Yue Lao Oracle Lot 51 · Good

雖有善者，亦無如之何矣。 Even with good people at hand, there is nothing left that they can do.

The lot

Background: what the original says

The Great Learning warns that when a ruler puts petty people in charge, then by the time disaster arrives, even good people can no longer help.

This line comes from the last section of the Great Learning (Daxue), on government and wealth. It first quotes Meng Xianzi, a minister of Lu: a family that keeps horses and carriages does not haggle over chickens and pigs, and a great house would rather have a servant who steals from it than a steward who squeezes the people. Better to lose something yourself than to fleece those below you.

The text goes on to say that a ruler bent on piling up revenue has surely been led there by petty men. Let such men run the state and disasters arrive together; by then, even if good people are at hand, nothing can be done. A state, it insists, should count righteousness, not profit, as its gain. It was a warning that the damage starts with choosing the wrong people, and that calling in the right ones afterward comes too late. The oracle borrows that sense of arriving too late.

What it means

Once things reach a certain point, even the kindest people around you cannot fix them for you. Make your own decisions, and take care early not to choose the wrong person.

Reminder: Make your choices carefully at the start instead of looking for rescue after things go wrong.

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

Previous: Lot 50; next: Lot 52.