Reported by Vimvam Tong and Tomiris Urstembayeva
Edited by Fifi Tsui
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In front of the Buddhas in Wong Tai Sin temple, rows of people are kneeling on the ground to pray. Some of them are shaking divination lots in the bamboo container until one lot is finally shaking out with a number.
One of them was Ms. Ting, 29, who asked not to be fully named. Her fortune teller, Bessie Chu Siu-jan, 81, started to interpret the number on the lot to tell Ting’s fortune in the coming year.
“I heard from my friend that my zodiac ‘snake’ will be not good in ‘pig’ year,” Ting said. She comes to Chu for suggestions.
Chu has been telling fortunes in Wong Tai Sin for 21 years after her retirement. She tells Ting to be careful with potential bad luck and pay attention to her interpersonal relationships . Chu then suggests Ting to wear an amulet to minimize her bad luck because her zodiac sign has “offended” deity Tai Sui this year.
From I Ching practitioner and Feng shui expert Luo Lihua’s book Chinese Traditional Numerology, he explained that to enhance good fortune, people should follow the advice of Fengshui, reading, and cultivate virtue. Another lesson he learnt from I Ching is that “to avoid the evil and do what can be practiced in nurture when you know your fate in nature; and vice versa.”
“I used to have many worries but now I feel better after listening to her guidance," said Ting.
Chu explained that young people are lazier compared with the generation 20 years ago who were more practical. “Nowadays, young people like to check their fortunes but do not work hard. They hope that they can get anything easily.”
“People will always come to me and ask ‘why I am still failing now?’” Chu said. She explained that the younger generation tend to pursue something that is “vague”. For instance, they struggle to get what they really want “because they like to complain instead of taking action.”
She suggests that young people should “work hard for their future”.
Tam Wan-lung, expert on geomancy and tutor of the class of Blind Numerology in Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions Amateur Training Centre, explained that the metaphysical numerology aims to help young people to plan their life, but not to be too overly superstitious.
Wong Gu-neung, in her 40s, has been telling fortunes, reading palms and faces for eight years in Temple Street. She claims that she serves around 90 to 150 people each month. Around 80% of her customers are people born after the 90s.
“The economy is not as good as before and people are under different kinds of pressure,” said Wong. She elaborated that when young people have some problems, they don’t know who to talk to, “so we are someone whom they can talk with.”
Tam recognises this trend and believes that the pressures faced in this era are more diversified than the past.
“The young have much more concerns their future, work, relationships, and buying apartments,” said Tam. He added that young people hope to grasp alternative solutions through fortune-telling to tackle their problems nowadays.
In Western astrological traditions, the astrologer plays the same role as fortune-teller. Phoenix K, 35, an astrologer in Temple Street who uses tarot cards to serve her customers, said that her customers are younger than before.
“Young people are more confused these days. They don’t know themselves clearly, and they need the exact answers (from astrologers) for a life direction,” said K, who does not wish to be fully named.
“I always keep my eyes on any fortune changes,” said Ruka Tong Mei-kwa, 21, a local university student , who has been doing research on fortune-telling, palm-reading, face-reading and divination for more than half a year, learning from different related websites and acquaintances.
Tong regards herself as an indecisive person, believing that she should find answers and solutions from other approaches. She thinks that fortune-telling can give her what she seeks for. In addition, she can be psychologically prepared for those challenges by fortune telling.
“I can follow their suggestions (to reduce bad luck) but may not not follow them completely.”
Young people are generally not very clear about their own life, or are afraid of making the wrong decisions and bringing bad influence, said Tong. “So people will find the answer through divination first to avoid wrong behavior.”
“Everytime I finish my fortune-telling, the solution to the puzzle (worries and problems) dawned on me,” said Tong.
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