Guan Yin lot 49 of 100
Plans like thawing ice
Even (中平). Grade from lot 49 of the related Goodfate edition, whose verse is worded quite differently, so it is not compared line by line below. Grades differ between temples, and many Taiwanese temples print none.
營圖萬事若冰澌
何必慳貪苦所為
只好靜心閑處坐
待他興變復奚疑
All your plans and schemes are like thawing ice.
Why wear yourself out with grasping?
Better to quiet the heart and sit at ease,
And wait for the turn. What is there to doubt?
What this lot says
All plans are compared to thawing ice, which looks solid and slips away, and the verse asks why anyone would wear themselves out with grasping.
Its advice is to quiet the heart and wait for things to change, since conditions do shift without your pushing.
If you are working long hours to squeeze more from a deal, or holding too tightly to every dollar and every option, take a step back. Decide what you would be content with, and stop chasing the rest for a while. A clear head will help you notice when circumstances turn.
A lot is a prompt for reflection. It cannot promise a result, and it is no substitute for medical, legal or financial advice.
The story behind it
Wang Xiang seeks carp (王祥求鯉)
In a story from the Twenty-four Filial Exemplars, Wang Xiang, a real third-century official, lay on the ice in winter until it opened, and two carp leapt out for his stepmother. The legend suits a lot whose central image is ice.
Source: Chinese Wikipedia, 王祥
Where this text comes from
This verse is a traditional temple text with no known author. No single original edition is known and wording differs between temples, so we compare named witnesses and record where they differ.
Míguāng (覓光) (the text shown above)
營圖萬事若冰澌 / 何必慳貪苦所為 / 只好靜心閑處坐 / 待他興變復奚疑
Retrieved 2026-11-08
Jiěqiān Gé (解籤閣)
營圖萬事若冰澌 / 何必慳貪苦所為 / 只好靜心閑處坐 / 待他興變復奚疑
Retrieved 2026-11-08
Where the sources differ
- The related Goodfate edition has a substantially different verse for this lot.
English translation and commentary are by Cast & Chart.