Mien shiang ( zh, c=, p=miànxiàng meaning face () reading ()) is a physiognomic and

fortune-telling Fortune telling is the spiritual practice of predicting information about a person's life. Melton, J. Gordon. (2008). ''The Encyclopedia of Religious Phenomena''. Visible Ink Press. pp. 115–116. The scope of fortune telling is in principle ...

practice in

Chinese culture Chinese culture () is one of the Cradle of civilization#Ancient China, world's earliest cultures, said to originate five thousand years ago. The culture prevails across a large geographical region in East Asia called the Sinosphere as a whole ...

and

traditional Chinese medicine Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is an alternative medicine, alternative medical practice drawn from traditional medicine in China. A large share of its claims are pseudoscientific, with the majority of treatments having no robust evidence ...

which purports to determine aspects of person's character, personality, and (future) health by analyzing their face according to the five phases (''"

wu xing Wuxing may refer to: Places in China Counties and districts * Huzhou, formerly Wuxing County, Zhejiang, China * Wuxing District (吴兴区), central district of Huzhou Subdistricts (五星街道) * Wuxing Subdistrict, Mudanjiang, in Dong'an Dis ...

"''). The five phases (namely

wood Wood is a structural tissue/material found as xylem in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulosic fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin t ...

fire Fire is the rapid oxidation of a fuel in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction Product (chemistry), products. Flames, the most visible portion of the fire, are produced in the combustion re ...

earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to Planetary habitability, harbor life. This is enabled by Earth being an ocean world, the only one in the Solar System sustaining liquid surface water. Almost all ...

metal A metal () is a material that, when polished or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electrical resistivity and conductivity, electricity and thermal conductivity, heat relatively well. These properties are all associated wit ...

, and

water Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...

) are metaphors devised by ancient

Chinese philosopher Chinese philosophy (simplified Chinese: 中国哲学; traditional Chinese: 中國哲學) refers to the philosophical traditions that originated and developed within the historical and cultural context of China. It encompasses systematic reflec ...

s to explain the relationship, interaction, and ongoing change of everything in the universe. In recent times the art of face reading has become more popular and schools that teach more wide spread.

Historical records

There are early written records of . In

Book of Rites The ''Book of Rites'', also known as the ''Liji'', is a collection of texts describing the social forms, administration, and ceremonial rites of the Zhou dynasty as they were understood in the Warring States and the early Han periods. The '' ...

, it writes, "Those who look up are arrogant; Those who look down are worried; Those who look sideways are sly". After Gou Jian () of Yue () settled the

State of Wu Wu () was a state during the Western Zhou dynasty and the Spring and Autumn period, outside the Zhou cultural sphere. It was also known as Gouwu () or Gongwu () from the pronunciation of the local language. Wu was located at the mouth of th ...

, Fan Li () (536–488 BCE) knew that Gou Jian had a "long neck and sharp upper lips", which meant they could face hardship together but not enjoy peace together. Fan Li later fled with

Xi Shi Xi Shi (Hsi Shih; , ), also known by the nickname Xizi, was one of the renowned Four Beauties of ancient China. She was said to have lived in a small Yue village (today part of Zhuji, a county-level city in Shaoxing, Zhejiang) during the end of ...

() to the

State of Qi Qi, or Ch'i in Wade–Giles romanization, was a ancient Chinese state, regional state of the Zhou dynasty in History of China#Ancient China, ancient China, whose rulers held Zhou dynasty nobility, titles of ''Hou'' (), then ''Gong (title), Go ...

and changed their names to lead a new life. Another historical example in which Mien Shiang was used was

Wang Anshi Wang Anshi (; ; December 8, 1021 – May 21, 1086), courtesy name Jiefu (), was a Chinese economist, philosopher, poet, and politician during the Song dynasty. He served as chancellor and attempted major and controversial socioeconomic reforms ...

() of

Song Dynasty The Song dynasty ( ) was an Dynasties of China, imperial dynasty of China that ruled from 960 to 1279. The dynasty was founded by Emperor Taizu of Song, who usurped the throne of the Later Zhou dynasty and went on to conquer the rest of the Fiv ...

. Wang's eyes resembled those of an ox, and his head was shaped like those of tigers. It was said that if Wang could stare straight at the sun, he had a face with good fortune ().

''Mien shiang'' terminology

The words below are a description of terminology, such as "three parts of one's face" () which includes the upper part (), middle part (), and lower part (). #

Yin-Yang Originating in Chinese philosophy, yin and yang (, ), also yinyang or yin-yang, is the concept of opposite cosmic principles or forces that interact, interconnect, and perpetuate each other. Yin and yang can be thought of as complementary an ...

() # Three parts of one's face () are the upper part, middle part, and lower part. # Upper part () is area between the forehead between the hairline and eyebrows. This section represents the fortune between ages 10 to 20, which is one's youth. # Middle part () is the area between the eyebrows and the bottom of the nose. This section represents the fortune between ages 20 to 40, which is one's adult years. # Lower part () is the area between the bottom of the nose to the chin. This section represents the fortune after ages 40, which is one's older adult years. # Five organs on one's face () includes one's ears, eyebrows, eyes, nose, and mouth. # Face Shape () includes ten major kinds: ''You'' (), ''Jia'' (), ''Shen'' (), ''Tian'' (), ''Tong'' (), ''Wang'' (), ''Yuan'' (), ''Mu'' (), ''Yong'' (), and ''Feng'' (). # Twelve Houses () includes the 12 basic parts on one's face that represent different aspects of life. They are the life house (), wealth house (), sibling house (), marriage house (), children house (), health house (), travelling house (), assistant house (), career house (), property house (), fortune & emotion house (), and parents house (). # Wrinkle (), scar (), mole (), speckle (). # Nei Shiang () is the internal aspect of the body including shoulders, waist, back, chest, abdomen, umbilicus, forearms, limbs, neck, breasts (for women), and others. # Gu Shiang () is bone reading, including the skull and the bones in the body. # Dong Shiang () is the individual's movement, including walking (), sitting and standing (), eating (), lying (), crying (), and laughing (). # Sheng Shiang () is the sounds that one makes.

References

Chinese culture Divination Physiognomy Taoist practices Traditional Chinese medicine {{alt-med-stub

Historical records

''Mien shiang'' terminology

See also

References