What if a nation's most important statement about freedom wasn't about politics, but about how reality actually works? Long before 1776, ancient China created its own kind of declaration of independence. This wasn't a document written to a foreign king, but to something much more powerful: the seeming control of fate and the confusion of an unpredictable world. This document is the great treatise i ching, known in Chinese as the Da Zhuan. It is the philosophical heart of the ancient Book of Changes. This text doesn't declare independence for a nation, but for the human spirit itself. It establishes our basic right to take part in the flow of life, not as helpless victims but as aware co-creators. This article reveals the Da Zhuan as this foundational charter, a document that explains the core values of the Chinese view on change (bian) and serves as a deep source of cultural confidence, as important today in late 2025 as it was thousands of years ago.

Understanding the Ten Wings

To understand the importance of the great treatise i ching, we must first understand where it fits. The I Ching, or Book of Changes, is not a single work. It has two different parts: a core text and a set of deep commentaries. Think of it as a constitution and its most important legal explanations.

The first part, the ancient core, is the Jing. This section contains the 64 hexagrams—symbols made of six solid or broken lines—along with their names and brief, often mysterious judgment texts. For centuries, this was the main tool for fortune-telling.

The second part, the Zhuan, is a collection of seven commentaries traditionally grouped into ten chapters, or the "Ten Wings" (Shi Yi). These wings were written much later, during a time of great philosophical growth in China. Their purpose was to lift the I Ching from a manual of fortune-telling to a text of deep wisdom.

• The I Ching (Book of Changes)
  • Core Text (Jing): The 64 Hexagrams and their judgments.
  • Commentaries (Zhuan): The "Ten Wings" that explain the core text.
    • The Great Treatise (Da Zhuan): The philosophical heart.

Among these, The Great Treatise (Da Zhuan, also called the Xi Ci Zhuan) is widely recognized as the most important. Traditionally connected to Confucius or his direct intellectual followers, this connection gave the I Ching huge philosophical importance, transforming it into a classic equal to any of the world's great wisdom texts. It is here, in the Da Zhuan, that the I Ching's declaration of human power is most strongly expressed.

The Declaration's Core Articles

Just as the American Declaration of Independence laid out certain basic rights and obvious truths, The Great Treatise explains the fundamental principles of change. It establishes a new agreement between humanity and the cosmos. Let's examine its core "articles," the foundational truths upon which this new relationship is built.

Article I: Universal Creative Force

The first and most basic truth is that the universe is not a static, finished object but a living, breathing, and constantly creative process. The Great Treatise gives this principle a name and a voice in one of its most famous passages:

生生之謂易
shēng shēng zhī wèi yì

This translates to "Production and reproduction, this is what is called Change." It is a radical statement. It declares that the basic nature of the cosmos (Yi, or Change) is endless generation. The universe is not something that was created; it is something that is eternally creating. This principle frees the human mind from the idea of a fixed and finished world. If the very fabric of reality is constant, generative transformation, then staying the same is an illusion and every moment is full of new potential. This is the obvious truth upon which all other articles of this declaration rest.

Article II: Order Within Change

If change is constant, does that mean life is nothing but random chaos? The second article of the treatise declares independence from this fear. It states that while change is everywhere, it is not random. It has a deep, recognizable order and pattern. The text lays out a breathtaking cosmic map, starting from a state of undifferentiated unity and unfolding into the beautiful complexity of the world.

This process is often visualized as a flow:

Wu Ji (Non-polar) → Taiji (Supreme Polarity) → Yin & Yang (Two Primary Forces) → Four Phenomena → Eight Trigrams (Bagua)

The Taiji, or Great Ultimate, is the source of all things. It gives birth to the two primary forces, Yin (receptive, dark, passive) and Yang (active, light, creative). Their dynamic interaction generates all phenomena, which are categorized and symbolized by the eight fundamental trigrams (Bagua). These trigrams are the building blocks of the 64 hexagrams, each representing a specific archetypal situation. This "article" is a declaration that the universe has a language. Change has a grammar. It is complex, yes, but it is not meaningless noise. It can be studied, understood, and navigated.

Article III: Humanity as Participant

This is the most revolutionary article in the declaration, the one that truly establishes human liberty. The Great Treatise elevates humanity to a position of cosmic importance, creating a trinity of powers known as the sancai: Heaven, Earth, and Humanity. Heaven provides the creative impulse (the patterns of time), and Earth provides the material substance (the forms of space). Humanity, standing between them, is the conscious agent whose role is to complete the process.

