Coins for Consulting the Oracle

Any two coins will work so long as you can tell one from the other.



Chinese cash, the coins that gave the English language its term for ready money, are popularly used for divination, and these clearly depict a mandala design.



Chinese cash 1 Chinese cash 2


The circle is representative of heaven, while the square signifies earth with the four characters are positioned towards the cardinal points.

The central hole is also reminiscent both of the central square of the well in the heart of Jing, and of the hole for the axle of a wheel, and even the still point in the whirling cycle of life itself.



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© Ken Taylor 2004-2006