Guan Yin lot 58 of 100
Keep to your old living
Even (中平). Grade from the related Goodfate edition. Grades differ between temples, and many Taiwanese temples print none.
忠言善語君須記
莫向他方求別藝
勸君安守舊生涯
除卻有餘都不是
Remember these loyal words and kindly speech.
Do not go elsewhere seeking some other trade.
I urge you to keep quietly to your old living.
Beyond what leaves you enough to spare, nothing is right.
What this lot says
This verse is an old friend's advice, and it has no image at all. It says stay where you are, keep the trade you know, and measure things by whether you have a little left over.
The urge to start again somewhere else can be strongest just when the present work is dull. The verse asks you to notice that.
If you are thinking of changing careers, work out what you earn, spend and save now, and what the switch would do to that margin. Listen to the plain speakers around you before you decide.
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
King Wen consults the oracle (文王問卜)
Traditional accounts say King Wen of Zhou had his chief scribe divine before a hunt, then met Jiang Ziya fishing by the Wei River and recognized the teacher the reading had foretold. The meeting has the air of legend, and it suits a lot that tells you to listen to good counsel.
Source: Wikipedia, Jiang Ziya
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)
忠言善語君須記 / 莫向他方求別藝 / 勸君安守舊生涯 / 除卻有餘都不是
Retrieved 2026-11-08
Jiěqiān Gé (解籤閣)
忠言善語君須記 / 莫向他方求別藝 / 勸君安守舊生涯 / 除卻有餘都不是
Retrieved 2026-11-08
Goodfate (今日運勢), a related edition
直言說話君須記 / 莫在他鄉求别藝 / 切須守己舊生涯 / 除卻其餘都不利
Retrieved 2026-11-08
Where the sources differ
- Line 1 reads 直言說話君須記 in the related Goodfate edition.
- Line 2 reads 莫在他鄉求别藝 in the related Goodfate edition.
- Line 3 reads 切須守己舊生涯 in the related Goodfate edition.
- Line 4 reads 除卻其餘都不利 in the related Goodfate edition.
English translation and commentary are by Cast & Chart.