In honor of Liu Ming and Chinese Wisdom Science

         

A joyful Vernal Equinox and auspicious Wood Dragon Year!

I'm calling this blog a WRAP!

If you're interested in the Chinese Almanac,

consider checking out my friend and peer:

https://www.instagram.com/zhenwuastrology/

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It has been my honor to share with you all:

CHINESE ALMANAC ASTROLOGY
Commentary and compilations by Jamie Shulander, 
All notes from class notes/works by Liu Ming

What continues:

Polestar, Almanac and Feng Shui Consultations

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jshulander@gmail.com

Meanwhile, I'm eagerly becoming a Potter,

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MAY YOU BE FILLED WITH JOY

THIS VERNAL EQUINOX

wild plums the first flush of spring fading

darkening sky the heaviness of an approaching storm

March morning alone with the birds and the bees

releasing into presence nowhere to go nothing to do

global conflict--- tiny seeds awakened by the rising warmth GREETINGS FROM

MICHAEL SHEFFIELD

Chinese Almanac Astrology March 11-17, 2024

        

CHINESE ALMANAC ASTROLOGY
Commentary and compilations by Jamie Shulander, 
All notes from class notes/works by Liu Ming

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LUNAR YEAR: YANG WOOD DRAGON (1844, 1904, 1964, 2024) ‘Laughing Dragon’

“Wood Dragons are artistic, righteous and ingenious. They survive difficult childhoods to become caring parents. They are persuasive, humorous and easily make friends. Jealousy haunts them. They are productive artists. Their fortune steadily improves throughout their life. In old age they will cultivate elegance and own a considerable amount of property. They are prone to lung and liver disharmonies due to suppressed anger. They are susceptible to possession when passing through damp forested areas.”

LM Notes: 60 Characters

LUNAR MONTH: YIN FIRE RABBIT (1867, 1927, 1987, 2047) ‘Moon-Gazing Rabbit’

“Fire Rabbits are quiet, but stiff and regal. They think very little of the knowledge or teachings of others and have a high opinion of their own opinions and thoughts. They are painfully idealistic. Their lack of trust conflicts with their strong sexual appetite and this often leaves them isolated and lonely. They marry more than once. Despite repeated calamities in their lives, they have good fortune and will be comforted by wealth and position. Though strong, they often acquire unusual diseases - difficult to diagnose and treat. They are particularly susceptible to pernicious cold.”

LM Notes: 60 Characters

QI NODE: 3 Insect Stirs

Yang Rises

"Insect Stirs is a time of 'awakened movement'. The cold ground softens. Insects awaken from their hibernation. The heat rises up from below and cool wind descends from Heaven. Wind has the subtle freshness of spring but no great or abiding force. The hibernation of dragons ends. In winter dragons (the symbol of spring) are locked in frozen alpine lakes. Their stirring cracks the ice and causes thunder and lightning. The world is startled. Rivers and creeks swell.

Below the surface of Earth the insects stir - wake from their hibernation. In this qi node the insects do not reproduce, develop or burst out of the ground - they only stir. The union of Heaven and Earth is an occasional temperate wind - invisible and inconsistent.

During this qi node qi is best in the hours around dawn. One should practice neigong facing the rising sun. Do not exert yourself, but let the neiqi wiggle and play - this renews us and gives us longevity. Be creative, follow your instincts in neigong.

There is a slightly mischievous quality to the qi of insect stirs. When the baby reaches for the stove, one has to admire curiosity, but curtail enthusiasm."

LM The Way of Three Treasures

LUNAR HEXAGRAM: 34 Da Zhuang: Great Strength

“The spontaneous use of force may work in some situations, but injury and difficulties surround the misuse of force. Being rambunctious leads to costly mishap, injury and failure, but also survival. The auspices are mixed.”

“The wise use great strength with great caution, because the know it is costly (great injury). In general, the authors of the Zhouyi give great strength no value, unless it is paired with wisdom.

However, it is also observed that even the weak, when in a desperate situation, naturally possess great strength - the will to survive. The force or instinct to survive has great strength and can have a successful result. This kind of great strength should not be confused with belligerence or mere violence."

