John Minford named his studio in Australia San Quan Tang, or Hall of Three Dogs, after his three dogs Nelson, Rusty and Maisie. Photo provided to China Daily

British translator says consulting classic tome helped him to finish the tough job

When John Minford found himself several years past deadline for publishing his translation of I Ching, the classic Chinese text also known as the Book of Changes, naturally he consulted the book itself.

"Always it just said slow down, I've waited for 2,500 years I can wait a few more'," the 69-year-old Sinologist and literary translator says. It took him 12 years to translate the Chinese classic, publishing it in October.

"When I started the translation, I had no idea how long it was going to take. As the years went by, I realized it was a very deep book. And it is not just an ordinary book; it is a spirit. It's not like a novel, it is a book you want to use in your life," says Minford, who has translated other classic works including The Dream of Red Mansion, or The Story of the Stone, which took him 16 years.

In a chapter headed "How to Consult the I Ching", it reads: "The diviner should choose a clean and quiet place as the place of divination, with a table in the center of the room, facing south, not too close to a wall. The table should be about 5 feet long (1.5 meters) and about 3 feet wide (91 cm). Before it is set an incense burner "

Minford says it doesn't matter if these rules are followed or not, as long as the diviner stays completely sincere and truthful.

Divining involves throwing three ancient coins from the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), and although he doesn't follow the rites exactly, the British translator says: "I'm very respectful, very sincere. It really doesn't matter which coins you use. You could use the euro. What matters is your state of mind."

I Ching uses a type of divination called cleromancy, which produces apparently random numbers. Four numbers between six and nine are turned into a hexagram, which can then be looked up in the book for an interpretation.

The first stage of Minford's translation was to read more and to explore and study the book. But understanding I Ching is difficult, he says.

"It was overwhelming at the beginning. I was sometimes at the point of giving up. But in the end the book helped me. Once I asked I Ching if the translation is a good thing to be doing. Is there a need for it? Am I the right person? It gave me some warnings not to be too proud. But it also told me to continue and try to be humble."

As he continued with his work, he says, he really tried to reach deep down into himself.

To work with I Ching, people have to put aside all pride and intellectual ways of thinking, just enter in themselves, he explains. "I believe I Ching is just a mirror, it is you yourself to understand your life and destiny."

In 2002, when he finished translating Sun Tzu's classic The Art of War, Minford says he was asked if there were any other famous Chinese books he wanted to translate. "Without thinking I just said, 'Yes, I Ching is one of my favorite books.' The next day I got an e-mail from a publisher saying, 'When can we send you a contract?'"

Minford, who since 2006 has been professor of Chinese at the Australian National University School of Culture, History and Language, was in his 20s in the 1960s, during the "days of hippy culture", when everyone was consulting I Ching, including Bob Dylan and the Beatles. There was a translation of I Ching done by a German, and all of his friends had a copy, he recalls, adding that they consulted it all the time, sometimes too much, like asking what they should eat for breakfast or where they should go for a walk.