Ask the moon blocks a question
In temples across China, people have asked yes-or-no questions this way for centuries: a pair of crescent-shaped blocks called jiaobei. You hold one specific question in mind — one that can honestly be answered yes or no — drop the pair, and read how they land. Try it here, exactly as it works there. Nothing you type is stored; the toss happens on this page.
One flat, one round is the classic yes. The three ways the blocks can land, in plain words:
One flat + one round — YES
Sheng jiao, the “sacred toss.” The blocks agree with you: yes. For a big decision, tradition asks the same question until you get three yeses in a row.
Both flat — NOT YET
Xiao jiao, the “laughing toss.” The blocks are laughing — your question is too vague, or the timing isn't settled. Make it one specific yes-or-no question and toss again.
Both round — NO
Yin jiao, the “shade toss.” Both blocks land face-down: a no, for now. The traditional advice is to pause rather than push — and not to keep tossing until you hear what you want.
The blocks slow a decision down; they don't make it for you. Step by step: how jiaobei is used in a temple.
The Five Life Guardians' domains, in plain English
The five domains are BaZi in plain English — the five questions people ask most about life: who to love, how to earn, how children fare, how a career rises, how long and well one lives.
Which part of life have you been neglecting?
Think of this quiz as BaZi without the birth chart. A BaZi reading weighs the balance of your birth moment; this folk version weighs the same five areas of life with five honest questions — no birth date, no jargon. Your guardian is chosen by your lowest score — the part of life you think about least is the one that gets a keeper. Your highest score is your strength. New to the idea? BaZi in plain English, in the guides below.
Why these five? They are the plain-English version of what a BaZi chart balances — the folk five domains of a life. Read: what BaZi is · What a life book is
The full five-domain report — written out, all five domains · $3.99
What you see above is the headline: your guardian domain and your strength. The full report is the whole reading, written in plain English — each of your five domains in turn: where its score came from, what your guardian watches over, what your strength already covers, and the season ahead by the 24 solar terms. Delivered as an instant PDF download right after payment — no email, no waiting.
After payment, your report downloads right on the next page — no email needed. Full refund if the PDF cannot be opened.
Keep what you found
Whatever the quiz surfaced is what belongs on your desk — your guardian for the domain that needs a keeper, and the asking tools for the questions that keep coming back.
Your guardian and your strength above are yours to keep. No payment, no email.
Your guardian, engraved to order, plus the full five-domain report as an instant PDF download.
Invite my guardian + report — $32.90Everything in the bundle, plus the full asking set: 36 fortune sticks, moon blocks and Liu Yao coins.
Full divination set — $39.90Asking often? The tools from the Ask door: Jiaobei Moon Blocks · $12.90 · Liu Yao Coin Set · $14.90 · Complete Divination Set — 36 fortune sticks, coins & blocks · $39.90.
Entertainment and folk culture only.
What's your Chinese zodiac sign?
The zero-effort version: one question — the year you were born. Your animal is the classic starting point of the whole tradition, and the classic way to choose a keepsake for someone else. Then, when you're ready, the five-question quiz above finds the guardian that goes with it.
Your animal is where the story starts. Your guardian is the other half — the part of life that needs a keeper. The five-question quiz finds it in about two minutes.
One folk-calendar note: the zodiac year turns over at Lunar New Year (late January to mid-February), not on January 1 — if your birthday falls in that window, you may belong to the previous year's animal.
The guardians — $29.90 each · coin $9.90 · tools from $12.90
Almost everything here is a physical piece, made to order — the one written piece, the full five-domain report from the quiz, is composed right here on this site and never sent off-site. The ladder is simple: a Zodiac Coin at $9.90 is the small way in; a guardian at $29.90 is the keeper the quiz matched you with — or $32.90 bundled with its full report; the asking tools — moon blocks, Liu Yao coins, and the complete set with a 36-stick fortune cylinder — are for the questions. And the rule of the house: what you found is what you keep — your quiz result points at its guardian below, your birth year at its coin.
The Pixiu leads the five guardians — it is the one the quiz hands out most often, and the one gift-givers ask for first, so it stands at the head of the row. Original designs, printed in multiple colors in a single run — no hand-painting, no two exactly alike, each engraved with a name or initials before it ships. $29.90 each — pay in full below, or reserve yours with a $5 deposit that locks a batch place.
Prices in USD. Made to order in small batches — reserve below to lock a batch place. Seasonal guidance by solar term is in the works.
Stories behind the guardians
Short explainers rooted in the tradition — what a Pixiu actually is, why mandarin ducks mean fidelity, how the zodiac and the 24 solar terms work. The background that makes each guardian more than a figurine. Now in three longer reads:
Stories behind the guardians
BaZi in plain English, the Five Blessings vs. the five domains, Pixiu vs. Qilin, the twelve zodiac animals, the 24 solar terms, which guardian for which occasion, and how the guardians are made.
Read the guide →Feng shui, in plain English
The five elements and the bagua, where to place a Pixiu — and where not to — and how to choose a figure by wish and place it by room.
Read the guide →Divination and destiny, in plain English
How to use jiaobei moon blocks, cast Liu Yao with three coins, weigh bones the Chenggu way, and what a life book is — plus the ritual tools of the tradition.
Read the guide →How it works
Two doors, about two minutes each. No sign-up, no birth date, and nothing you answer is stored.
Take the quiz
Five questions score the five domains. Your lowest score picks your guardian; your highest names your strength.
Read your reading
A one-line reading is free, right away. The full five-domain report ($3.99) goes deeper — your scores explained, plus the season ahead by the 24 solar terms.
Keep your guardian
Your guardian is 3D printed to order and engraved with a name or initials — a small keeper for your desk, or a gift with a story attached.
Reserve your guardian
Guardians are made to order in small engraved batches, $29.90 each. Pay in full, or reserve with a $5 deposit — the deposit locks a batch place, and we'll email you to pay the $24.90 balance before your guardian ships.
Your deposit locks a batch place. When your batch opens, we email you to pay the $24.90 balance before shipping. Questions or changes? Email [email protected].