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Moon Blocks
Moon blocks or ''jiaobei'' (also written as ''jiao bei'' etc. variants; ), also ''poe'' (from ; as used in the term " ''poe'' divination"), are wooden divination tools originating from China, which are used in pairs and thrown to seek divine guidance in the form of a yes or no question. They are made out of wood or bamboo and carved into a crescent shape. A pair of clam shells can also be used. Each block is round on one side (known as the ''yin'' side) and flat on the other (known as the ''yang'' side). It is one of the more commonly used items found in Chinese traditional religion and are used in temples and home shrines along with fortune sticks, both of which are often used together when requesting an answer from the Deities. Practice Moon blocks can be used separately to receive a straightforward answer, or they are accompanied by fortune sticks to clarify an oracle. When used alone, moon blocks are first purified by revolving the blocks around the incense burner three t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bowl And Jiaobei, Yueh Hai Ching Temple
A bowl is a typically round dish or container generally used for preparing, serving, or consuming food. The interior of a bowl is characteristically shaped like a spherical cap, with the edges and the bottom forming a seamless curve. This makes bowls especially suited for holding liquids and loose food, as the contents of the bowl are naturally concentrated in its center by the force of gravity. The exterior of a bowl is most often round but can be of any shape, including rectangular. The size of bowls varies from small bowls used to hold a single serving of food to large bowls, such as punch bowls or salad bowls, that are often used to hold or store more than one portion of food. There is some overlap between bowls, cups, and plates. Very small bowls, such as the tea bowl, are often called cups, while plates with especially deep wells are often called bowls. In many cultures bowls are the most common kind of vessel used for serving and eating food. Historically small bowls w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fuji (planchette Writing)
Fuji () is a method of "planchette writing", or "Automatic writing, spirit writing", that uses a suspended sieve or tray to guide a stick which writes Chinese characters in sand or incense ashes. Development Beginning around the Ming dynasty (1368-1644 CE), the ''fuji'' method and written characters changed from "support the sieve" (spirit-writing using a suspended sieve or winnowing tray) to "support the planchette" (directing a stick or stylus, typically made from a willow or peach branch, and roughly resembling a dowsing-rod). Vocabulary Chinese ''fuji'' spirit-writing involves some specialized vocabulary. ''Luan'' () "a mythical phoenix-like bird" is used in synonyms such as (, "support the phoenix"), ( "flying phoenix," and (, "descending phoenix"). The ''fuji'' process involves specialized participants. The two people (or rarely one) who hold the sieve or stylus are called (, "planchette hands"), only one of whom is ostensibly possessed by a Shen (Chinese religion), ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Inventions
China has been the source of many innovations, scientific discoveries and inventions. This includes the ''Four Great Inventions'': papermaking, the compass, gunpowder, and printing (both woodblock and movable type). The list below contains these and other inventions in ancient and modern China attested by archaeological or historical evidence, excluding prehistoric inventions of Neolithic and early Bronze Age China. The historical region now known as China experienced a history involving mechanics, hydraulics and mathematics applied to horology, metallurgy, astronomy, agriculture, engineering, music theory, craftsmanship, naval architecture and warfare. Use of the plow during the Neolithic period Longshan culture (c. 3000–c. 2000 BC) allowed for high agricultural production yields and rise of Chinese civilization during the Shang Dynasty (c. 1600–c. 1050 BC). Later inventions such as the multiple-tube seed drill and the heavy moldboard iron plow enabled China to s ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chinese Culture
Chinese culture () is one of the world's oldest cultures, originating thousands of years ago. The culture prevails across a large geographical region in East Asia and is extremely diverse and varying, with customs and traditions varying greatly between Province (China), provinces, Cities of China, cities, and even towns as well. The terms 'China' and the geographical landmass of 'China' have shifted across the centuries, with the last name being the Qing dynasty, Great Qing before the name 'China' became commonplace in modernity. Chinese civilization is historically considered a dominant culture of East Asia. With China being one of the Cradle of civilization#Ancient China, earliest ancient civilizations, Chinese culture exerts profound influence on the philosophy, virtue, etiquette, and traditions of Asia. Chinese characters, Chinese ceramics, ceramics, Chinese architecture, architecture, Chinese music, music, History of Chinese dance, dance, Chinese literature, literature, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Buddhism In Hong Kong
Buddhism is a major religion in Hong Kong and has been greatly influential in the traditional culture of its populace. Among the most prominent Buddhist temples in the city there are the Chi Lin Nunnery in Diamond Hill, built in the Tang Dynasty's architectural style; the Po Lin Monastery on Lantau Island, famous for the outdoor bronze statue, Tian Tan Buddha, which attracts a large number of visitors during the weekends and holidays. Buddhist organizations and temples in Hong Kong have long been involved in social welfare and education. The Hong Kong Buddhist Association with close to 10,000 members operates a dozen primary and secondary schools, and elderly homes as well as centres for youth and children in Hong Kong. It also runs the Hong Kong Buddhist Hospital, which was founded in 1971. Under the leadership of the former Chief Executive Tung Chee Hwa, the Hong Kong government formally recognised the influence of Buddhism in Hong Kong. In 1997 the government designated ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Divination
