What is Yi?

From uncertainty to a decision of your own | Listen · Illuminate · Walk beside you

Career, family, relationships, education, or what comes next in life—Yi helps you see your situation clearly and make a decision that is truly your own.

With the I Ching as a mirror, Yi does not decide for you; it helps you think your decision through.

From uncertainty to a decision—and a record you can revisit

Listen

Begin with the uncertainty as you first felt it, preserving the question that truly mattered at that moment.

Illuminate

Use an opening symbol, a hexagram, the I Ching text and attributed commentary as new angles for separating facts, options and constraints.

Walk beside you

Each session becomes a dated record you can revisit, so your future self can understand why you made that decision.

What does one Yi session preserve?

After a session, the question, opening symbol, hexagram and reflection stay in one record and appear in both Records and Journal. If you begin without writing a question, the opening symbol, hexagram and date are still preserved.

Your question stays on your side

Personal questions and on-device interpretation are not sent to an external model. When you choose cross-device sync, the service receives only end-to-end encrypted content and cannot read the record itself.

Questions about Yi

About Yi

What is Yi?

Yi is an I Ching classical-text study tool and a decision-reflection journal you can revisit over time. Its promise is: “From uncertainty to a decision of your own | Listen · Illuminate · Walk beside you.” Career, family, relationships, education, or what comes next in life—Yi helps you see your situation clearly and make a decision that is truly your own.

How does Ask guide me from the home screen?

Tap Ask on the home screen to begin; Siri, quick actions, and widgets can open the same guided journey. Yi takes you one step at a time: write or skip your question, pause, choose an opening image, confirm a casting method, form the hexagram, and read the interpretation. Each screen handles one thing. Yi preselects the method you used last time, and you can change it whenever you wish. When you finish, the image, hexagram, and anything you wrote stay together in one record, ready to reopen from Journal and continue reflecting.

Will Yi decide for me?

Yi uses the I Ching as a mirror, placing facts, options, and constraints together for reflection while the final decision remains yours. For important health, legal, or financial matters, also rely on sound facts and qualified professional advice.

Opening Images and Casting

What does an opening image do in the guided Ask journey?

After a quiet pause, Yi invites you to choose a modern image as a prompt for viewing the situation from another angle. You decide whether it feels relevant. The image supports reflection; it does not reach a conclusion for you.

Does the opening image affect the hexagram?

No. The opening image, casting, and interpretation are three separate paths. The image offers a reflection angle; the hexagram is formed through the method you choose; the interpretation begins with the completed hexagram and the classical text. Neither the image nor the wording of your question selects the hexagram.

How does iPhone or iPad carry traditional casting methods?

Yi preserves the key formation rules of the coin and yarrow-stalk methods on iPhone and iPad; the quick journey uses touch or gentle movement to complete the cast. Plum Blossom can begin with the current time, two numbers, a longer Chinese sentence, or something in view and its direction. The device changes how you take part, while the six lines, changing lines, and hexagram structure still follow the chosen method. This consistency concerns formation rules and structure, not a guaranteed outcome or the feel of physical tools.

How does Yi keep the casting process independent?

Each hexagram follows the method you choose. The opening image and the wording of your question do not select it, and the result is not changed to match an expectation. The completed hexagram stays with your record for classical study, reflection, and later review.

How should I choose among the coin, yarrow-stalk, and Plum Blossom methods?

The coin and yarrow-stalk methods both use the quick guided journey while following their own formation rules. Plum Blossom can begin with the current time, two numbers, a longer Chinese sentence, or something in view and its direction. You choose inside the Ask journey; Yi preselects your last method, and you can change it at any time. Choose the method you are willing to complete attentively and record honestly.

Can I make another record for the same question?

Yes, but there is usually no need to restart immediately for a different result. First write down what you understood and your next step. After you act, open the same record from Journal and add what changed. If the situation itself changes, a new record can be more useful.

Reading Across Traditions

Let classical texts illuminate one another

Why does Yi also include the Bible and Buddhist texts?

People from different faith backgrounds all face responsibility, relationships, suffering, waiting, and choice. Yi offers Christians who read the Bible, Buddhists who read Buddhist texts, and readers curious about other classics a space for study and personal reflection that respects each source and preserves its differences. Begin with the text you know, then choose whether to open another perspective.

What does “reading across traditions” mean here?

Yi currently presents Bible–I Ching and Buddhist texts–I Ching as separate reading paths. Begin with the original text and context, then consider points of illumination, differences that should remain, and questions for reflection before recording your own response. Comparative reading is optional, and you may stay with the text most familiar to you.

How can a Christian use Yi?

You can read the complete Bible in Chinese and English, search it, follow a reading plan, add highlights and notes, and view comparative readings with the I Ching. The Bible keeps its own faith context, while the I Ching perspective serves as a mirror for reflecting on a situation. Prayer, church life, and pastoral counsel retain their own essential place.

How can a Buddhist use Yi?

You can read selected complete Buddhist texts with clear sources, search them, follow a reading plan, add highlights and notes, and view I Ching comparisons where material is available. Buddhist texts keep their own teaching and practice context, while the I Ching perspective supports observation and reflection. Daily practice and trusted teachers retain their own essential place.

How does Yi respect different faith traditions?

Yi preserves each text’s original wording, context, and faith tradition, and presents comparative prompts separately from personal notes. For questions of doctrine and faith, return to the relevant scriptures and a trusted religious community.

Classical Texts and Readings

Where do Yi’s classical texts come from?

The Chinese text of the Zhouyi is transcribed character by character from Zhonghua Book Company’s Zhouyi parallel classical-and-modern edition. Commentary identifies authors, schools, and sources wherever possible. The Bible and Buddhist texts also include edition and source information so you can check the originals.

How does AI support a reading?

Classical texts and historical commentary retain their source wording. Yi’s supporting readings are grounded in source editions and attributed material, completed on your device, and designed so you can return to the original text at any time.

Why do scholars offer different readings?

Different eras, schools, and commentators focus on different questions, leaving a range of interpretations. Yi preserves those differences and their sources as material for comparative study, helping you form your own understanding.

Records, Sync, and Privacy

Where are my questions, records, and notes stored?

Your content is stored on your device first, and you can use Yi without signing in. Your questions, reflections, and notes belong to you and are kept as your private material.

Does my question go to a cloud AI service?

No. Any guided step, supporting reading, or review prompt that uses your question runs on your device. Your question is never sent to a cloud model.

How are records protected when I sync?

After you sign in and choose to sync, records are encrypted on your device before moving between your devices; the service stores only encrypted content. You can also export your data or delete records from your device and sync through Settings.

Subscriptions and Use

Can I use Yi without a subscription?

Yes. Basic classical-text study, casting, records, source text, and attributed commentary are free. On supported devices, a Simplified Chinese on-device reading is also available without a subscription. Each account can sync up to 20 encrypted records for free. Members have unlimited sync plus Traditional Chinese, English, and Japanese on-device readings, intermediate and advanced courses, some long-form content, long-term reviews, and collection features. See the in-app subscription page for current details.

What is the difference between Yi Plus and Yi Master?

Yi Plus supports long-term study with unlimited encrypted sync, intermediate and advanced courses, complete long-form stories, multilingual deep reading, and long-term review tools. Yi Master adds monthly and annual collection reports, priority service, and supporter benefits. Current benefits and prices are shown on the in-app subscription page.

How do I restore, manage, or cancel a subscription?

Choose Restore Purchases on Yi’s subscription page. To change a plan, renew, or cancel, open the subscription settings for your Apple Account. After cancellation, paid benefits remain available until the current subscription period ends.