Chinese Fortune Stick Reading of the Day
~ Stick #54 ~
Reflections in rippling water,
Are constantly shifting, never the same.
In fate, though, everything is set,
And no advice can help the outcome.
TRADITIONAL INTERPRETATION
Like a reflection in water, your safety is not certain. You should take
precautions against possible dangers, and not embark on any risky
endeavors. In doing business, you will probably meet with many
obstructions, and it is not a good time to put new plans into effect.
Generally, things are likely to turn against you unless you keep tight
control. On the positive side, you should recover from illness easily,
and people missing from your life are likely to return soon.
REFLECTION
Chinese notions of fate and fortune set a clear line between that which
is fixed and that which is changeable. Certain aspects of fate, like
your date of birth or the kind of family you are born into, are fixed.
The rest is up to you. However, if there is some aspect of yourself
that makes you behave in a way you dislike, it is up to you to change.
Otherwise you will 'fate' yourself to be like that for the rest of your
life. Fate can keep you trapped. Your choice to change can set you
free.
**********************************************************
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