Tales of the Hidden Path

Custom: Taoist Talismans (Fu 符): What They Are and How They Work

Custom: Burning Incense the Taoist Way: Meaning, Method and Etiquette

Custom: The Red String Bracelet: Meaning, Origins and How to Wear It

Custom: Chinese Protection Amulets: Jade, Bagua Mirrors, Sachets and More

Custom: Front Door Feng Shui: The Mouth of Qi

Custom: Pixiu and the Dragon Turtle: China's Wealth-Guarding Beasts

Custom: Kau Cim: The Chinese Fortune Sticks Explained

Custom: Chinese Lucky Numbers: Why 8 Is Golden and 4 Is Avoided

Custom: The Tung Shing: How to Use the Chinese Almanac

Custom: Borrowing Years: The Chinese Belief That Lifespan Can Be Transferred

Custom: The Seventh Day: Why Chinese Families Leave the House Empty

Custom: The Substitute: Straw Effigies and the Chinese Idea of Standing In

Custom: Keeping Vigil: The Rules of the Chinese Wake

Custom: Calling the Soul: Jiao Hun and the Frightened Child

Custom: Paper Offerings: Why the Chinese Burn Houses, Servants and Money

Custom: The Soul-Guiding Lantern: Light at the Head of a Chinese Funeral

Custom: The Ghost Market: China's Pre-Dawn Trade and Its Legend

Custom: Corpse Driving: The Xiangxi Legend and What Was Actually Happening

Custom: Ghost Month and the Water: Why Nobody Swims in the Seventh Moon

Custom: Mirrors in Chinese Belief: Covered at Death, Never Facing the Bed

Custom: Shoes for the Dead: Burial Footwear and the Rules Around It

Custom: The Figure in the Painting: Chinese Beliefs About Painted People

Custom: The Door Gods: Who Is on Your Door and Why They Face Outward

Custom: The Ever-Burning Lamp: Tomb Lights and Lamp Offerings

Custom: Foundation Sacrifice: The Bridge That Needed a Name

Custom: The Shadow: Chinese Beliefs About What Follows You

Custom: Borrowed Mouths: Spirit Mediums Who Speak for the Dead

Custom: The Well: Chinese Taboos About Looking Down

Custom: The Rice Measure: Borrowing Grain and the Dipper on the Altar

Custom: Encoffining: The Cord, the Coins and the Rules of Laying Out

Custom: Moving a Grave: The Rules of Qian Fen

Custom: Trees on Graves: What Chinese Tradition Reads Into Them

Custom: Water in the Grave: The Worst Finding in Yinzhai

Custom: The Eight Directions of a Grave and the Family Members They Answer To

Custom: Sitting and Facing: How a Chinese Grave Is Oriented

Custom: The Beam Overhead: Why Feng Shui Moves Your Bed

Custom: Glare Sha: When the Building Opposite Throws Light Into Your Home

Custom: Sky Slice Sha: The Gap Between Two Buildings

Custom: Sharp Corner Sha: The Building Edge Pointing at Your Window

Custom: A Bed Without Backing: The Wall Behind Your Head

Custom: Piercing Heart Sha: When a Straight Line Runs Through the House

Custom: Road Rushing Sha: When a Street Points at Your Door

Custom: Door Facing Door: The Sha Between Neighbours

Custom: Reverse Bow Sha: The Road That Curves Away

Custom: Cutting Foot Water: When Water Reaches the Foundations

Custom: Graves Behind the House: The Yin-Facing-Yang Arrangements

Custom: Kong Wang: The Void in a Chinese Birth Chart

Custom: The Mourning Gate and the Visiting Guest

Custom: The Solitary and Widowed Stars

Custom: The Golden Carriage: The Star of Being Carried

Custom: Tian Yi Gui Ren: The Noble Helper

Custom: Yi Ma: The Travelling Horse Star

Custom: Hua Gai: The Canopy Star

Custom: Yang Ren: The Blade Star

Custom: Tian Yi: The Heavenly Doctor Star

Custom: Chinese Palm Reading: The Three Main Lines

Custom: Ce Zi: Divination by Taking a Character Apart

Custom: The Outer Response: Divination That Uses the Room

Custom: Hexagram 18: Gu, and the Work of Repairing What Was Left

Custom: Liu Yao: The Chinese Divination That Answers 'When'

Custom: The Six Spirits: Azure Dragon to Dark Warrior

Custom: The Twelve Day Officers: Jian, Chu, Man, Ping

Custom: Peng Zu's Hundred Prohibitions: One Rule for Every Day

Custom: Waking at the Same Hour Every Night: The Meridian Clock Reading

Custom: Never Pick Up a Red Envelope From the Road

Custom: Weighing the Bones: Yuan Tiangang's Fate Scale

Custom: The Long-Life Cord: Five Colours Tied at the Dragon Boat Festival