chinese call "kua."
The system was further refined by "King" Wen, who was imprisoned in 1143 by the emperor tyrant Chou Shin. During his confinement, King Wen reinterpreted the names of the kua and changed the order first established by Fu Hsi.
Wen remained in prison until his oldest son, Yu, gathered together an army and overthrew Chou Shin. As the new emperor, Yu released his father from prison and bestowed upon him the title "King;" and thus, Wen was forever after known as "King Wen," though he never ruled China, himself.
After the death of King Yu, King Wen's younger son Tan, also known as the Duke of Chou, succeeded to the throne in place of King Yu's heir, his thirteen year old son. Tan had been thoroughly instructed in the I Ching by his father, and it was he who interpreted the meanings of each of the individual lines of the I Ching. It was at this point, around 1109 BC, that the I Ching was considered complete.
So profound was the wisdom of King Wen and his sons, wisdom which was gained through the study of the I Ching, that they were able to provide so strong a foundation for their dynasty that it lasted for 800 years, the longest in the history of China.