About me

How it started
My fascination with the Yijing started with an article which was published in the Dutch magazine Onkruid ('Weed') at the end of 1982. This article was my first encounter with the Yi, I was sixteen years of age, and the article told me about things which were totally new to me, but somehow resonated within me. At that time the solid foundation of the Yi and its basics intruiged me the most. The Yi showed me that everything is connected and that everything can have meaning if you want to see it. There is no such thing as coincidence, and I found that wonderful.

But I noticed it was very difficult to find more detailed information about the Yijing. Dutch books which told about the background and philosophy were hardly available and other languages also did not give me what I was looking for. But this only increased my fascination for the book: A book which is read by thousands over the world, surely there must be more material about it. It motivated me to study the Yijing in every detail.

Courses, first book, Chinese, and Chinese books
My knowledge and experience kept growing, and in 1989 friends requested me to give my first Yijing courses. I could not find a good book for the course, therefore I wrote one myself.This is published in 1996 as De I Tjing in ons leven by Schors, Amsterdam. I also started to study Chinese because the material here in the West is limited and one-sided, and I realized that if I wanted to comprehend the Yijing in the Chinese way I would at least need a basic understanding of the Chinese language, especially its writing.

In the next few years my enthusiasm for the Yijing gave inspiration for two Yijing magazines.They did not exist for long, but gave me contacts which are still of great influence to me. In the meantime my interest shifted from rational systems to the ancient methods of divination, and from there I explored many areas which are related to the Yijing, like quantum mechanics, Feng Shui, Baguazhang, enz. Also other Chinese writings like the Daodejing, the Mengzi, Zhuangzi, Lünyu, Xunzi, Huainanzi, Shijing, Shujing, Bohudong, Tuibeitu etc. etc. etc. were very inspiring. Especially the Han dynasty (206BC - 220) with all its mantic techniques which arose at that time intrigues me very much.

More publications and study
In 1999 my small book De I Tjing Stap voor Stap was published by Ankh-Hermes Deventer, for the real beginner. In 2000 and 2001 I designed a Yijing agenda for publisher Schors in Amsterdam. For the republished edition of Richard Wilhelm's Verandering en Duur in de I Tjing (Ankh-Hermes) I wrote the introduction.

My Yijing study still continues, and between everything else I am working on my own translation. Also other books, for instance about Yijing astrology (based on the original Heluo Lishu document), translating the Yilin, 'The Forest of Changes' (4096 poems in old Chinese - argh!) are upcoming. I have contacts with Yijing experts all over the world , and my (growing) knowledge of the Chinese language enables me to follow the latest developments. I give consultations, every now and then a lecture or a seminar, but I also pay a lot of time and care to my nine year old son Irian, who in all his being and doing renders the Yijing effortlessly.

My main website is located here.

Contact
Harmen Mesker
Staverenstraat 101324 BV Almere
The Netherlands
tel. (+31) 36 - 533 95 05
e-mail: harmen@i-tjingcentrum.nl

MSN Messenger: hmesker@hotmail.com
Skype: hmesker
ICQ: 7747844
Yahoo: hmesker