Conventional Thinking Will Cripple You

How many people have the ability and the courage to break away from conventional thinking...or from thinking 'outside the box' as they say. In any area of life you can be quite certain that following the crowd will eventually get you into trouble. Some call this the Sheep Mentality. Following the advice of conventional doctors for example will certainly make you less healthy. If you want to get sick do what everyone else does and go to a doctor. If you're already sick and want to become more sick, do what everyone else does and go to a hospital (usually on the advise of the doctor who made you sick in the first place). Following the crowd is the quickest way to decline. By far, the best way to improve every aspect of your life is to look at what the majority is doing and then do the exact opposite. Just this one act alone will improve your life drastically and tremendously. In this sense, 'majority rules' has no value for us, but if we can accept and adapt to 'minority rules', I believe we would be astounded with the results. If everyone runs to Mac Donald's for lunch, we walk to the nearest fruit tree for lunch.......if everyone uses medication for health, we use herbs.......if everyone goes to a university for an education or a hospital for cures, we educate ourselves through introspection and cure ourselves through breathing. The list could go on indefinitely.

Chinese metaphysics is no different. If you do what everyone else is doing , your understanding will be more difficult and your education will take longer. This is the main reason why there are so few great metaphysical Masters, Teachers, Practitioners, or Students. Lucky is the one who can find a master or teacher who is not intimidated by 'going against the grain'. Luckier is the one who is not intimidated by learning on their own. Dare to be different and on your own...you are your best teacher. Don't be afraid to take the road less travelled...as it will have fewer obstacles and less footsteps to confuse you.


Following the crowd is dangerous...following the minority is better...following yourself is best.

A Tale Of Li Chun

Note : This article was originally written Feb.3.2004

One cold early February morning in the Midwestern part of the United
States back in the year of 2004, I sat in anticipation of a
monumental event that was about to occur. The Chinese call it Li
Ch'un...in the west it is simply translated as "Spring Begins". The date was
February 4 and everyone was talking about a feeling in the gut, a
twinkling in their head, special vibrations in the heart, and a
million other things that happen to them when the cosmic energy
shifts. Since at this time a 20 year energy shift was about to take
place in addition to the yearly shift of energy, the atmosphere all
over the globe was at a high level. People were even talking about
ascending to heavenly realms at this time. Wow! I could hardly
wait to experience all this. I fasted 5 days for this event so that
my earthly body would be as receptive as possible. I calculated the
event down to the second using latitude, longitude, equation of time
and every other time trick I learned throughout my decades of
study. Oh yes, I was gonna join in the fun this time, I was ready.
I couldn't wait to see what kind of cosmic experience I was about to
have. Well, the time came and passed and guess what happened.
NOTHING. No twinges or twinkles, no special vibrations, no luvy
duvy feelings...nothing. I knew the Tao did not make a mistake
because the Tao is perfect. So I guess it must have been me. So I
waited an extra 5 minutes to take miscalculations into account, then
an extra hour, then an extra day even.....Nothing! Everyone else
was talking about the Cosmic Orgasm they experienced at the exact
moment of Li Ch'un...and here I was with nothing. I missed the
party again this year. I decided to go see the Ancient Wise Master.


I went up into the mountains to see the Ancient Wise Master (AWM)
who has been residing there for the past 50 years. He knew the
answers to everything. I asked him why everyone got to experience
Li Ch'un except for me. I told him I ate better than anyone I know,
studied harder than anyone I know, meditated longer than anyone I
know, and lived my life as close to nature as possible. The AWM
said " People are knowledgeable of both fact and fiction and so it
comes down to a mathematical solution". Could you explain the
solution I asked, in which he replied "A little fact plus a little
fiction equals a lot of bull". Hmmm, he always had a way with
parables. He also said " A person who experiences nothing when
there are energy shifts may be MORE receptive and aligned with
cosmic processes and nature than the ones who hear and feel cosmic
bells and whistles". He went on, "this is because a smooth
transition is taking place between the cosmos and the individual,
there are no interruptions. Twinges could indicate an uneven flow of
energy.....be like the seasons and transform without any
expectation. When the seasons shift between spring and summer it is
done in an instant...in less than a second, there is no noticeable
change in temperature, atmospheric conditions, humidity, etc. Make
your transition as smooth as this. If the seasons don't concern
themselves with twinges and whistles, why should you". I told him
that most people who are unhealthy and have little intelligence or
wisdom do not experience Li Ch'un twinges. Does this mean they are
aligned with the cosmos. He was getting annoyed with my lack of
understanding as he continued, " There is quite a difference
between a healthy, wise person transforming with the cosmos and an
unhealthy ignorant fool transforming with it.....now go away you
ignorant fool" So I bowed my head and walked back down the
mountain.


As I was walking back home in shame and embarrassment I happened to
see a young man carrying a McDonald's bag and eating a greasy cheese
burger and sipping on a coke, I also noticed he had a large fries
and apple pie in the bag. He was listening to Pearl Jam on his
Walkman radio and he was chatting away on his cell phone. He also
had a very unhealthy look and after getting a whiff of his odor I was
happy that we were traveling in opposite directions. He offered me
a bite of his sandwich, which I declined. Then he said, "Hey Dude,
yesterday was Li Ch'un.....Oh man, I heard bells, whistles, my body
went though a cosmic cleansing.....it was awesome dude. I'm gonna go
share my experiences with the Ancient Wise Master". As he walked
away I felt a great sense of relief. If the AWM called me an
ignorant fool, heaven only knows what this young Pearl Jammin guy
was in for. I couldn't help myself, I decided to sit right there
for a little while. I pulled out my binoculars and I could see that
the kid made it up the mountain to the AWM. What I saw next was
beyond anything I could imagine. The AWM was sharing the cheese
burger with the kid and eating the greasy french fries like they
were going out of style. They were laughing and dancing and having
a good ole time. Then the AWM put on the headphones and started
listening to Pearl Jam. I was speechless. I was confused. I
looked up at the sky and yelled " CAN WE FEEL LI CH'UN OR NOT" Then
came the reply "THE ANCIENT WISE MASTER IS NO DIFFERENT THAN RONALD
MC DONALD" At this instant....... in less than the one second the
Master said it takes for the spring to transform to summer..... I
became enlightened.

