Monday 10/11 : sixth day of 9th moon

Today we are told twice that calculated loss succeeds. Make offerings to your ancestors and give gifts to your friends! Giving freely is not loss. Every act of generosity goes both ways. Offerings transform into blessings from the ancestors. If you feel wronged, cut your losses.

Happy birthday to Darren Gibbs, whose hard work makes these posts possible. He built (and maintains) the DYC TongShu app, where you can access this information yourself. He also recorded all of Liu Ming’s talks, which will benefit the world for generations. Beyond his many contributions, he is just a wonderful person. Show him some love!

smoke climbs the trestle
of October’s golden light
incense offering

Tuesday 10/12 : 7th day of 9th moon

Underdogs are seen and valued today. Get low. Good day to chill, enter retreat, study, and stay with our routine. We’re a week into the Cold Dew qi node. Activity on earth appears to diminish as we move toward winter, but really it’s just moving inward. Yin is growing. (Yin describes what is cold, still, dark, substantial—an antidote/complement to the excess Yang of our current world.) We allow Yin to flourish by resting, eating warm foods that are easy to digest, and going to sleep by 11pm. Our blood and yin are most deeply replenished between 11pm-1am.

wanna be the star
but autumn light
casts my shadow

Wednesday 10/13 : 8th day of 9th moon

Group efforts go well, especially when everyone involved has the natural boundaries that arise from self-respect. Today’s Lunar Mansion comes from the three stars that make up Orion’s belt. This constellation governs borders. Get rid of qi vampires, end bad habits (excess), and guard your resources to avoid loss, exhaustion, and invasion. Great day for a haircut (shedding inessentials). People who do not use their qi judiciously will be prone to recklessness and seduction.

celebrity stars
chase celestial bodies
but his belt stays on

Thursday 10/14 : 9th day of 9th moon

Change is in the air, so let go. Fear of change makes transformation excruciating and can lead to incomplete death (ghosts). In a recent dream of dying, I freaked out as everything I knew began to fall away—proprioception, dexterity, knowledge, skill, memory. I hovered near my psychic friend, looking for direction. Next time, I’m going all in. (We can practice dying every day.) Letting go is a wild ride, but hanging on is way scarier. On a global scale, this level of change could look like revolution. It’s a good day to initiate change, too: feng shui adjustments, makeovers, switching jobs. If you’ve been waiting for the right day to make a large purchase (or donation), this is it.

mounted butterfly
has done its butterfly thing
for a second time

Friday 10/15 : 10th day of 9th moon

Today offers an easy rapport with the otherworld. By simply being still, or even falling asleep, we can be visited by revelations, secret teachings, and lucidity. Taking credit for bouts of clarity is like taking credit for good health. We can’t. We can behave in ways that increase our odds of health and sanity, but most causes lie elsewhere (grace, fate, precedent, calendar qi). Anyone buried today resolves fate for the whole family.

freaks of nature
roam in the queer October light
at last in season

Saturday 10/16 : 11th day of 9th moon

Today is a lot like yesterday. A Shut day is a day of rest, whether we like it or not. Days like this are only “negative” in cultures that value industry over health, and conflate rest with laziness (an emergent property of trauma). Forcing things to happen borrows qi and creates negative credit. However, we may experience a windfall of inner resources today. Sudden recovery from illness is possible.

Today is called a Willow day. Grief brings us closer to life than nearly anything else can. It strips us clean to the bone. Willow twigs preceded yarrow stalks in consulting the I Ching because of this essential quality. Planted in cemeteries, willows soothe the dead through their weeping. They are known to “maintain the purity” of sacred places. People make talismans and altar plates from their wood. Grieving allows us to occupy a liminal space of wisdom. We take turns at this post, so honor those who currently hold it.

the willow is, too

Sunday 10/17 : 12th day of 9th moon

Consult the oracle, and report back. Like dreaming, divination is a community affair meant to recalibrate the group body. In general, go with convention over innovation today. Avoid travel and medical treatment if possible. If not, it’s never the end of the world.

the praying mantis
and her shadow on a leaf
green on green on green

Thanks so much for reading. Have a good week!