To believe or not to believe?
By Angel Yung

 

Some people believe that fortune telling can help them foresee their future.	Chinese fortune sticks in temples are used by people to seek fortune prediction.

Do you believe that your future life is predictable? And everything in your life is destined? Have you ever thought why you are so unfortunate today?

"Red is my unlucky colour. Whenever I wear red clothes, I will have a bad luck," says Wong Sio Ling, 50, a housewife who believes in fortune-telling.

A fortune-teller has told Wong that in ancient Chinese cosmology her life belongs to one of the five elements -- "fire" and red indicates the fire, and is in conflict with her, so she should avoid using things in red colour.

However, Alex Ma, a 30-year-old businessman, thinks there is no scientific basis in such kind of fortune-telling. Thus, it is not worthwhile to consult a fortune-teller, he says that he won't waste money on it. 

Fortune-telling is a traditional culture in China. People would like to seek information on their fortunes by all kinds of means such as palm-reading, feng shui, geomancy or fortune sticks offered in temples. Meanwhile, the fortune-telling is also popular in Western countries, but with different methods like astrology, tarot cards and numerology. 

"I play tarot card with my friends sometimes, we learnt it from a tarot cards book. However, I don't think we are superstitious, we just find it very funny," a Form 6 student Mary Song says.

Fortune-tellers in Macao usually come from Mainland China. Some of them practice it like a business. But most of them tend to work at home as a sideline. People come to them usually through recommendations of their relatives or friends. Some of the fortune-tellers could become well-known just through word of mouth. There are also some who prefer to do it on the street. They usually sit outside in a chair beside a small table, waiting for a customer to come up. They normally attract the attention of travellers.

Tong Ho San is a 60-year-old woman who has been practicing fortune-telling in her house for over 30 years. She says that she has about five to six customers daily, they are mostly housewives and some are businessmen. However, Tong sees an increasing number of teenagers who come to seek fortune prediction. "They like to ask me about their love affairs, studies and careers," Tong says.

Tong started practicing fortune-telling in China when she was 20. At that time, she was very poor, and only few people would seek fortune-telling advice. A year later, she followed her master to settle down in Macao. The fact that her master was a well-known fortune-teller helped her to establish her fame in the business. "I have no regret of choosing this profession, I have never thought of retirement, I enjoy this job very much," Tong says.

However, David Che, a 30-year-old clerk who has consulted Tong for his fortune, says that her fees are quite high. "Although Tong's telling is accurate, it costs me MOP500 for an hour," he adds.

Lee Kam Fai is a 65-year-old blind palm-reader who works everyday on the street. Sitting in a little chair in front of a small table, he tells his own life, "I've been working here for over 40 years, I was born blind, my ancestors were all palm-readers." He also believes in Kun Iam, he thinks that he was destined to be a palm-reader. He says that he doesn't work for money, his mission in life is to guide people to solve their problems.

"Palm-reading is very mysterious, the different lines in your palms have already told your whole life. It's difficult to say it in just a few words," Lee explains.

Lee also says that he doesn't set any price for it, people feel free to give any money they like. Normally, people give him about MOP100, however, he once received MOP5,000 from a Hong Kong tourist.

There are also teenagers who come to Lee asking their fortunes, especially when a new year starts. They normally come with a group of friends rather than with their families. Although Lee's opening hours are from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., some youngsters would like to come even after 5 p.m.

Not all teenagers like to go to a fortune-teller. May Ieong, a third year student of the University of Macao who majors in Business Administration, says that she has never consulted a fortune-teller although she is curious to know her future. "I've never asked advice from a fortune-teller because I'm afraid he/she will say something bad and make me feel anxious," she says. However, Ieong admits that she tried Chinese fortune sticks in a temple with her mother before. She says that she was so surprised to know that it could be so accurate because the stick indicated that she was going to have an operation at that time.

Wong can't live without fortune telling. "Perhaps I feel my life lacks security, so I need some consulting. I believe that fortune-telling can help me foresee my future and avoid unlucky things. It makes me feel more comfortable," Wong says.

Ma shakes his head and disagrees. "I'm the master of my life. I won't rely on fortune-tellers to tell me what to do, everything is controlled by myself."