Happy Li Ch'un

The Tao Of Luo Shu (9 Ki)

Some terms used in this article:

Bigram = a mystical diagram consisting of two lines, either both solid, both broken, or one solid and one broken.

WuXing = The Chinese term for the 5 phases, commonly called the 5 elements. They are 5 stages in the evolution of Ki (Qi) represented in human experience as Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water.

Qi, Ki, Chi = Some regard it as the 'vital force'. Not unlike Prana, it is associated with breath. Put simply, it is that which animates.

Since the Japanese protected the 9 Palace Fate Calculation during the years it was ignored in China, we will use the term Ki throughout all articles concerning that art as a way of honoring the Onmyoji and their contribution. The Japanese call this method 9 Ki or Kyusei, while the original name translates roughly from Chinese as 9 Palace Fate Calculation.

Emergence and Return

TAO is probably the most misunderstood word in the language of Oriental metaphysics. Some translators have even substituted 'god', where TAO has nothing to do with deities. TAO does, however, have something to do with how whatever deities are out there behave, because it is the way of things. By things, I mean existence, by way I mean behavior - what nature (the universe) DOES.
Qi (Ki) is what animates the forms that TAO takes - in other words, the motive and mobile energy of the universe. This is why we see many teachers diagrams designed such that TAO is pictured in a circle, with Yin and Yang (the supreme ultimate, or Tai Chi, representing the primal transformation that expresses TAO) directly under that, and the various subdivisions of Yin and Yang into bigrams, trigrams and so forth, on up to the hexagrams of the Yijing (I-Ching). But what does this all have to do with 9 Ki (9 palace Fate Calculation)?
When we look at the mystical diagrams in most textbooks, TAO is depicted as being at the top, but its true position is the center. Like the Sun is at the center of the solar system, which revolves around another star within this arm of the Galaxy, which revolves around millions of other stars in the Galactic core, all principles revolve around TAO. This does not mean that a view of the universe based on center and periphery is absolute. It would be more correct to say that these examples remind us of the TAO, because in reality, all points in space and time are the center - the source of all possibility; the point of emergence from potential into manifestation.

Ki also emerges from the center (TAO is the center, Ki animates from the center). You could say that Ki (Qi) and TAO are the same from some respects, but those learned in the way of the ancients would disagree, reminding us that the Ki emerges from the center only because that is its TAO.
TAO sets the pace, motion, and direction, yet Ki and Tao follow each other in a course which seems to move in opposing directions. When Ki is active, it moves to the central palace, the point of origin. When TAO is active in any of the palaces, the Ki of that palace becomes the energy of return. TAO creates Ki, and Ki creates objects; objects are to Ki as Ki is to TAO.
In working with numbers as symbols, the numbers, or Stars, depict Ki as taking on binary attributes. On the one hand the primary expression of manifestation as Yin and Yang further subdivides into bigrams, trigrams and so forth - and each of the WuXing (5 phases) has a Yin or Yang quality. However, in the number system expressed by the ancients, we have 9 numbers, not an even amount which can be divided in such a way as to represent Yin or Yang, and all ideal forms must be in balance when at rest - so what does the 5 Earth Star represent? Naturally the TAO is represented by the number 5, which holds the central position, the balance point of the 9 numbers.

In 9 Ki astro-numerology, 5 Earth gets no trigram (because it has neither Yin nor Yang attributes), while the other 8 numbers are assigned a trigram each. To explain more fully, 5 Earth is neither Yin nor Yang, because it represents the point of balance at which Yin and Yang transform into one another; the point from which they appear to 'emerge'. The universal Luo Shu has 5 in the central palace, and when each Star, due to a change in the time cycle, enters the central palace, the events, forms and actions that are initiated during that particular time cycle are dominated by the QUALITY of that Star.
The palace in which 5 Earth is located also is very influential, because that palace becomes the "eye of the whirlwind" or the point that is attempting to impose balance and order on the set of 9 palaces. In the Universal Luo Shu, with 5 Earth in the central palace, the points of emergence and return, or initiation and cessation, or creation and destruction are the same, but in all other charts, the Star ruling the palace occupied by 5 Earth represents the kind of Ki responsible for the return of things and energies to the Tao, while the Star in the central palace is the Ki that imbues things created during the cycle of the chart with its particular quality. This seems like a very abstract way to come to tangible conclusions, but it is not unlike talking about the Sun's "movement" or "travel" along its northern and southern courses throughout the year.

In the days before numbers were invented, the Shamans of ancient China described the attributes of the Sun, Moon, Stars, the 5 Phases or Elements, and all activities and circumstances 'under heaven' by the use of the mystical diagram known as the Luo Shu.
The Luo Shu is a mystical diagram of utter beauty and symmetry. Its mysteries are profound and with a little discipline and penetrating insight, it reveals all that the mind is able to absorb. Surely, the only limits to the knowledge that can be gained from the study of the Luo Shu are those created by the mind that studies it. The Lo Shu, like most ancient maps, has North at the bottom, South at the top ,East on the left, and West on the right. In the universal 9 Ki map, 5 Earth is the center, 6 Metal is in the Northwest opposite 4 Wood in the Southeast, 7 Metal in the West opposite 3 Wood in the East, 8 Earth in the Northeast opposite 2 Earth in the Southwest, 9 Fire is due South opposite 1 Water in the North. Once again, from the standpoint of ancient Taoism, 5 Earth is TAO and the remaining numbers are Ki. At the first spark of the creation or initiation of an event, idea or being, 5 moves from the center to the Northwest and begins its ascending journey through the Luo Shu chart - its journey through the phases or elements; its journey through the trigrams. The 4 Wood star simultaneously moves to the center and this begins the descending progression of the numbers. As 5 makes its way around the chart, the other numbers or 'fragments' of the chi, follow its every twist and turn. Think of the 5 as the center of a tornado or cyclone - as it travels, it pulls all the other winds with it. While this process is taking place, every palace that the 5 'touches' or 'rests in' produces the opposite number (Ki) in the center of the chart. Following this thought we will see how the Ki expresses the TAO and its cyclic and sequent action through the 9 palaces of the Lo Shu.

