Guanyin fortune stick

55

Middle stick

Guanyin fortune stick 55: Bamboo Pipes Carrying Spring Water

A good father passes his worth to his son, the son to his grandson;
plenty of food and clothing comes from heaven alone.
Father and mother in the hall are happy and well;
eat when hungry, drink when thirsty, sleep when tired.

jadealmanac.com

The verdict

Joined bamboo carries spring water on without end; when a sensible person plans ahead, everything brings delight.

What it says to you

Picture spring water carried down the hillside in bamboo pipes, one length fitted to the next, so it never stops flowing. The poem fills the scene with a family that works: parents well and happy, children and grandchildren carrying on what is good, everyone eating, drinking and sleeping when they need to. It is a plain, contented sort of luck, and it depends on the joints holding. The things that make it last are continuity and looking ahead. Think about what you pass along and what you are building for later. Then check your own joins: a promise you meant to keep, a call to a parent, a plan written down.

The story behind the stick

Spring water led downhill through bamboo pipes, one section joined to the next so the flow never stops, is the image here. Temple editions attach the story of King Wu of Zhou taking the throne. King Wu carried on the purpose of his father, King Wen, and led the allied lords against the last Shang king. At the decisive battle, the Shang troops turned their weapons around, and the defeated king burned himself in his palace tower. King Wu then opened the Shang granaries to the poor, freed the imprisoned nobleman Jizi, honored the grave of the loyal minister Bigan, and turned his warhorses and oxen loose to show the fighting was over. A dynasty that would last for centuries began with a son finishing his father's work. The fortune is inherited and steady rather than sudden, which suits a middle lot.

Line by line

1. Worth passes from father to son to grandson. Readers take this as the core of the lot: good fortune that runs in a family line, kept going by each generation rather than seized once.

2. Food and clothing come in plenty, credited to heaven alone. Traditionally the line is read as a reminder that comfort is a gift to be grateful for, not a personal achievement to boast of.

3. The hall is the family home, and the two old trees named in the original are a classical way of saying father and mother. Their health and happiness is counted as the household's first blessing.

4. Eat when hungry, drink when thirsty, sleep when tired: the plainest picture of a life without strain. Readers take it as contentment, a sign that nothing needs forcing in this matter.

The original verse

父贤传子子传孙
衣食丰隆只靠天
堂上椿萱人快乐
饥饭渴饮困时眠

Seven characters a line, as printed in the BW Monastery edition.

Sources for the story: masterseanchan.com/guanyin-oracle/lot-55 (edition A: King Wu of Zhou Ascends the Throne); https://www.51chouqian.com/guanyinlingqian/55.html.

Optional: the temple way

At a temple the stick is not yours until two moon blocks agree: one flat side up and one round side up, a holy cup.

Confirm with the moon blocks

About stick 55

Is Guanyin stick 55 good or bad?

Stick 55, "Bamboo Pipes Carrying Spring Water", is a middle stick, a mixed stick, good with conditions. Joined bamboo carries spring water on without end; when a sensible person plans ahead, everything brings delight.

What does Guanyin stick 55 say about love?

The two of you are well matched.

What does Guanyin stick 55 say about money?

Investments go smoothly; business succeeds.

What does Guanyin stick 55 say about work?

Smooth going; studies go well.

Draw another stick , or for a straight yes or no, throw the moon blocks

Share on XFacebookPinterestWhatsApp

The verse follows the BW Monastery edition of the Guanyin set; the English rendering and reading are Jade Almanac's own. A drawn stick is a tradition and a prompt for reflection, not advice about health, money or the law.