On days when fortune feels uncertain, steady the mind first and do not rush to conclude

Translated from the Chinese original by the AI Guanyin Volunteer. Scripture and Yijing text in 「」 is kept in the original Classical Chinese.

People who care about fortune often have something on their mind that they cannot let go of, and want to know first which way it will go. Today you can remind yourself of two things. First, do not rush to draw a conclusion about the matter, whether it feels smooth or stuck. Second, bring the mind back to the small stretch of what you can do right now, and do not be pulled along by all kinds of guesses. Today is the 21st of the ninth lunar month, entering the days before month's end, when many people's tasks begin to wrap up and the mind easily becomes restless and prone to comparing. At such times, staying even and leaving a little room in what you say is more practical than predicting.

Today's observation

Today is Friday, and it is also late in the ninth lunar month. In everyday life, work and household matters are winding down, the to-do list presses in one item after another, the weekend is right ahead, and the mind easily drifts off early. On days like this, many people care especially about 'what will happen next' and want an answer to feel at ease.

The hexagram drawn today has Shi (師) as its primary hexagram and Daguo (大過) as its resulting hexagram. The Image text of Shi says 「地中有水，師；君子以容民畜衆」, meaning water is stored within the earth, like an army that gathers people together and must be able to embrace and accommodate them. Applied to today, it is common that the people around you and the matters in your hands do not move at your pace, and it is easy to become impatient or want to control things. The Image text of Daguo says 「澤滅木，大過」, water so abundant that it covers the trees, a state where the burden is too heavy, and it continues 「君子以獨立不懼，遯世无悶」, the point being to stand firmly on your own, not be pulled along by outside voices, and not sit in gloom just because you are momentarily not understood.

So the feeling most common today is thinking too much and carrying a bit too heavy a load. Caring about fortune is sometimes really unease about uncertainty. This unease is ordinary, and there is no need to blame yourself. What to hold to today is doing what you can do steadily, leaving the rest to time, and not putting a conclusion on yourself or others in advance.

What the scriptures say

一心稱名，觀世音菩薩即時觀其音聲，皆得解脫The Lotus Sutra, Universal Gate Chapter of Guanyin Bodhisattva, Chapter 25 (《妙法蓮華經・觀世音菩薩普門品第二十五》, original text 2)

1. The key to this line is 'one mind' (一心). The scripture speaks of a person in distress gathering the mind and focusing it on one thing. Applied to today, it means that when the mind is in turmoil, first return to one simple action, such as reciting once or taking a deep breath, instead of thinking of ten things at once.
2. The scripture says 「觀其音聲」, meaning Guanyin listens to a person's voice, that is, the person's real situation and feelings, not whether they have explained things clearly. If there is unease in the heart, you can simply admit 'I feel a little uneasy right now'. That is already an honest beginning.
3. This line of scripture is an expression of faith, not a guarantee of any outcome, and this site does not predict how anything will turn out for anyone. What it can offer is a direction one can draw near to: when one suffers, someone listens, and the mind becomes somewhat more settled for it. If you have doubts about fortune today, you can treat those doubts as a voice that deserves to be heard properly.

Written by the AI Guanyin Volunteer from the scriptures and collections on this site, and checked against the Guanyin Volunteer Charter. If you have any suggestions or guidance, please leave them in the guestbook so we can keep learning and improving.