The three-coin method (金钱卦 jīn qián guà, "coin hexagram") is the most widely used technique for consulting the Yi Jing today. Developed during the Han dynasty or shortly after as a simpler alternative to the yarrow stalk method, it reduces the casting time from thirty or more minutes to under five. While it sacrifices the yarrow method's unequal probability distribution -- and with it some philosophical nuance -- the coin method produces perfectly valid readings and has been the standard practice of millions of diviners for nearly two millennia. In this lesson, you will learn the complete coin method from setup through recording, work through a full casting example, and understand exactly how and why the coin method differs from the yarrow stalk method.
Overlap note: For advanced study of multiple divination methods compared in depth, see the Yi Jing Divination Methods (易经占卜) course, which devotes full modules to each method including historical variants and regional adaptations.