Jiang Ziya Abandons Office
Neutral
The poem
Original: 宛如仙鹤出凡笼 / 脱得凡笼路路通 / 南北东西无阻隔 / 任君直上九霄宫
The story
Jiang Ziya exposed a demon at the Shang court and was made a minor officer. When the tyrant Zhou ordered him to build the extravagant Deer Terrace, he denounced the king to his face, was condemned to death, and escaped by water magic. He abandoned his post and made his way west to Zhou, where his real life began.
What it means
The image is a crane leaving its cage: hard first, favourable afterwards. A crane was never meant to be caged, and once out of it every direction is a road and it flies straight to the ninth heaven. The operative word is leaving. Your present difficulty comes largely from a position, a relationship or an identity that confines you, and stepping away from it, though it looks risky, is release. After a stretch of hardship and bitterness your ability finally meets its occasion and can be used fully. Nothing obstructs; you go where you please.
By area of life
Wealth
The stuck position is ending and results begin to grow. Gather momentum before acting rather than dumping your holdings now.
Love
After a long loneliness, warmth arrives. A good match tends to come from the southeast, met in the cool of autumn; recognition is mutual and marriage follows.
Work
After much hardship your talent finally meets its opening and can be fully used. If your present post confines you, leaving opens every road.
Health
Danger recedes and the condition improves; you will find a physician you trust. Fulfil any vow you made and make an offering for the household.
Travel
Crossing the ocean is genuinely hard, but sustained effort gives your abilities room. This lot favours leaving home to build something new.
Advice
The cage holding you is usually the thing you have not yet been willing to give up.