LM Changing: Zhouyi 34 Da Zhuang

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MONDAY March 11, Yang Wood Dragon 2
Hexagram 27 Yi: Jaws

Lunar Mansion: The Heart / Fox

Solar Indicator: Danger

“Wood Dragons are artistic, righteous and ingenious. They survive difficult childhoods to become caring parents. They are persuasive, humorous and easily make friends. Jealousy haunts them. They are productive artists. Their fortune steadily improves throughout their life. In old age they will cultivate elegance and own a considerable amount of property. They are prone to lung and liver disharmonies due to suppressed anger. They are susceptible to possession when passing through damp forested areas.”

LM Notes: 60 Characters

“Raw impulse is strong but dangerous. Excessive ambitions can bring about personal disaster. There will be setbacks in progress. Acting properly when the time is right goes well. In the acquisition of what you want (money or property) it is important to be strong but modest."

LM Changing: Zhouyi 27 Yi

“It is auspicious to comply with superiors, make offerings to the ancestors, move home and/or immigrate. Only routine work may avoid negativity. Contraindicated activity: If you start a lawsuit (making your case) you will lose everything (imprisonment). If you construct a building, get married or bury the dead, disaster follows. Everything sold today will be at a loss to the seller. Pushing forward (forcing progress) on this day will have three times the negative result of other days.”

LM Notes: The Heart

“To roust hypocrisy in his new alliances the leader must bait his hidden enemies (yin) by showing vulnerability. This day is a qi expression of true power but all the action is fraught with danger and risk. The games of political power are also the precursors of decline. The power plays show yin to be drawing life from the heart of yang. Success is limited now to a kind of survival. Manipulation and covert action succeed. Elegance becomes the mask of cleverness and intrigue. Doing only what needs to be done is best. Old habits or patterns of pressing forward will invite catastrophe. Beware grudges.”

LM Notes: Danger

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TUESDAY March 12, Yin Wood Pig 3

Hexagram: 24 Fu: Return

Lunar Mansion: The Tail / Tiger

Solar Indicator: Complete

“Wood Pigs are gullible, immature and strong willed characters. They have extremely uneven fortunes, running from exalted to disastrous. Their youth is often spent in dissolute circumstances, but their survival gives them a strong and stable old age. They will be repeatedly deceived by friends, family and strangers and learn slowly from this. Despite their difficulties, their old age is stable, joyful (supportive children) and rich. Their illnesses are caused by over-eating and emotional stress. They have long lives.”

LM Notes: 60 Characters

“Short-term plans succeed in the context of a broad view. Things are turning for the better. Routine work comes to fruition. It is favorable to have a clear goal before setting out."

LM Changing: Zhouyi 24 Fu

“It is auspicious to start a building (brings prosperity), get married (brings fertility), bury the dead (resolves karma) and educate the young (secure longevity) on this day. It is a good time to move house (into a city). These actions today cause a person or family and all their projects to flourish. On this day investments increase in value. It is ideal to give or receive (spend) inheritances. Enjoying the arts is appropriate. Lost treasures can be found on this day. It is ideal for self-cultivation, meditation and enjoyment. It is a time of recognizing and acknowledging achievement with rewards. Evening is less auspicious.”

LM Notes: The Tail

“It is a day for resting on your laurels. Success is established and secured and the new state seems to govern itself. Enemies are few. It is a time for inward reflection (yin) on the bare face of reality (yang). Struggle (yang) is no longer possible or necessary (yin). Decline is not feared and success not celebrated. Wisdom approaches and withdrawing succeeds. Art is the demonstration of confidence, dignity and wisdom - be artful. No more accumulating - decorate with modesty. The way of perfecting power is austerity and restraint. Do less, have less, show less and seek nothing. Enjoy what is already manifest.” 

LM Notes: Complete

WEDNESDAY March 13, Yang Fire Rat 4

Hexagram 44 Gou: Meeting
Lunar Mansion: The Basket / Leopard
Solar Indicator: Harvest

“Fire Rats are aggressive, excitable and brave characters. They hide their resources then burst forward and break rules. They enjoy uncovering other people’s secrets and have more than a few themselves. Their fortune starts out obstructed but clears in midlife, when their previous misconduct begins to resolve. Think reckless Robin Hood. They have a constitutional weakness in stomach/spleen and are prone to heart problems. If they reach old age they have wisdom and gain respect. They will have ‘been there and done that’.”