The route that 5 takes in terms of house numbers is 6,7,8,9,1, 2,3,4, and then it returns to the center. The route that the 8 numbers representing Ki take, by being dragged into the center palace, is 4,3,2,1,9,8,7,6, and they also resolve when 5 again returns to the center. The motions of TAO and Ki are opposite, but as TAO re-focuses the center, each number has its opportunity to become the center, and express TAO in its own way. The 9 Stars move in perfectly synchronized movements not unlike an object and its shadow. The moment that 5 enters a palace, its shadow (the Ki of the star that rules the opposite palace) appears in the center of the chart, creating perfect balance. Everyone will agree, I'm sure, that moving 'against' TAO will create imbalance, and this can also be seen in the Luo Shu chart. Outside of being philosophically profound , this insight can be quite practical for divination. When 5 Earth is in the 7 Metal palace, it 'drags' the 3 Wood star into the center and creates an imbalance on that axis. In other words, Ki is 'slanted' or biased towards the West ( 7 palace ). This accumulation of "western" energy will cause a reaction in the direction or palace that is opposite it, in this case the 3 Wood palace. The 1 Water star is the reacting energy there, because 1 Water will occupy the Eastern 3 Wood palace when 5 is in the West . One must be cautious in interacting with the Eastern direction or the 1 Water star during this time-cycle, because it has been thrown off balance, and circumstances, relationships, substances or activities related to the 1 Water star are likely to suffer. The following chart shows the movement of 5 Earth and which stars will be adversely affected by its movement.

When 5 is in the N.W. 4 House and 3 Star is afflicted
When 5 is in the W. 3 House and 1 Star is afflicted
When 5 is the N.E. 2 House and 8 Star is afflicted
When 5 is the S. 1 House and 6 Star is afflicted
When 5 is the N. 9 House and 4 Star is afflicted
When 5 is in the S.W. 8 House and 2 Star is afflicted
When 5 is in the E. 7 House and 9 Star is afflicted
When 5 is in the S.E. 6 House and 7 Star is afflicted

Think of a water balloon, and imagine squeezing the left half of the balloon. The water will shift and accumulate to the right half of the balloon causing an imbalance. The left side of the balloon will be severely depleted and the right side will become overabundant. Both are unbalanced. So there is not only an adverse affect on the palace and star opposite the palace (the "expanded" side) in which 5 Earth resides, but also the palace and direction (the squeezed side) in which the 5 resides.

So far, we have only discussed the cycle in which the 5, or TAO is on its ascending course, and the 8 Stars are tenanting the center in descending order. At the point where the greatest Yin or Yang is reached, the two primal forces transform into one another, and the cycles reverse, such that the 8 stars will now visit the central palace in ascending order, and the 5 Earth star will visit the 8 palaces in descending order. This is evident in the Year, Month, Day, and Hour cycles of time. The Stars reverse their motions at 'fixed' intervals. The Ki Day Star is the easiest to understand, because they move to the central palace in ascending order from Winter Solstice to the Summer Solstice. At this point Yang (ascending order) is the most extreme in nature, and consequently converts to Yin, therefore at the Summer Solstice the numbers reverse directions and begin to move to the center in descending order until Winter Solstice arrives, when the Yin has matured and become so strong, it compensates by transforming to Yang again.

Whether or not the cycle in which the 9 Stars are active is Yin (descending) or Yang (ascending), the principle is the same. In Luo Shu Astrology, when 5 Earth ascends the other 8 Stars descend, and when 5 Earth descends the other 8 ascend. TAO produces Ki in reverse motion. Do keep in mind that the 5 is always balanced, and it must be, by necessity, to 'hold fast to the center', and create the point of balance upon which the extremes wrestle out the changes and transformations we call circumstance. Winter and Summer are extreme conditions, but the forces behind these conditions, the orbit of the Earth around the Sun, the ocean currents and the atmosphere, must remain in perfect balance. Any disturbance to one of these factors will trigger reactions throughout the system with possibly disastrous results.

Over the years, my colleagues and I have not found anywhere where this principle of balance in movement within the Luo Shu and the 9 Ki system have been discussed in this way, and my studies are continuing and will reveal much more about this ancient magical tool. The mysteries of the 9 Palace Stars are subtle and profound, and with diligent study, these mysteries will emerge from their cocoon, transformed into useful guides on the path to wisdom. You will also find these pearls of wisdom to be practical tools for discovering otherwise hidden information and taking advantage of opportunity in everyday life.

