Taoist Destiny
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| Lord Josh Allen |
I’ve always been a believer in fate and destiny, I do not ignore the birdsong when it reaffirms that I’m on the right path nor do I turn a blind eye to the ominous clouds when they tell me I’m destined to fail. I find myself on both sides of the ethereal coin. Heaven has praised my vision, it repeatedly sends me gifts of whispers in the wind, the sweet fragrance of English country air carrying auspicious melodies of encouragement and much-needed inspiration. On the other side, Heaven has mercilessly scorned me with omens of diseased wildlife, wilted flowers, and stars that detest my every move. To my fellow man, I’m a polarising person, I imagine Heaven views me in a similar way. I would lead an almost “perfect” life if not for my frail and unpredictable ill health. When doctors cannot answer my questions, when the establishment fails to provide proper treatment, I look to Heaven for assistance. No, I do not mean the Christian biblical concept of the cloudy afterlife, although I must confess, I do indeed love its wonder-tale aesthetic. The Heaven I refer to is what the Taoists call the stars, the great void, “The Great Unknowable”
It has provided people with information since the very dawn of humankind. Emperors of Imperial China would hire court astronomers to study the celestial canvas of the night sky, all decisions were based on the findings such as when to go to war, when to marry, when to sign treaties, when to form an alliance with other kingdoms. It was thought that Heaven would show its approval or disapproval of certain things. The deities would express themselves by manifesting different kinds of weather, literally, everything would be taken into account, the temperature, direction of wind, thickness of rain, colours of the horizon, shapes within the clouds, the birds, wildlife, it all indicated “The Will of Heaven” A famous phrase that I find myself saying on a regular basis “Man Proposes, Heaven Disposes” Or another way of wording it “Planning Is With Man, Accomplishing, With Heaven” This means that Man (Humans) may wish to do whatever they want and may have elaborate plans but Heaven (Fate, The Source, God, The Universe) has the final say. We may all plan to have wonderful lives, some of us may even be able to strategically organize our lives but if fate isn’t with us, it is akin to swimming against the current and fighting a losing battle. I hate losing but I can’t fight against fate.
Taoists believe in three different kinds of fate, Man Earth and Heaven, the Tao trinity known as San Ming. Man is self, Earth is place, Heaven is time. Heaven's fate is controlled by the stars, the sun, and the moon, this fate is bestowed upon the individual at birth by The Lord of Time, otherwise known as The Grand Duke of Jupiter. The fate of Heaven as I already mentioned cannot be changed but luckily the other two can. The fate of Earth can be influenced by the environment that you are living in, the city, town, village, house, landscape. One cannot live in a perfect oasis where everything is harmonious but with the practice of good Feng Shui, one can certainly improve their living situation which in turn will improve their Earthly fortune. I’ve been a Feng Shui practitioner for many years, my altar known as “The Altar of The Seven Stars” was created using such principles. Feng Shui is the Chinese art of placement, it is a form of Geomancy or Earth Magick which places great importance on a person's environment and how it affects their mental and physical wellbeing. Quiet locations with outstanding views, freshwater springs, fertile soil, and healthy wildlife are all indicative of a glorious terrain. A balance of sun and shade is paramount, too much shade shows a deficiency of Yang and an overabundance of Yin and vice versa. if your home has such deficiencies, this may mean that you too lack certain energies, if you grow food in a location full of toxic qi, this can corrupt the body and mind.
