Chinese Fortune Stick Reading of the Day
~ Stick # 33 ~
You do not see the valuables within your grasp,
So you turn around and around in a vain search.
Relax and wait for the arrival of another,
For they can tell you where the treasure is hidden.
TRADITIONAL INTERPRETATION
Better prospects are much closer than you realize, and fortune will aid
you in finding them, so you do not need to spend so much time looking
for new opportunities yourself. Personally, you have very little to
worry about, and your family will also be blessed with good luck if you
take the time to care for them. It is not a good time to move against
others, to travel, or to invest in risky enterprises - maintain your
current position instead.
REFLECTION
Sometimes we are too close to things to see their true value. We become
myopic. So we spend time looking for what we already have, searching for
that which is not lost.
~ Stick # 15 ~
The hill walker faints from the heat of the sun,
So Nature's curse will soon strike you down too.
Like a bird driven by predators from its nest,
You'll only find solace in the depths of the forest.
TRADITIONAL INTERPRETATION
As a bird seeks shelter in the forest, you will encounter hardship and
troubles at first, but all your troubles will eventually be over. Do not
seek revenge on people who have hurt you, nor should you attempt false
reconciliations; simply live and let live. Be cautious about your
personal safety, as there is a chance of an accident. Existing
relationships will grow stronger, but few new ones are likely to be
formed soon. Your work will go well, and you may be offered a promotion.
REFLECTION
Troubles have come upon you. Perhaps you have overstretched yourself or
have been unlucky. Your ordinary, settled way of life has been turned
upside down. Do not pretend this is not happening. It is. What you need
to do is learn from this. Go deep within yourself, go deep within your
own faith, and find at the center of your own dark forest the strength
to recover, to learn, and to start again. It is there.
~ Stick # 19 ~
On the kitchen floor the kitten lies,
Lazily warming herself in the afternoon sun.
Graceful animals always bring good luck,
And should be protected whenever possible.
TRADITIONAL INTERPRETATION
This is a very good fortune, and it predicts great luck in anything you
do. Your best path to happiness, however, is through romance: you will
only ultimately find yourself by looking in another. Do not allow
apparent obstacles to deter you - remember that love eventually finds a
way. Foreign travel will probably be extremely successful.
REFLECTION
The imagery here echoes an older poem in which a lovesick soldier on
duty in the cold north recalls his lover's kitten, relaxed, warm, and
content in her house in the south. In his mind he travels to be with
her. This poem says you should appreciate what you have and, if you
leave it, treasure it and seek to be reunited as soon as possible. You
may be striving to achieve great things, but really you would like to be
your beloved's cat!
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Each day I sit down, take up the cup of sticks and ask the same
question, “What does the Keen community need to know or hear today?” I
shake the cup until a stick (or 2 or 3…) falls out. I then post the
stick number and the meanings for you to get what you can out of them.
The sticks themselves are a form of I-Ching. There are a total of 64
sticks in the set that I use* with a poem and small interpretation/story
to go along with each stick. The poems, meanings and reflections are
meant to be read and (as a good friend of mine once said) marinated in.
In our culture, we’ve grown accustomed to getting instant
gratification. In other words, we’re used to everything being given to
us with little or no work on our parts. These readings are the exact
opposite of that type of attitude.
Chinese Fortune sticks are meant to make us slow down and reflect on
what is being said. As each sticks’ meaning can be profoundly personal
to each person who reads them, it’s more important for you to read them
rather than have someone give you a watered down version. These
readings are meant to sing to a level of your consciousness and bring
you a measure of peace, or at least enlightenment.
The best way to get the most you can out of these readings is to
approach them with an open mind. Before sitting down to read that
morning’s reading, make some quiet time for yourself. Sit still for a
moment and clear your mind. Silence the chatter in your head and take a
few deep breaths, letting them out slowly. Once you feel yourself slow
down a little (or a lot), read through the reading of the day. Go over
it a few times if you feel the need. Then take a moment, sit back and
think about what that reading means for you. Some will be very
straightforward; others require a bit more thinking. Either way, let
the reading from the sticks guide you that day on the decisions or
experiences you have. These aren’t meant to tell you what to think, but
rather to help you look at things in a different way or to allow you to
access truths you already have.
If you have any questions, feel free to email me!!
* written by Zhao Xiaomin & Martin Palmer