LM Notes: 60 Characters

“Inauspicious for all intimate personal relationships. It is a time to withdraw and cut your losses. Both sexes are at risk to be abused by the inappropriateness of a relationship. Think rot and ruin. A kind of corruption has entered the very foundation of things.”

LM Changing: Zhouyi 44 Guo

"It is auspicious to marry, work hard, purchase, build and remodel (new door =  new resources) on this day. It is auspicious to continue your routine work, review and reinvest. Acquiring wealth (work, invest and collecting debts) is highlighted. Good for burials, memorials and funerals (rain of blessings from the ancestors). Contraindicated activity: Laziness, gossip and slander."

LM Notes: The Basket

“What makes this day smooth is a sense of fearlessness. It is not so much how it goes (yang) as what it shows (yin). Rise and fall are no longer the point - the wide view can be taken. Ease is possible - effortless continuity on all sides. The qi seems to float us forward quite naturally - ebbing and flowing are both acceptable. The lessons of early life are found in both maturing and declining. Everything succeeds. Cleverness and survival give way to courage and directness. Be like a beloved monarch not an ambitious merchant. Let new resources and assistance come forward by standing back.”

LM Notes: Harvest

THURSDAY March 14, Yin Fire Ox 5

Hexagram 28 Da Guo: Excess
Lunar Mansion: The Ladle / Griffon
Solar Indicator: Open

“Fire Ox are assertive, focused and oafish characters. Their accomplishments are epic. They mature very quickly and/or are deprived of a normal childhood. Their strength (belligerence) creates enemies (hard knocks) but these enemies become their teachers. By midlife they will have overcome many obstacles to become well-known, prosperous and happy. They are likely to have more than one family and enjoy a ‘second childhood’ when they reach 60. They are prone to liver disorders and eye problems.”

LM Notes: 60 Characters

“Da Guo contains instructions on how to avoid disaster in heavy, grave or weird and unconventional circumstances. When you get entangled in excess, going forward with caution may be the best thing to do. Excess and eccentricity have their place. Something greater than the usual mechanical sense of cause and effect is at work in Da Guo."

LM Changing: Zhouyi 28 Da Guo

"It is a most auspicious day for Daoist religious rites, initiations and transmission of (esoteric) teachings. It is an auspicious day to start up a business and build a new building (home, temple). It is a safe day to dig foundations (wells, trenches) and get married. New opportunities (news) abound - taking exams and routine work bring great success/reward on this day. It is an auspicious day to bury the dead - they will rest peacefully and benefit the surviving relatives.”

"Contraindicated activity: Hypocrisy, irreverence, breaking taboos and sloth."

LM Notes: The Ladle

“The choice here is whether to call fate something to fight or something to embrace. It is a day with an easy qi. It is a day to appreciate how things really operate beyond the desire that creates images and appearances. Accepting should be a boundless (yin) act beyond goals - the goal has always been return to our beginningless origin (Dao). There is no protagonist (yang) that should relax - there is only relaxation itself (yin). Look around for a successor (new plan, idea, task) and resume the heart/mind of a novice. The son of a rebel leader may become the second emperor of a new dynasty. An open heart gives the option to acquire great wisdom.”

LM Notes: Open

FRIDAY March 15, Yang Earth Tiger 6

Hexagram 50 Ding: Tri-Pod Vessel
Lunar Mansion: The Oxboy / Ox
Solar Indicator: Shut

“Earth Tigers are obstinate, emotional and cavalier characters. Their youth goes badly and makes them homeless wanderers. This wandering makes them excellent planners or cons and tricksters. Their unique fortunes rest on the fact that they actually benefit from harming others (strange karma debts to collect). They have awesome energy and physical strength that can only be made sick by powerful spells and/or demons.”

LM Notes: 60 Characters

"It is a time of education and great spiritual and material success. Don’t rush. Your superiors notice you. Opportunity is abundant. Alliances are offered to you on all sides.”