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| White Kongming Feather Fan |
Earth's fortune can be changed to some extent but let's face it, most of us do not live in a perfect paradise. The only true aspect of fate that we have complete control over is Man, this is our behavior, our actions, the way we treat others. If we knowingly, willingly and wrongfully hurt someone else, we will always be held accountable and responsible for our actions, whether good or bad. We must endeavour to deal reward and punishment fairly. I'm no saint, I don't take any nonsense but I don't give it either. I treat others in the way that they treat me. I have quite a steady demeanour and I'm open-minded, I believe I handle the Fate of Man rather well. It is evident that the health hardships I suffer from are not connected to Man nor Earth, the problem must lay in Heaven. Certain stars have influence over many aspects of life, whether a person is born poor, if a person dies young, or achieves greatness. The ultimate purpose of Taoist astrology is to know Heaven's fate, although, any honest Taoist should know that this is an arduous task. I work extremely hard at deciphering, interpreting, and recognizing foreboding omens. Most of my Occult friends have grimoires containing their magical experiments, their trial and error formulas, their evocations and invocations with entities. Whilst I do have some similar types of books, the vast majority of them contain exhaustive accounts of seasonal, celestial and meteorological records, every comet, every new moon, every meteor shower. I log the lunar phases, I keep track of the solar activity of flares, I spend four days a week outside under the Heavens, conducting evening divinations for roughly thirty to forty-minute sessions. I don’t do anything intricate or complex, I don’t light any candles or say any incantations, apart from my beloved feather fan, I don't make use of any talismans. I simply sit and be. I find it to be relaxing and mystical, joyous, and fascinating. Yet at the same time, when an inauspicious reading comes along, I certainly don't get excited.
I am reminded of a story from the 14th-century historical novel Romance of The Three Kingdoms. My idol and inspiration Zhuge Liang (Kongming) the brilliant Three Kingdoms genius and Prime Minister of the Shu Han State went out to examine the stars. He examined the sky, noting that within the Triumvirate constellation, the Guest Star was twice as bright as usual, while the Host Star was darkened, the supporting stars were also obscure. All omens pointing towards an approaching death, nearing the end of one's life. Kongming, being a practitioner of the esoteric arts and a Taoist, knew rites and rituals that could potentially change his fate. He performed a lengthy technical ritual called "The Big Dipper Longevity Lantern Ritual" By invoking and praying to the Seven Stars of The Northern Dipper, one works to take their name off of the register of death by appeasing the star spirits. The aim of his ritual was to extend his life span by twelve years. Even the name Seven Stars is misleading because there are actually nine stars with two invisible ones that emit what the Taoists call an “anti-light” or a “light that does not shine” these last two stars only become visible to highly cultivated adepts. Some Taoist schools and sects believe that every planet, constellation, and asterism has an invisible counterpart to it. Kongming placed seven oil lamps in the shape and formation of The Northern Dipper on the floor of his tent, as above so below. Outside of the main seven, he placed forty-nine smaller oil lamps. In the middle, he placed his own lamp, which is known as “The Master Lamp” This sacred tool and its flame represent the person's fate and life-force. If the flame remains lit for seven days, this means the person is granted their wish of life extension. If the flame goes out, this is a most unfortunate sign that the stars have not granted the desired wish, and one's destiny cannot be prolonged. Sadly, on the sixth night of Kongming’s prayer, one of his generals by the name of Wei Yan suddenly barged into the tent and accidentally knocked over Kongming’s Master Lamp, causing the flame to extinguish. Zhuge Liang died from an illness shortly after. The Heavens predicted this by displaying their messages in the form of the brightness of certain stars.
I’ve seen similar signs myself and it tends to shock me. One always has a choice though, it is all perception. If I have a "negative" reading, I don't tend to view it as such, I view it as Heaven giving me a warning that something disastrous will happen and therefore I should prepare, get help, do something about it or not do something. I prefer to view "bad" readings as wakeup calls, telling me to get ready for the next challenge. Knowledge is power and having knowledge about an upcoming event is certainly helpful, you might not be able to stop what is coming but you can usually soften the blow. Are the stars always right? Of course not. Should we cling to their whims and obsess over their changes? I don’t think so but we should pay attention to them and acknowledge the importance of astrology. I’m delighted to say, a lot of my recent readings (this last month) have been overwhelmingly positive. My health is expected to improve and so is my productivity. I remain optimistic but only time will tell. - Lord Josh Allen
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| Dark Kongming Feather Fan |
