Three Lives: A Practical Chinese Guide to Reincarnation

London, UK: Century, 1987. Soft cover. Very Good. Clean, tight, unmarked; price sticker removal damage upper front corner of cover; spine has three long creases; light wear to lower front corner; otherwise minimal wear; This extraordinary book is based on ancient Chinese beliefs. Most religious Chinese will have had a 'three life' reading done for them when they were born. These readings - based upon the hour, day, month and year of birth - reveal the child's previous incarnation, suggest its likely destiny in this life, (including its major life influences, its chances of marital happiness, and length of life), and describe its next incarnation. By consulting the comprehensive tables and charts in this book it is now possible for a Westerner to work out his or her 'three lives'. The book has a substantial introduction, explaining how such a striking amalgam of Taosit, Buddhist and Confucian beliefs cam to play such an enduring role in Chinese folk religion. It also contains an explanation of the horoscope system underlying the forecasts, and calendrical charts for the years 1924-2000. As with all Chinese divination, the forecasts reflect probabilities, but leave scope for the individual to take charge of his or her destiny in the light of the tendencies with the readings reveal.