I Ching (Yijing) Insights

Chinese civilization has, from the most ancient times, revered the I Ching for its deep and profound mysteries. It is said that Fu Hsi, the legendary Sage/Shaman was the creator of the trigrams that structure the I Ching.
In later times (around 1150 BC) King Wen of the Chou Dynasty, while serving a 7 year prison sentence, passed his time away creating hexagrams from the trigrams that Fu Hsi initiated. He then added textual commentary to the 64 hexagrams that comprise the I Ching, and since then it has been referred to as the "Book of Changes."
It was King Wen's son, the Duke of Chou, who added passages for each of the hexagram lines ( yao). More than six centuries elapsed before the great sage Confucius made his own contribution to the book by adding commentaries that have since been called the '10 wings'.
Most of the thoughts and ideas of the great sages and shamans of antiquity and later times were derived from the symbolic hexagrams that are contained in the book. This elite group of thinkers saw how this book, starting from the most basic contrasts and dualities that describe the basic relationships between the properties of material existence, could be a guide to the subtle processes of nature, and so it was considered a source of wisdom. Many contemplated and meditated on it at length, and absorbed themselves in communication with the oracle, some even reaching enlightenment through their one-pointed efforts. Some spoke of a transformation that occurred when they 'merged' themselves with the principles of the I Ching.
Though certain scholars and masters throughout the ages have included their own unique insights, the main principles have remained intact. Many estimate the trigrams to have been created more than 5000 years ago, and though it would seem futile to try to prove this point, it can certainly and safely be said that the I Ching has stood the "test of time". It is as reliable and pertinent today as it was thousands of years ago, therefore giving us the same quality of guidance and wisdom that the ancients received. The wisdom of the book is essentially timeless, and therefore gives us the ability to penetrate the minds of the great sages of the past.
In other words, if you are able to penetrate the I Ching you will be able to penetrate the minds of the sages, as their minds and the "Yi" speak for each other. Though we may or may not become enlightened through its use, we will gain a little sense of liberation from our rigid and inflexible tendencies that we have received from social conditioning.
We can be thankful for the works of the great masters and scholars of the past and present in their attempts to help us gain an understanding of the underlying principles of the book. Of course, one could say that the I Ching has created the sages and masters as well. At this point, I'd like to note that the roster of illumined teachers who were intimately familiar with the I Ching included Fu Hsi, King Wen and Duke of Chou, Confucius, Lao Tzu, Chuang Tzu, Chen Tuan, Shao Yung, Chu Hsi and many others. All of these great personalities have been influenced by the I Ching in one form or another.
It has been said that Shao Yung ( 1011-1077), the Neo Confucianist and Taoist recluse of the Northern Sung Dynasty, was the first to introduce the binary numerical system through his hexagram arrangement, making him the ancient Grandfather of the modern computers. The I Ching has been influential in DNA studies, acupuncture and other medical analysis, various forms of astrology, weather studies, astronomy, biological data, and other areas of study.


Yes, the I Ching is far-reaching, sounding its 'voice' through the ages like a distant echo in the minds and heart of humanity. It is a descriptive model of reality, that through proper understanding will reveal the most subtle of mysteries. The seeker who approaches the I Ching must do so in a receptive frame of mind. For deeper understanding one must 'shift' their consciousness and disassociate from the ego. This is very different from the analytical approach taken by modern methods of gathering knowledge.
Let us now take a look at some of the basic, yet very important principles that have long been associated with understanding the symbols of the I Ching.
The I Ching can be summarized as consisting of 2 lines, one broken or yin and the other unbroken or yang. These two basic polarities, in turn, form more complex sets of bigrams, trigrams, and hexagrams. The process is one of doubling. That is, the 2 lines form 4 bigrams; the 4 bigrams produce the 8 trigrams, etc. until 64 six-lined hexagrams are produced. The 64 hexagrams are the ultimate expression of the symbolic constituents of the I Ching and can be used to delve into any aspect of reality.
For divination purposes the hexagrams are usually broken down into trigrams and the information derived from these trigrams, by way of their attributes, are reflected upon. Conclusions are then drawn from these reflections that refer to the situation one is inquiring about.
The trigrams follow two main cycles which can be referred to as the 'spirit' or intangible cycle and the 'manifest' or tangible cycle. The intangible cycle is called the Hsien Tien or Early Heaven cycle and the tangible cycle is known as the Hu Tien or Later Heaven sequence.
Though the trigrams in both cycles are identical, their sequence ordering are distinct. The Early Heaven sequence depicts the trigrams in their pure and balanced positions. It is a representation of archetypal, unmanifest energy, prior to its manifestation. The later Heaven on the other hand, expresses energy that has coalesced and taken shape or form in the physical world. The co-mingling of these two great cycles results in the events that transpire in heaven and on earth, thereby influencing humanity.
The Early Heaven sequence begins with Chien and ends with Kun, and is known as the 'Creation' cycle. Its order is as follows: Chien- Tui- Li- Chen- Sun - Kan -Ken- Kun.
In the later Heaven, the cycle begins with Chen and is completed with Ken. The ordering is: Chen- Sun- Li- Kun- Tui- Chien- Kan- Ken.
Although it may not be apparent, the two cycles work 'hand-in-hand'. The Later Heaven sequence is a reaction to the Early Heaven sequence; in fact, it is a consequence of the Early Heaven's structure. It completes what the Early Heaven initiates. They both follow a different course but they emerge from the same Tao, and function simultaneously.
It may be difficult for the mind to grasp this idea because the modern mind has been programmed to believe that events manifest themselves in a step-by-step process of physical cause and effect, but ultimately cause and effect, beginning and ending, or Early Heaven and Later Heaven are concurrent.
The Early Heaven sequence is thought to have been created by Fu Hsi and the Later Heaven sequence has been credited to Ken Wen. In some systems or methods of the I Ching both sequences can be used together. For example, in the Plum Blossom method ( see other articles on this blog concerning Plum Blossom) the hexagrams are usually formed by the use of the Early Heaven cycle of trigrams. In other words, the Early Heaven sequence is used to represent the unconfused, or that which has not yet happened. Then the Later Heaven sequence of trigrams is employed to interpret the outcome, or way in which the unmanifest will materialize, according to their attributes.
The cycles can be 'expanded' so that the 64 hexagrams are used in the cycle rather than the basic 8 trigrams. The hexagram cycle gives us a larger vision or more expanded view of the energetic process represented by the trigrams. It is important to remember that the principles are the same whether looking at the 64 hexagram chart or the 8 trigram chart, and that they are replicas of each other in an expanded or contracted design.
Watch for future I Ching articles in which all of these principles and the hexagrams themselves will be explored in depth.

Interview On Penetrating The I Ching

The following is a small portion of an interview I gave less than 2 weeks ago on the subject of penetrating the I Ching. Click to listen.

Book Recommendations For Luo Shu Astrology

I have received several e-mails inquiring about the recommendation of books on Luo Shu Astrology (9 Ki). I can think of 4 that are valuable.

1. The Ki (Takashi Yoshikawa). This is the best book I've seen on personality
analysis. The second part of the book on directionology is not completely
accurate in my opinion. He uses the 60 degree segments for the
diagonal directions and 30 degrees for the cardinal points, which can create
problems. There are a few other questionable areas also. If it is character
profiles you are interested in, however, then this is a very good book.

