Confucius’s discourse on the I Ching, concentrated in Yi Zhuan, formed a distinctive I Ching thought system, whose core can be summarized in three progressive levels.

Foundation Level: Virtue as the Basis

Confucius explicitly proposed the thought of “replacing divination with virtue,” believing that “without constant virtue, one will bear shame.” Those lacking enduring virtue find no meaning even in obtaining auspicious hexagrams. He placed moral cultivation above divination and prediction.