秦代易學思想的發展，主要表現為秦始皇君臣對《周易》及其思想的借鑒和發揮。秦始皇統一天下，對《周易》不加焚毀，且頗為喜愛和重視，這一方面是因為《周易》乃卜筮之書，而宗教巫術等神秘主義的東西在秦地一直較為活躍，秦始皇本人對此亦深信不疑；另一方面也是更重要的方面，則是為《周易》的宇宙觀等思想內涵和整體思維方式合於秦始皇的思想性格與政治需要。秦朝的許多社會政治思想和措施往往是通過對《周易》的直接取資表現出來的。在秦始皇焚書坑儒之後，眾多學派都將《周易》作為護身符，將易學作為避風港和藉以表達自己思想主張的工具，易學幾乎成為顯學，其包容性、超越性和影響力進一步增加，並從此開始了一個以易學為中心而綜合、融通、發展諸子百家之學的新時代。

　　　　　The development of I Ching thought in the Qin Dynasty was greatly aided by the patronage of Emperor Qin Shihuang. When Qin Shihuang unified China and marked his new dynasty with a burning of all previous books and records, the I Ching was one of the few works that was spared. This was due not only to the fact that sorcery, divination and other esoteric practices were very popular in the Qin region, but also that the world view and mode of thought expressed in the I Ching were in line with his character and political needs. Indeed, many of the social and political measures and policies of the Qin Dynasty find their basis in the thinking of the I Ching. In the climate that prevailed after the book burnings and live burial of scholars initiated by Qin Shihuang, many schools took up the I Ching as a protective amulet, using the language of the I Ching to express their own ideas. In this manner, the I Ching became a prominent subject of study, and in turn gave rise to a variety of new schools that took the I Ching as their core philosophy.