Stick #55
Average吳隱之除官歸隱
Wu Yinzhi Retires from Office
A governor of Kwangtung accepted a small gift from his people, Which served as a token of thanks for his just administration.
But suddenly a storm arose while on board a departing ship.
He prayed and forsook the gift in exchange for a joyous trip.
Asking about: Study
The Story Behind This Stick
Wu Yinzhi was a 4th-century Chinese official famous for his incorruptibility. When appointed governor of Guangdong, he famously refused to drink from the Greedy Spring near Guangzhou, believing it would make him corrupt. During his tenure, he governed justly and the people loved him.
When his term ended, grateful citizens offered him gifts as thanks for his fair administration. Wu accepted one small token to avoid offending them, but on his journey home, his ship encountered a terrible storm. Interpreting this as divine displeasure for accepting even this modest gift, he threw it overboard and prayed.
The storm immediately calmed. This story became a legendary example of how even the smallest compromise of principles can have consequences, and how true integrity sometimes requires difficult choices.
Your educational journey mirrors Wu Yinzhi's moral dilemma — you're facing a choice between taking shortcuts and maintaining your principles. That 'small gift' in the poem represents tempting shortcuts: copying assignments, using unauthorized help, or cutting corners on research. These might seem harmless, especially when others around you are doing it.
The storm symbolizes the consequences that inevitably follow. Here's what we think this means for your studies: initial success through compromised methods will eventually catch up with you. You might get good grades temporarily, but the foundation will be shaky.
A friend of mine at university used to buy essays online — sailed through first year, but when advanced courses required building on that 'knowledge,' everything fell apart spectacularly. The sign suggests you're at a crossroads where integrity matters more than immediate results. Wu's willingness to throw away the gift shows that sometimes progress requires sacrifice.
Your 'storm' might be upcoming exams, a thesis defense, or job interviews where shortcuts become obvious. The average grade indicates this situation is manageable, but requires conscious choice-making.
What To Do Next
Identify where you're tempted to cut corners and make a clean break. If you've been relying on questionable study methods, stop now and rebuild your approach properly. Focus on understanding concepts rather than memorizing answers.
Create a study schedule that allows time for genuine learning, not just cramming. Most importantly, when facing academic pressure, remember Wu's lesson: temporary storms from doing things right are better than the lasting damage from compromised integrity.
Sometimes the smallest academic compromise creates the biggest storms later.
What you feel reading this is already part of the answer.
Next comes specific guidance — when to act, how to move, what to watch for.
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Further Reading
FAQ
- Is Stick #55 (Average) good or bad?
- "Average" is a middle-tier fortune. It suggests your situation has room for growth but requires attention and direction. The real value is in the specific guidance — fortune sticks are tools for self-reflection, not prediction.
- How accurate is Wong Tai Sin Stick #55 for study?
- Fortune sticks work as a mirror for self-reflection rather than prediction. If the interpretation resonates with you, that's the stick doing its job — revealing what you already sense but haven't articulated.
- Can I draw fortune sticks for the same question again?
- Traditionally, you should ask about the same matter only once. Drawing repeatedly often means you're seeking the answer you want rather than the guidance you need. To explore different angles, try a different life topic for the same stick number.