2. The Nine Ki Handbook (Gagne and Mann). This one has been out of print
and may be difficult to find, but it does give a good basic understanding on
the subject. Be careful with the day star numbers in the book as they are
completely inaccurate. When I spoke to Mr. Gagne about it he told me that
the editors printed it completely wrong when the book went to press. When
he talked to the publishers about it, they never corrected the problem.

3. Nine Star Ki ( Michio Kushi).

4. Practical Feng Shui Astrology (Simon Browne). I believe this is the title.
At one point it carried another title.

The Price For Education

In the old days the student's journey in eventually becoming a future master may have begun by walking through the mountains or forests with their own master and enduring the hardships of the terrain. They may have went for days eating herbs to survive, stopping along the way for deep periods of meditation or contemplation. The student and master relied on each other for many things; the master relied on the student for his young, energetic, physical energy and the student relied on his master for his wisdom and experience. It was a tight bond, and the student was in many ways closer to his master than to his own father. They went through years and decades of practice and learning and eventually there would come a day when the master sensed that the student was about ready to pass on the tradition to another up-and-coming student. The patience involved in cultivating the student was enormous. No shortcuts were taken and there were no time constraints in rushing the student.......sometimes the lessons took a lifetime, but when the student was "let loose" the master knew he was ready and was confident that the world had gained another master.

Today is a completely different story. In these modern times a person can become a master in 4 weeks by sitting in front of a computer and sipping a coke and typing away at the keyboard in a half-dazed state of confusion. All it takes are two things basically. These two things are money and the ability to put your faith in a person who claims to be a master. Whereas in the old days the journey began in the mountains with your master, today the journey begins by calling a self-proclaimed master on their cell phone or e-mailing him/her and giving them your credit card number. Then you take their correspondence course (CC) and you will eventually become a certified master. I guarantee you that I can find a person out there who has never heard of the word Feng Shui and within approximately 4-8 weeks become a certified master. No years of experience... no walks in the forest... no deep meditation... none of that stuff. As they say, " all it takes is money honey". Today "masters" are reeling in students like a fisherman reels in fish. "Masters" compete with each other to see who can catch the most fish, and you can be certain that there are fish to be caught. Once a master has you hooked you can forget about it, he'll keep throwing out more bait such as new classes, computer video seminars, new CC's, new e-books, "latest information", and so- on- and- on- and- on. The "master" will act as though nothing else in the world matters other than your education...but as soon as you run out of money he will want to have nothing to do with you. It is a sad but true reality. Recently I saw a picture of a guy who promotes himself as a master (who I've mentioned on my blog before) with many of his students/victims around him. The picture reminded me of a fat cat with swarms of lifeless fish surrounding him. The fish looked lifeless...but the fat cat looked content... like he was going to have quite a feast with all the fish he captured. Well, fish are fish and cats are cats...what can you do.

If you are in the market for a metaphysical education be careful. Although there are some good teachers and masters, the majority are promoters and business men/women. These types are charging thousands of dollars for this "education" that eventually runs into the tens of thousands of dollars and the cycle never seems to end. Don't believe you can become a master or qualified practitioner by taking a CC or a few classes. Don't believe these exaggerated claims. Anyone who tells you that you can become a qualified practitioner in less than a year is lying to you. Anyone who is churning "masters' out of his students by the droves is doing an injustice to themselves and to the student. We can stop them by refusing to be tempted by their dazzling claims. If we refuse to buy into their exaggerations they will eventually have to go work a regular job, whether teaching high school mathematics or whatever. It is ultimately up to us to put an end to all this nonsense.

Numerical Ratings For Luo Shu Astrology

Nine years ago I developed a Luo Shu Rating Method that I am now sharing with the public for the first time. It compares and evaluates the compatibility between the numbers and gives a numeric value for each possible combination. It has an infinite amount of uses and is limited only by one's imagination. There are 9 charts, one for each number and they can be combined and recombined by taking into account the Luo Shu number for a particular Year, Month, Day, Hour (or other time period). The chart shows the relationship for each combination and what the rating is according to the interaction of the five phases (wu xing).

1 WATER

1 with 1... reinforced ...+ 2
1 with 2... controlled ...- 4
1 with 3... exhausted ...- 3
1 with 4... exhausted ...- 2
1 with 5... controlled ...- 4.5
1 with 6... nourished ...+ 4
1 with 7... nourished ...+ 5
1 with 8... controlled ...- 5
1 with 9... dominates ... +1

2 EARTH

2 with 1... dominates ...+ 1
2 with 2... reinforced ... + 2
2 with 3... controlled ... - 4
2 with 4... controlled ... - 5
2 with 5... reinforced ... + 2.5
2 with 6... exhausted ... - 2
2 with 7... exhausted ... - 3
2 with 8... reinforced ... + 3
2 with 9...nourished ... + 4

3 WOOD


3 with 1... nourished ... +4
3 with 2... dominates... +1
3 with 3... reinforced... +2
3 with 4... reinforced... +3
3 with 5... dominates... 0
3 with 6... controlled... -5
3 with 7... controlled... -4
3 with 8... dominates... -1
3 with 9...exhausted... -2



4 WOOD


4 with 1... nourished... +5
4 with 2... dominates... -1
4 with 3... reinforced... +3
4 with 4... reinforced... +2
4 with 5... dominates... 0
4 with 6... controlled... -4
4 with 7... controlled... -5
4 with 8... dominates... +1
4 with 9... exhausted... -3


5 EARTH


5 with 1... dominates... 0
5 with 2... reinforced... +2.5
5 with 3... controlled... -4.5
5 with 4... controlled... -4.5
5 with 5... reinforced... +2.5
5 with 6... exhausted... -2.5
5 with 7... exhausted... -2.5
5 with 8... reinforced... +2.5
5 with 9... nourished... +4.5


6 METAL


6 with 1... exhausted... -3
6 with 2... nourished... +5
6 with 3... dominates... -1
6 with 4... dominates... +1
6 with 5... nourished... +4.5
6 with 6... reinforced... +2
6 with 7... reinforced... +3
6 with 8... nourished... +4
6 with 9... controlled... -4


