Yi Jing, Oracle of the Moon

神數

“Shen Shu”, Spirit Numbers 361-384

Numbers
1-24
25-48
49-72
73-96
97-120
121-144
145-168
169-192
193-216
217-240
241-264
265-288
289-312
313-336
337-360
361-384

361 A wooden fish

手持一木魚，
沿街去化緣，
不見徐公來，
卻遇一鳥去

Holding in one's hand a wooden fish,
Going along the street begging for alms,
Not seeing the official who comes gently,
However meeting one bird, which flies away.

  (Wooden fish: a Buddhist percussion instrument)

362 Water and fire

水火既濟
陰陽相契
育物新民
參天贊地。

 Water and fire already assisting,
Yin and yang are in accord,
Giving birth to creatures and people of a new time,
Reaching to the sky and assisting the earth.

363 Riding the Jade Hare

爐中火，
沙裏金，
功力到，
丹鼎成。

Riding the Jade Hare,
Towards the cold expanse,
Meeting Cháng'é,
I will climb the laurel tree,
Now my entire body has the strong fragrance,
Both sleeves pervaded with the perfume.

  Jade Hare: the moon. 嫦娥 Cháng'é Goddess of the moon. 桂 laurel or osmanthus

364 A Shendao priest

一個神道
隨爾去行
逢人設法
到處顯靈。

A Shendao priest,
Follow him, leave and walk,
You will come upon people who are searching for solutions,
Everywhere it makes its presence felt.

  神道 shéndào, beliefs regarding ghostly influences, gods; spirits, tomb passage, 〈Jp.〉 Shinto.

365 The alchemist

爐中火
沙裏金
功力到
丹鼎成。

Fire in the stove,
Gold in the sand,
Effort and skill will achieve,
The furnace of the alchemist succeeds.

  丹 Pill or the mercuric sulfide.
  丹鼎 Furnace of alchemists for concoction of immortality pills.

366 A friend who shares your goals

此去萬里程
卻遇花知音；
同心共濟
大立勳名。

This goes a long way,
But if you come across a friend who shares your goals,
And you are of one heart and help each other,
You can reach big merit and fame.

367 The flowers open

尋芳春日
適見花開
朵朵堪摘
枝枝可栽。

Enjoying the beautiful scenery on a spring day,
Watching the flowers open at the right time,
Many flowers can be picked,
Many branches can be planted.

368 A dragon cries

龍一吟
雲便興
沖霄直上
快觀太平；
為文為武
君君臣臣。

A dragon cries once,
And the clouds we need gather,
Rising up, towering into the sky.
He contemplates sharply the peace and tranquility,
The culture, the military,
The sovereign ruling, the minister going about his duties.

369 The emerging tiger

虎出金傷
有勇成何際；
怎似山翁
非富猶有趣。

The emerging tiger is wounded by metal,
Why should his courage be his fate?
How similar to the old man on the mountain,
Not rich but yet interesting.

370 Narrow and wide roads

過羊腸
入康莊
五陵裘馬
當思故鄉。

After passing narrow winding roads
You enter a broad and open one
Wuling and furs and horses
It makes you think of your native place.

  羊腸 Narrow winding road: litt. intestines of a sheep.
  康莊 Broad and open road (idiom) brilliant future prospects.
  This story is about Wuling and furs and horses.

371 Fire and water

火道水剋
火滅其光；
水勢滔滔
源遠流長。

The Dao of fire is restrained by water,
Water extinguishes its light;
The flow of water is torrential,
From a distant source flowing on and on.

  源遠流長 lit. source is distant and flow is long. Long-lasting and well-established. Fig: sth goes back to the dim and distant past - a lot of water has flowed under the bridge since then.

372 The mind at rest

東閣筵開
佳客自來；
高歌唱和
展邑舒懷。

A banquet is held at the eastern pavillion.
Honored guests from the beginning
Are singing lustily joining in the chorus,
They open up and set the mind at rest.

373 Be aware of the small cracks in peace

世界似清寧
不知辭已休；
打壘要小心
須防遭大毒。

The world appears peaceful,
You are not aware that poetry already ceased;
If you intend to construct a building you must be careful,
You must guard against big fires.

374 The dragon door

跳龍門
須波浪
雷電轟轟
踴躍萬丈。

When jumping the Dragon Door,
There will be waves,
Crashing thunder and lightning,
A gigantic leap.

  跳龍門 Jump dragon door: pass the civil-service examinations.
  萬丈 bottomless: litt.10.000 x 3,3 meter.
  波 wave or unexpected turn of events.

375 The ancient pine tree

山上有古松
亭亭沖漢斗
幹老枝更長
天地生榮久。

High in the mountains stands an ancient pine tree,
Gracefully erect on a plane at Handou,
The trunk is old, the branches long,
Heaven and earth give birth to longlasting glory.

  沖 〈topo.〉 n. (used in place names) flat stretch in hilly area.

376 Fate is already settled

誹謗言
勿計論
到頭來
數已定
碌碌浮生
不如安分。

Slanderous words,
Do not consider them,
In the end fate is already settled,
A mediocre commonplace life,
Is inferior to being law-abiding.

377 To sacrifice a pig

一個豬
可祭天地
雖喪身
亦算好處。

A pig can be used for a sacrifice to Heaven,
Even though it loses its life,
It also counts as a benefit.

378 Thinking at night

與其日營營
何如夜忖忖；
日裏多勞形
夜間卻安穩。

Rather than running hither and thither in the day,
Wouldn't it be better to think carefully in the night;
The daytime is physically fatiguing,
At night however you are at ease and sedate.

379 The eastwind

東風來
花自開
人家喝采
暢飲三杯。

The eastwind is coming,
The flowers open up,
The family drink with happy faces.
And drink their fill with three cups.

  喝采 drink with happy faces: cheer, acclaim.

380 Simple food

疏食飲水
樂在其中
膏粱嗅味
反使心朦。

Simple and plain food
One takes delight in,
The smell and taste of rich food,
on the other hand, obscure the heart.

381 From plowing to harvesting

黃牛闢土
大力開疆；
西成時候
穀米盈倉。

Oxen open up the earth,
Vigorously expand the boundaries;
At the harvest time
A surplus of millet and rice in the warehouse.

382 The dragon-snake

蛇可化龍
頭角將出；
平地一聲雷轟
方顯龍蛇有力。

A snake can change into a dragon,
On the head horns will emerge;
With a thunderous spectacular sound on the earth,
A powerful dragon-snake appears.

  A thunderous spectacular sound on the earth: have a great spectacular succes.
  龍蛇 dragon snake; flourish in calligraphy; eminent person.

383 The nine peaks of Huashan

九華山頂
紫氣騰騰；
異盡一舟
取去前行。

On the nine Huashan mountain tops,
An auspicious atmosphere is soaring.
Embark in a boat,
Take off and move forward,

  Soaring; seething with activity.
  Embark: lit. different to the fullest??

384 All about the results

人非孔顏，鮮能無過，
過而能改，仍復無過，
放開懷抱意欣欣。

People are not like Confucius, few can avoid faults,
Making faults and yet being able to change,
One remains again not at fault,
The blossoms are not enough evidence,
It is the actual result which is the criterion,
Let go and be happy.