We are not helpless subjects tossed about by the whims of Heaven and Earth. We are their partners. Our "basic right" is the freedom—and responsibility—to understand the patterns of change and to act with wisdom and virtue within them. This is the ultimate source of the cultural confidence embedded in this worldview. We are not passive victims of fate, waiting for a pre-written destiny to unfold. We are active co-creators, given the consciousness to perceive the flow of the Dao and the power to align our actions with it, thereby shaping our own future.

Independence from Fate

To fully appreciate the empowering nature of The Great Treatise, we must understand what it declares independence from. It is a rebellion against the tyranny of a fixed destiny, a worldview that makes human effort and choice meaningless. The treatise doesn't deny that there are powerful forces at play beyond our control—the "mandate of Heaven"—but it fundamentally redefines our relationship to them. It replaces the despair of fatalism with the liberty of meaningful action.

Tyranny vs. Liberty

The contrast between the two worldviews is stark. One is a prison of determinism; the other is a field of potential. The Great Treatise offers a key to unlock the cell door, not by promising we can control the weather, but by teaching us how to read the clouds and build a sturdy shelter. The following table clarifies the profound difference in perspective.

This shift is psychologically huge. The fatalistic view breeds apathy and despair. Why bother trying if the outcome is already set? The Great Treatise, however, insists that our actions have cosmic impact. It teaches that by understanding the nature of the present situation—the "hexagram" we are in—we can act in a way that guides the unfolding energy toward a more favorable outcome. This is the essence of its declaration of independence from fate.

Living the Declaration

This philosophy is not merely an abstract intellectual exercise. For thousands of years, the principles of The Great Treatise have seeped into the cultural DNA, fostering a mindset of profound resilience and strategic depth. It provides a practical toolkit for navigating the inescapable reality of change.

Ancient Text to Modern Mindset

The worldview expressed in the treatise cultivates several key traits that are essential for navigating the complexities of modern life, from corporate boardrooms to personal relationships.

• Adaptability: The core principle that change is constant and generative fosters a deep-seated flexibility. It is the confidence to bend without breaking, knowing that every ending is also a beginning. You don't fight the current; you learn to steer within it.
• Strategic Patience: The treatise emphasizes the importance of timing (shi). There is a time to advance and a time to retreat, a time to speak and a time to be silent. This cultivates the wisdom to wait for the right moment and the courage to act decisively when it arrives, avoiding both rash action and fearful paralysis.
• Holistic Thinking: By revealing the interconnected dance of Yin and Yang, the text trains the mind to see systems, not just isolated incidents. It encourages us to look for the underlying patterns and connections, to understand that a problem in one area may be a symptom of an imbalance in the whole.

An Experiential Approach

Let's ground this in a common experience. Imagine a significant professional setback—a project fails, a promotion is denied, or we face a layoff.

Viewed through a fatalistic lens, the narrative is one of victimhood: "This is a disaster. It's over for me. I'm just unlucky." This perspective drains energy and closes off possibilities. It is a surrender.

Now, let's re-frame it through the lens of The Great Treatise. We would see this event not as a final verdict, but as a "hexagram" in motion—a dynamic situation with specific energies at play. We would ask different questions: What forces are at work here? What is waning (the old role) and what is now growing (new opportunities)? Is this a time for quiet retreat and learning (like Hexagram 33, Retreat) or a time to seek new alliances (like Hexagram 8, Holding Together)? What is the wise action now that aligns with the developing trend to guide it toward a better outcome? This isn't naive optimism; it is strategic engagement. This shift in questioning is the very practice of personal independence—the move from being a victim of the story to an author of the next chapter.

An Enduring Declaration

The Great Treatise of the I Ching is far more than an ancient commentary on a book of divination. It is a timeless and profound philosophical document—a declaration of independence for the human spirit. It reframes our relationship with the universe, transforming us from helpless subjects of a predetermined fate into dignified, responsible partners in the grand, creative unfolding of the cosmos.

By explaining the principles of constant, orderly, and participatory change, the treatise provides an empowering framework for navigating the currents of life. It is this framework that has served as a cornerstone of cultural identity and a source of deep, lasting confidence for generations. It declares that while we cannot always control what happens to us, we have the basic right and the inherent capacity to choose how we participate—and that, in the end, is the only freedom that truly matters.