7 METAL


7 with 1... exhausted... -2
7 with 2... nourished... +4
7 with 3... dominates... +1
7 with 4... dominates... -1
7 with 5... nourished... +4.5
7 with 6... reinforced... +3
7 with 7... reinforced... +2
7 with 8... nourished... +5
7 with 9... controlled... -5


8 EARTH


8 with 1... dominates... -1
8 with 2... reinforced... +3
8 with 3... controlled... -5
8 with 4... controlled... -4
8 with 5... reinforced... +2.5
8 with 6... exhausted... -3
8 with 7... exhausted... -2
8 with 8... reinforced... +2
8 with 9... nourished... +5


9 FIRE


9 with 1... controlled... -4
9 with 2... exhausted... -3
9 with 3... nourished... +5
9 with 4... nourished... +4
9 with 5... exhausted... -2.5
9 with 6... dominates... +1
9 with 7... dominates... -1
9 with 8... exhausted... -2
9 with 9... reinforced... +2




With these charts you will now be able to compare the interaction and compatibility rating for any two (or more) entities. For example, if you are to analyze a numerical relationship rating for two people, you can follow these steps. Let us say that the rating is for Robert and Mary's energies. Roberts natal numbers are 7-3-2-1 and Mary is 1-4-2-2. We will first look at how Robert perceives the relationship by specifically looking at his numbers to see how they relate to Mary's. Then we can do the same for Mary. The person who's perception we are taking into account would represent the first number in the chart. In any relationship, the perceptions of one person to the other is very rarely identical. One spouse usually feels the relationship in a different way than the other. The charts and ratings can help us identify this tendency. We calculate Robert and Mary's yearly 7 and 1...then their monthly 3 and 4...the daily 2 and 2... and finally their hourly 1 and 2 numbers. Looking at the above charts we have :

Robert's Perception
______________

Step 1 - Robert's Yearly perception = -2
Step 2 - Robert's Monthly perception = +3
Step 3 - Robert's Daily perception = +2
Step 4 - Robert's Hourly perception = -4
Step 5 - Robert's Total perception = -1

Mary's Perception
_____________

Step 1 - Mary's Yearly perception = +5
Step 2 - Mary's Monthly perception = +3
Step 3 - Mary's Daily perception = +2
Step 4 - Mary's Hourly perception = +1
Step 5 - Mary's Total perception = +11

We can see by the final rating that Mary's energy is much more receptive to the relationship than Robert's. Most of the stress and complications involved will affect Robert more so than Mary. If a divorce ever became a consideration Mary would be less likely to comply to the separation, whereas Robert would feel more liberated by the breakup and would likely want to go all the way with the separation procedure. Again, these charts can be used for much more than spousal relationships. It is useful for employer/employee compatibility, tenant/renter compatibility, athletic partnership compatibility, or any other type where an interaction of more than one entity takes place. The range for the ratings would be from -20 through +20. If we decide to factor in the stems and branches in the same way, we would have a much wider range of possibilities. You can also include the hexagrams to widen the range even more. Remember, the possibilities or potentials are entirely up to you.

Two Poems

RASPBERRY RAGS AND THE COSMIC JOURNEY

I've decided I'm running away
with Raspberry Rags in a cosmic display
Ten paces from heaven, and turn to the right
then just keep on walkin' till you run into the light

And on my journey I run into Sweet Silver Cup
He pauses a moment and says "Hey there what's up"
I shrug my shoulders and lifted my head
and said "I haven't a clue, I just rolled out of bed"

And the waves of the river was waving goodbye
and the bright moon was hangin' its head in the sky

Then Lollipop Louie shows up on the scene
and he's jokin' around with the king and the queen
then later that day, I swear I heard someone say
"Get the heck out of Dodge if you know what I mean".


THE RECLUSE

I once knew a master, wise beyond words

who has fallen from grace and is now seen as absurd
Like a clown in a circus who bends all the rules
then falls flat on his ass, and looks just like a fool

And the recluse abandons fortune and fame
with no tangible sources and shuns even his name
trading houses and mansions, for mountains and caves
and not a single condition nor reason he gave

Yang chases Yin
and Yin catches Yang
in a strange cosmic process
that folks can't understand

And so peace will find danger
and danger finds peace
in a self-contained cycle
that never will cease

So chase your dreams if you must
for whatever it's worth
knowing that some day
it is sure to reverse

Then the masters will yell
"Hey, I can alter your plan"
but they know little of heaven
No, they don't understand

So while everyone's running
and catching their breath
the recluse just smiles
and lays down to rest.


c. Andy Nicola

The Rabbit

On Oct.10.2006 a student of Joseph Yu named Mark Andres who calls himself "The Rabbit" wrote the following on the Astro fengshui yahoo group list :

"To me, for anyone to "claim that Shao Yong's formula is invalid" merely shows ignorance on the part of the person making the claim. Ignorance beneath contempt."

He wrote this about me in defense of his "master" after I made public the unethical practices of Joseph Yu. I would like to respond to his comments . First and foremost the Rabbit's statement is a lie. I have NEVER claimed that Shao Yung's formula is invalid because I have never believed that Shao Yung created the Plum Blossom (Mei Hua) method of divination. Joseph Yu has been stating for years that Shao Yung is the inventor of the PB method and when I stated in a post on a yahoo list that it is unlikely to the extreme that Shao would create such an unbalanced PB dating system he publicly called me arrogant and ignorant and said I was showing disrespect to the great Sung scholar. For me to mention that Shao Yung did not invent the PB would make the feeble-minded master look incompetent in the eyes of his students and the public should my opinion be correct. He kept insisting that Shao was the originator and Mark Andres with his Blind Faith in full bloom made the statement above. More recently, however, Joseph has shifted his views and wrote on his blog :

"The formula may be the work of Song Dynasty scholar Shao Yong or it may be not. "

and ..........

"the system is beautiful whether invented by Shao Yong or any other wise person."