Divination (from Latin ''divinare'', 'to foresee, to foretell, to predict, to prophesy') is the attempt to gain insight into a question or situation by way of an occultic, standardized process or ritual. Used in various forms throughout history, diviners ascertain their interpretations of how a querent should proceed by reading signs, events, or omens, or through alleged contact or interaction with a supernatural agency. Divination can be seen as a systematic method with which to organize what appears to be disjointed, random facets of existence such that they provide insight into a problem at hand. If a distinction is to be made between divination and fortune-telling, divination has a more formal or ritualistic element and often contains a more social character, usually in a religious context, as seen in traditional African medicine. Fortune-telling, on the other hand, is a more everyday practice for personal purposes. Particular divination methods vary by culture and reli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tung Shing
''Tung Shing'' () is a Chinese divination guide and almanac. It consists primarily of a calendar based on the Chinese lunar year. History ''Tung Shing'' originated from ''Wong Lik'' (, the "Yellow Calendar"), which legend attributes to the Yellow Emperor. It has changed its form numerous times throughout the years during all the dynasties; the latest version was said to have been edited under the Qing dynasty and was called the ''Tung Shu'' (). ''Tung'' () means "all", ''Shu'' () means "book", so ''Tung Shu'' literally meant "All-knowing Book". However, in Cantonese Chinese and Mandarin Chinese, the pronunciation of the word for "book" is a homophone of a word for ''defeated'' (), so ''Tung Shu'' sounded like "Defeated in All Things" (). Therefore, the name was changed to ''Tung Shing'' (), which means "Victorious in All Things". Contents Most of the contents of the book deals with what is suitable to do on each day. Some Chinese families still follow these days for wedding ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Tangki
Tongji (; Tâi-lô: tâng-ki) or Jitong () is a Chinese folk religious practitioner, usually translated as a "spirit medium", "oracle", or "shaman". This word compounds ''tong'' "child; youth; boy servant" and ''ji'' "to divine" (cf. ''fuji'' "divination; planchette writing"). Regional variants include Hokkien ''tâng-ki'' and Cantonese Cantonese ( zh, t=廣東話, s=广东话, first=t, cy=Gwóngdūng wá) is a language within the Chinese (Sinitic) branch of the Sino-Tibetan languages originating from the city of Guangzhou (historically known as Canton) and its surrounding are ... ''gei-tung'' or ''san-daa'' . A ''tongji'' or ''jitong'' is a person believed to have been chosen by a particular '' shen'' "god; spirit" as the earthly vehicle for divine expression. The Chinese differentiate a '' wu'' "shaman; healer; spirit medium" who gains control of forces in the spirit world versus a ''tongji'' who appears to be entirely under the control of forces in the spirit ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Oracle
An oracle is a person or agency considered to provide wise and insightful counsel or prophetic predictions, most notably including precognition of the future, inspired by deities. As such, it is a form of divination. Description The word ''oracle'' comes from the Latin verb ''ōrāre'', "to speak" and properly refers to the priest or priestess uttering the prediction. In extended use, ''oracle'' may also refer to the ''site of the oracle'', and to the oracular utterances themselves, called ''khrēsmē'' 'tresme' (χρησμοί) in Greek. Oracles were thought to be portals through which the gods spoke directly to people. In this sense, they were different from seers (''manteis'', μάντεις) who interpreted signs sent by the gods through bird signs, animal entrails, and other various methods.Flower, Michael Attyah. ''The Seer in Ancient Greece.'' Berkeley: University of California Press, 2008. The most important oracles of Greek antiquity were Pythia (priestess to Apoll ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Omikuji
are random fortunes written on strips of paper at Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples in Japan. Literally "sacred lot", these are usually received by making a small offering and randomly choosing one from a box, hoping for the resulting fortune to be good. , coin-slot machines sometimes dispense . The predicts the person's chances of their hopes coming true, of finding a good match, or generally matters of health, fortune, life, etc. When the prediction is bad, it is a custom to fold up the strip of paper and attach it to a pine tree or a wall of metal wires alongside other bad fortunes in the temple or shrine grounds. A purported reason for this custom is a pun on the word for and the verb , the idea being that the bad luck will wait by the tree rather than attach itself to the bearer. In the event of the fortune being good, the bearer has two options: they can also tie it to the tree or wires so that the fortune has a greater effect or they can keep it for luck. are availa ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Kau Cim
''Kau Chim'' or ''Kau Cim'', also known as Lottery poetry (), is a fortune telling practice that originated in China in which the querent (person asking the question) requests answers from a sacred oracle lot. The practice is often performed in a Taoist or Buddhist temple in front of an altar. Kau Chim is often referred to as Chien Tung or Chinese Fortune Sticks by westerners. In the US, a version has been sold since 1915 under the name Chi Chi Sticks. Kau Chim is also sometimes known as "The Oracle of Kuan Yin" in Buddhist traditions. It is widely available in Thai temples, known as Siam Si ( th, เซียมซี). The similar practice is also found in Japan, named O-mikuji. Tools * ''Chim bucket'' (): A long cylindrical bamboo cup or tube. * ''Kau Chim sticks'' (): The flat sticks which are stored in the tube. Generally made of bamboo, they resemble wide, flat incense sticks, and are often painted red at one end. A single number, both in Arabic numerals and in Chinese ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
