Yue Lao Oracle Lot 13 · Good

山窮水盡疑無路，柳暗花明又一村。 Where hills and streams run out, I feared there was no road ahead, then past dark willows and bright blossoms, another village appears.

The lot

Text notes (in Chinese): 陸游原句作「山重水複疑無路」，照錄流通本.

Background: what the original says

The Song poet Lu You describes a winding mountain path: just when he thinks he has reached a dead end, he rounds a bend and finds another village.

A Visit to Shanxi Village is a regulated verse by the Southern Song poet Lu You. In 1166, while vice-prefect of Longxing, Lu was accused by censors of stirring up faction and pressing too hard for Zhang Jun's northern campaign, and he was dismissed. He went home to Shanyin and the poem is generally dated to the following spring, when he walked out to a nearby hill village. It opens with the farmers' cloudy winter wine and generous harvest-year hospitality. Then comes the famous couplet: among layered hills and winding streams he thinks there is no way forward, until past dark willows and bright blossoms another village appears. The poem moves on to the pipes and drums of the spring festival. The couplet described a real walk, but its sense of an unexpected turn made it endlessly quoted. Lu You's first line speaks of layered hills and winding streams; the lot's wording, mountains and rivers exhausted, is a later popular version.

What it means

A relationship that seems hopeless may take a turn for the better just around the corner. Do not give up when you feel discouraged; a new opportunity lies ahead.

Reminder: Try looking in a different direction; there is more than one road.

This is a plain reading of the words and their source. How it applies to your own question is best settled with the interpreter at the temple where you drew it.

How to ask Yue Lao for a lot

1. Yue Lao, the Old Man under the Moon, usually has a side shrine inside a larger temple, such as a City God temple or a Mazu temple. Follow the temple's route: pay respects to the main deity first, then go to Yue Lao.
2. Tell Yue Lao your name, birth date and address, describe where you are in love right now, and state the one question you want to ask (for example, "Will this relationship last?" or "When will I meet someone?").
3. Cast the moon blocks (jiaobei, two crescent-shaped wooden blocks) to ask whether you may draw. One face up and one face down means yes; then pull one stick and cast again to confirm it. Many temples ask for three yeses in a row; if not, draw again.
4. Collect the slip with the matching number. Yue Lao lots are quotations from old books, so the meaning often depends on the original passage. If it is unclear, ask the temple's interpreter.

Ask about one thing at a time; the more specific the question, the easier the lot is to apply. Yue Lao lots are for love and marriage only; for other matters, use the temple's general fortune poems.

Common misunderstandings

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