It may seem like a trivial matter on the surface but it certainly reveals a few things. The first is that Joseph's initial lack of flexibility and his contradicting character is 'leaching' onto his students. It would kill Joseph to admit that my statement may have been correct so he 'hedges' his stance by making the above statements where he tries to 'graciously' reverse his opinions without saying I might be right. With Joe's statements above, the Rabbit may have to conclude that his master is "Ignorant beneath contempt", to use his own words. Mark Andres is an absolute perfect example of the Blind Faith I wrote about a few days ago.

Mark's comments surprised me. He has no idea of either my works or myself and the only time I have ever met him in person was on an August weekend night last year when he called my home phone at 1 AM to let me know that he and one of Joseph's top students who came to stay with me just left a 'seedy' nightclub and I could go pick up Joseph's student at an area closer to my house (I'm not a drinker so I declined their invitation to go drinking with them). When I got to the destination, the glassy-eyed and wobbly Rabbit looked a little "shaky" and I was hoping he would make it home OK as he slurred his good-nights. That is the only time I've ever met him. I also talked with him on the phone once or twice concerning Plum Blossom. He told me that he was not a PB expert and that he had only studied PB for less than a year. In spite of this, he gives PB readings and promotes himself as a "Professional" certified by Joseph. He was/is actually charging people for consultations with his less than 1 year of study. Good heavens...I have studied it for about a decade and a half at an extremely deep level and I refuse to charge for consultations until I can know more. This is a perfect example of people exploiting the public for money and hiding behind the curtain of spirituality. Joseph was steaming when I made a comment that his (Joseph's) PB teachings were nothing more than what Lillian Too or other elementary authors have been trying to shove down the public's throat. Joseph's usual response to claims like these against him is "prove it"..."prove it"..."prove it". It seems to be the only words he knows when someone says he's wrong or questions his expertise. However, he did not ask me to prove my claims, even after I publicly stated that I would elaborate on my views if he cared for me to. The offer still stands, and if he would like for me to "prove" why I believe his PB knowledge is inadequate I would be happy to do so. Although, if he doesn't respond I may give my views in future blog post to let the public be aware of how he is presenting his PB ideas.......at a hefty price I might add.

In concluding this post I would like to say that "The Rabbit" will not likely be pleased with this post but then I wasn't all that crazy about his comments either. His drinking buddy (whose name I won't mention) will not be pleased either. The drinking buddy will probably be reading this and he knows why I am writing this post. He knows I can tolerate many things, but one I will not tolerate is when someone gives me their word and then lies and breaks their promise. He knows how close we were and he knows I won't mention his name, but deep down he also knows what he has done for me to break my trust in him and write these words. Disloyalty and the breaking of one's word is something he knows I will not forgive.

Luo Shu House Assessment Sample

This article will give a sample of how to use the Luo Shu (9 Ki)method of divination in a very practical way. Though there are many aspects and procedures possible with the Luo Shu chart and numbers to arrive at an accurate prediction, we will concentrate here mainly on house assessment. In our hypothetical sample let us say that we are going to an interview for a new job. And we wish to know the energies involved in terms of Luo Shu Astrology. We will say that our Luo Shu birth numbers are :


Year 9

Month 8

Day 4

Hour 1


If we have the luxury of choosing the day to schedule the interview, we will have a great advantage. Let us say that the year and month is Solar Septembert of 2007. We already know that the first two numbers are 2 for the year and 4 for the month. We are off to a superb start because our birth year number is nourished by the TIME year number and our month year number is nourished by the time month number as well. In other words, our year and month numbers are in a very nourishing relationship with the Earth and Wood energy alignment of Solar September 2007. Let us say we have the whole month of September to schedule our appointment and the first day we decide to analyze is a 9 Fire day. We will see that on a 9 day our DAY number 4 falls in the 9 house. This is not a favorable day because the 4 Wood's energy is drained by 'feeding' the 9 house. In addition, the 5 is opposite the 4 because it is residing in the 1 House. So although the year and month is favorable, we could certainly choose a better day. We search further and look at a day where the 3 is in the center of the Luo Shu chart and find that our day number (4) resides in the 6 Metal house. Again no good, because the 4's wood is being "chopped up" by the metal of the house. So we look further and analyze a 6 Metal day. We now see that our 4 Wood day number sits in the 3 House. 3 and 4 is a reinforcing combination and we now have a situation where all 3 of our natal birth numbers are in a favorable relationship with the qi (chi) of the time. We can get an idea of what to expect on this particular day by looking at the attributes of the house we reside in. The numbers have both positive and negative attributes and a rule of thumb is "when your numbers are in harmony with the times, use the positive attributes, when they are not use the negative ones". This is a rule of thumb and in more advanced studies there can be exceptions under certain conditions.

In Luo Shu Astrology 6 Metal is associated with employment, authority, older men, etc. It is likely that any number when in the 6 house will experience employment/job related issues. So is it wise to set up the interview when in the 6 house since it is related with employment if the numbers conflict ? I would say no. You may also wonder if it it wise to get involved in a job situation if the Luo Shu number is not connected with employment but your number is in harmony with the house. This is where the art of Luo Shu analysis plays a huge role. There are creative ways to harmonize yourself with the energies and this is where you have to have a clear mind. If you're in a house that is not compatible with you or employment and you must attend the interview then you look for a favorable situation within the event of the job interview. Example : if you are a 2 and in the 9 house for the day you can see that 9 will not generally give an overall advantage in terms of employment (9 and 6 clash), altough your 2 is being favorably nourished by the 9 for that particular day. In this case you look for 9 Fire attributes to align with at the job interview. If there are 3 people who may be interviewing you and one is a middle-aged female , another a male over 60 and the third a young male, then try to have the interview with the middle-aged lady. Her energy is associated with 9 which is the nourisher of your 2 Earth Luo Shu energy. You have to use your wits a little and with practice it is not overly difficult. Another way is to use Directionology to overcome potential problems. Using directionology down to the Day level is extremely complicated regardless what you may read in the books. Takashi Yoshikawa's book "The ki", is a good book but his section on directionology definitely needs improvement. It is nowhere near as easy as he explains it. Using yearly directionology principles for monthly or daily analysis as most everyone is doing today will cause some problems. I am not saying I am right and everyone else is wrong, but if I showed you a few things involving detailed directionology analysis you will see things in a completely different light. The principles are undoubtedly quite difficult to absorb and master.

