~ Stick # 5 ~
A gale tore apart the garden's flowers,
Leaving only broken plants in every bed.
Kind folk took pity upon the shattered lawn,
Planting new seeds for its rebirth.
Leaving only broken plants in every bed.
Kind folk took pity upon the shattered lawn,
Planting new seeds for its rebirth.
TRADITIONAL INTERPRETATION
Be cautious in your plans because they can easily go wrong at this point. Disaster lurks just around the corner, but can be avoided with forethought and discretion. Your personal relationships may be difficult for a while, and you may have business difficulties, but your friends will eventually come through for you. Take care over details, particularly in selecting medical treatment or planning a journey.
REFLECTION
Gardening was one of the great arts of China - a visible attempt by humanity to impose order without destroying the overarching order of the Tao (Nature). This image reminds us that even the most lovely of things, done for the best of reasons, can be destroyed by the very forces we are trying to work with. But the image goes on to show that after such a disaster you must start again. Do not give in - you have to carry on.
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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