LM Changing: Zhouyi  50 Ding

“It is auspicious to stay home, guard resources, meditate and focus. It is auspicious to initiate austerity, enter retreat, recover and economize.”

LM Notes: The Oxboy

“A Shut day is a day of rest, whether you like it or not. Qi resources are spent and the notion of a spender (yang) is long gone. Dispersion has ended in exhaustion (big yin) and no memory exists to create joy or negativity. Struggling to act on such a day borrows qi from fantasy and sets up a ghostly pattern of bad qi credit. What’s it like to float down the river with no boat, no river and no protagonist? It is ideal day for retreat, mediation and severing ties with everything - don’t worry, it is not the end of anything! Let go anyway - feel the freedom and inaction, disconnectedness, because it offers limitless insight. Focus on your golf swing and forget about how the kids are squandering their inheritance on cocaine. It’s that kind of day! The river has reached the sea and even the water is confused.”

LM Notes: Shut

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LUNAR HEXAGRAM: 5 Xu: Waiting

"Xu suggests that waiting is a part of the natural unfolding (fate) of all situations. Xu is about making the most of waiting - using the power of patience and procrastination to avoid struggle and develop wisdom in action. Accepting fate is not about abandoning intelligence. A wise and able person has the sensitivity to find the freedom within fate. The wisdom of Xu is the clarity to hold back and go forward at the right times.” 

LM Changing: Zhouyi 5 Xu

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SATURDAY March 16, Yin Earth Rabbit 7

Hexagram 32 Heng: Constancy
Lunar Mansion: The Maiden / Bat
Solar Indicator: Design

“Earth Rabbits are persuasive, resourceful and distrustful characters. Their own uneven fortune often makes them dishonest with and wary of even their friends/family. They obsess about security but do not find it. Their strong sexual appetite does not respect boundaries and they often divorce and/or seduce other people’s partners. An uneven marriage may last a long time. They enjoy the company of unconventional characters and those less fortunate than themselves. In midlife, they can establish material security, and stop obsessing and metamorphose. In old age they have a real potential to study (knowledge) and gain wisdom. They are prone to lung and skin ailments.”

LM Notes: 60 Characters

“Heng is very favorable for carrying out routine work. Maintaining and practicing what is durable in life brings good fortune."

LM Changing: Zhouyi 32 Heng

“It is auspicious to stay home, enjoy the arts, self-reflect, do inner planning and practice austerity (meditation, fasting and rest). It is beneficial to guard your health and conserve your qi. It is favorable to support others. Building may be safe but not profitable.”

“It is not auspicious to take risks, medical treatments, bury the dead (cause epidemics, bowel disorders). To initiate industry (dig earth) and production on this day invites calamity.” 

LM Notes: The Maiden

“It is an excellent day to recover wisdom by stepping back, planning, recalling alliances and reassessing our position.”

LM Notes: Design

SUNDAY March 17, Yang Metal Dragon 8

Hexagram Consult the Oracle
Lunar Mansion: The Void / Rat
Solar Indicator: Divide

“Metal Dragons have an egotistical, powerful and outspoken character. Despite their egotism, they are articulate and knowledgeable. They are so strong that they feel above morality and the law. Their uneven fortune is due to many broken boundaries and commitments - unburned bridges (karma). Their vitally strong constitution gives them enormous appetites (food, sex, ideas). Their medical problems go unnoticed, eventually becoming irreversible mental disorders (and/or possession).”

LM Notes: 60 Characters

“It is auspicious to stay home, strengthen family ties and protect your children. Sleep and rest are recommended (be cautioned by your dreams).”

“On this day it is not auspicious to marry (your children will be delinquent or handicapped), bury the dead or make offerings to ancestors (ghosts/dead will become demonic - causing illnesses for 3 years!). Extra-marital affairs begun on this day will eventually ruin your family, reputation and health. Medical treatments today can cause injury and expose constitutional weakness.”

LM Notes: The Void

"Holding back on this day is related to deeper self-reflection, education of all sorts and consulting with experts and elders - rather than forward action. It is not about immature reluctance or cowardice but about shedding inessentials."

LM Notes: Divide

Jamie Shulander

Instagram: @jamieshulander