There is of course so much more to Luo Shu analysis than what little we have discussed here and I wish you luck in making your own discoveries through deep thought and research. It is quite a remarkable area of study and very rewarding in a both abstract and practical way.

Luo Shu Considerations

The Luo Shu system of astrology and divination (also referred to as 9 Ki, 9 Star Ki, 9 Palace Fate Calculation, 9 House Astrology, and other names), when used properly and responsibly will reveal a wealth of information to the diviner. There are, however, many discrepancies that can create considerable problems. Today we'll discuss the issue of 'house occupation', or in other words, which house a person occupies at a certain time period. In Luo Shu Astrology the chart is sectioned off into various segments and a person will find their natal energy 'residing' in one of those segments, which is called a House. The chart segmentation occures for any time period, depending on which particular period the diviner is focusing on. The time periods range from very large time units to very small ones. One can work with Eras (360 year units) or Generations (30 year units) down to Minutes or Seconds. Many believe that the Yearly number of a person's birth carries the strongest and most influencial weight, and to an extent this could be true, but it is far from the complete picture. To calculate the yearly number is an easy procedure. :



1) Add Together all the numbers of the year

2) Reduce the numbers to a single digit

3) Subtract the single digit number by 11



As an example, the year 2007 would be considered a 2 Year. That is.......2 + 0 + 0 + 7 = 9. The single digit number subtracted by 11 = 2. Another example would be 1997. 1 + 9 + 9 + 7 = 26. 26 reduced to a single digit would be 2 + 6 = 8. Then 11 - 8 = 3, making 1997 a 3 year. This method will work for the years 1924 through 2104. The other years require a modification, but that is beyond the scope of this post and can be discussed at another time.





HOUSE ASSESSMENT

_________________


Pick up or look at any book on this subject or search the internet and you will discover that every single source uses what I believe to be a very inconsistent way of analyzing house assessment. I think what happened is that one person wrote their views about it and everyone throughout the years followed suit without taking the time to analyze it deeper. I am shocked that even the so-called masters have not realized the dilemma. The problem is that today (and in the past) everyone is using the YEAR number to fit the slot of every other time period segment to make their predictions. In my opinion, this will eventually cause distorted readings. I have mentioned this to a few 'high level' teachers and they very much agreed with me, but had to confess that they could not reveal this to their students because the students would feel that they have been given misguided information for the money they've paid in the past. So the teachers kept lecturing the same outdated information and they do so to this very day. ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE !!!

I have mentioned that the procedure being used today is based on evaluating only the year to the rest of the time periods. That is, Year to Year...Year to Month...Year to Day...Year to Hour. I strongly suggest that the proper procedure should be Year to Year...Month to Month...Day to Day...Hour to Hour. I could give many reasons and explanations why this method is more balanced and makes sense, however this post would then run quite long. But you don't need me to prove it to you as you can surely do your own analyzing and see the beauty of it. If you mention this post to your teacher or master and ask them why they have not mentioned this concept before, they will probably pause a moment and say that they knew about it but it is too complicated for the average student, or that they've heard of it but there hasn't been enough research, or some other lame excuse. They will not admit that they didn't know about it because it would make them look incompetent........and this, they want to avoid at all costs.

THE SOLUTION
____________

We now know one of the problems of House Assessment, so let us look at a solution. The first thing to know is your four Luo Shu numbers...not just the year, as we have been told for so long, but ALL your numbers. Even this in itself can be a problem because everyone uses different techniques for attaining the numbers, and believe me when I say that some of the methods being proposed today border on the rediculous. This in itself is quite another topic that I'm sure we will eventually explore on this blog. If you don't know your 4 Luo Shu numbers you can respond to this post and I'll provide them for you according to the methods I work with. If you are analyzing a certain Day and would like to know which Luo Shu House you are in for that specific day, you look at the Luo Shu day number chart and look at your own DAY number (not year number) and see where it falls in the chart.......that is the house you occupy for that day. If your numbers are 4 year -3 month -1 day and the Luo Shu number for the day is 1, you will see that you occupy the 5 House for the day. Your teacher will tell you that you occupy the 8 house for the day because your year number is 4. But we know better.

An advanced way to look at the Luo Shu is to take a time period's numbers from year to hour and then look at your own year to hour numbers. In other words, look at any time down to the double-hour (down to the minute or second causes severe headaches ha ha ha) and convert them to Luo Shu numbers and note your year to the Times year, your month to the Times month, etc. You will then have a true rendering of your natal energy to the atmospheric flow of energy for that particular time. There are ways where you can then take all this data and form a numerical rating from a range of -20 through +20 and analyze just how potent the qi (chi, energy) is for you at that time. If the rating is highly positive you can expect fortunate results, if the rating is negative you can expect less favorable results. The techniques are limitless, for instance, you can factor in stems and branches alongside the Luo Shu numbers, or you can incorporate the I Ching (Yi Jing) hexagrams with the numbers to get a more refined rating. It is basically up to how deep you can go with your imagination. Joseph Yu has written that 9 Ki astrology is not as accurate as some of the other methods and will reveal much less because it produces only 9 stages of energies to analyze. This is not completly shocking comming from Joseph as his understanding of the subject is quite lacking in depth. He may not understand yet that the 9 stages can be transformed into 81 stages, 729 stages, and beyond to provide very detailed information. His comment was very irresponsible. Be careful if you purchase his $30 book, I have seen it after someone sent it to me for my opinion and the book's lack of adequate explanations causes confusion and the ideas in it are poorly presented and unsatisfactory. The second portion of the book containing the day star numbers are severly erroneous and downright inaccurate. It is amazing that a man who calls himself a master and charges thousands of dollars for his services has such little knowledge on a subject he has written a book about.

If you would like to know the numbers for any time period you may be interested in, just leave the longitude and time period and I'll post the numbers correlated with that time. Example format would be : June 12, 2001 1:20 PM 75 degrees. If you don't know the degrees you can leave the town. If you want just an estimation you don't even need to leave the longitude or town.