The Ancient Practice of Sound Divination

“The upper class is evaluated by voice, the middle class by appearance, and the lower class by physical features.”

According to "The Complete Compendium of Physiognomy": “A small, clear, and high voice indicates great nobility, while a soft and delicate voice suggests poverty.” This implies that a resonant and penetrating voice signifies a noble destiny, often seen in leaders with significant influence. On the contrary, a soft and delicate voice suggests one's words are unclear and difficult to understand, often leading to a life associated with poverty and hard work.

A woman with a strong voice might not achieve honor in her lifetime; her husband may die young, leaving her with only a nominal title. A man with a soft voice might impede many women. A woman who speaks quickly may prevent her husband from succeeding. Though capable and able to bear burdens, a woman with a voice as strong as a man's may also face hardships and possibly harm her husband. However, some strong women possess such voices due to a modern emphasis on gender equality, allowing them to shoulder responsibilities and achieve success. Conversely, a man with a soft, feminine voice may struggle to accomplish significant feats and might hinder his wife, but he could have many sons. A woman who interrupts others may inevitably hinder her husband.

"The Complete Compendium of Physiognomy" provides further insights on judging voices: “A small person with a loud voice may reach a high position, while a tall person with a faint voice might have a short life. A voice resembling a broken gong signifies financial loss, and a loud, explosive voice suggests a life filled with struggles and little support. A man with a soft voice might squander family wealth, and a woman with a strong voice could disrupt her husband’s status.” Thus, a small individual with a vibrant voice often accomplishes much, whereas a tall person with a faint voice might experience poor health and a brief life. A broken gong-like voice indicates financial trouble, while a booming, explosive voice suggests a life of hardship. Overall, a loud, resonant voice is key to prosperity, while a hoarse, rough voice suggests adversity.

Ancient physiognomy believes that an individual’s voice corresponds to the five elements, and various signs should be analyzed to determine fortune or misfortune.

• In the palace voice, the virtuous have a harmonized tone that signifies peace, while the unvirtuous exhibit chaotic, tired sounds.
• In the merchant voice, the virtuous are clear and melodious, while the unvirtuous are fragmented and disorganized.
• In the horn voice, the virtuous are straightforward and strong, while the unvirtuous sound restless or sparse.
• In the zhi voice, the virtuous have a distant and fragrant tone, whereas the unvirtuous are low and dragging.
• In the feather voice, the virtuous have a deep and clear tone, while the unvirtuous sound shallow and trivial.

Among the five voices, the palace voice is deep and powerful, resonating strongly. The merchant voice is robust and broad, the horn voice smooth and clear, the zhi voice rhythmic and flowing, and the feather voice weak and low. Understanding these voices' meanings is essential to explore their virtues and vices.

• White represents the merchant type, associated with the metal element.
• Yellow represents the palace type, associated with the earth element.
• Green represents the horn type, associated with the wood element.
• Red represents the zhi type, associated with the fire element.
• Black represents the feather type, associated with the water element.

A palace type person with a virtuous merchant voice will have many descendants and a prosperous lineage. If their merchant voice is unvirtuous, children may be unfilial or often ill, and there may be few descendants.

A virtuous horn voice predicts a high position; if it's unvirtuous, imprisonment may follow. A virtuous zhi voice suggests plenty of descendants and protection for parents. However, an unvirtuous zhi voice might result in losing parents young or maternal mistreatment. A virtuous feather voice leads to a good wife and wealth, while an unvirtuous one can result in a poor marriage and lack of property.

A suitable virtuous voice leads to wealth and longevity, while an unsuitable evil voice indicates poor character or frailty. These principles apply to other areas of life.

• People with dove-like voices are kind-hearted.
• Magpie-like voices indicate cleverness.
• Owl-like voices suggest malice.
• Donkey-like voices denote lewdness.
• Water buffalo-like voices demonstrate arrogance.
• Camel-like voices reveal pride and wealth.
• Elephant-like voices signify longevity and nobility.
• Sheep-like voices suggest poverty.
• Jackal-like voices indicate extreme cruelty.
• Pig-like voices denote poverty and lewdness.
• Horse-like voices indicate bravery and nobility.

Voices can vary in length, pitch, tone, speed, and clarity. Understanding these variations can reveal one's fortune or misfortune.

• All low, coarse sounds belong to the palace voice.
• All slow, fragmented, shallow sounds belong to the merchant voice.
• All sharp, tight, high sounds belong to the horn voice.
• All rising, scattered sounds belong to the zhi voice.
• All short, curved sounds belong to the feather voice.

A person's voice reveals their emotions and status, with pleasant sounds signifying joy and mournful sounds signifying sorrow. Rich, resonant sounds indicate prosperity, while weak, empty sounds suggest misfortune or illness. These attributes help us draw conclusions about an individual's character and fate.

• A palace-type person with a virtuous merchant voice and joyful sounds will have noble children. Even without a virtuous merchant voice, there will still be many descendants.
• A palace-type person with an unvirtuous horn voice and mournful sounds signals demotion.
• A palace-type person with a feather voice and prison sounds suggests the death of a wife or livestock. The severity of these sounds indicates if it's the wife or livestock that perishes. Mournful sounds can imply separation from the wife.
• A horn-type person with a horn voice and prosperous sounds will live long, amass wealth, and rise in status.

The voice is as revealing as the eyes and difficult to conceal. In physiognomy, one first observes the eyes, but getting to know someone requires listening to their voice.

The voice should be deep, long, and strong, starting from the dantian. A booming, resonant voice indicates wealth and fortune, whereas a shallow, broken voice suggests a short life and low status.

When speaking, voices should resemble bells and drums; larger instruments produce louder sounds, smaller ones softer. A clear spirit and harmonious energy result in a warm, smooth voice, while a cloudy spirit and rushed energy produce an anxious, sharp voice. Thus, a noble voice starts from the dantian, resonating with the heart's energy, while a fleeting voice stays on the tongue, hurried and thin.

A man with a woman’s voice will face loneliness and poverty, while a woman with a man’s voice may struggle and suffer in relationships. A small person with a loud voice is fortunate, but a large person with a quiet voice is not.

Inconsistent voices, "net-like voices," or those that vary in volume, "male-female voices," indicate low status, regardless of how they start or transition.

People embody the five natural elements, and their voices reflect these:

• Earth sounds are deep and heavy, indicating nobility if clear, and lower status if muddy.
• Wood sounds are high and smooth, suggesting nobility if full and heavy, and low status if light.
• Fire sounds are intense and anxious, with nobility suggested by roundness and smoothness and low status if harsh.
• Metal sounds are gentle and resonate clearly, noble if long and flowing, but low if broken.
• Water sounds are clear and quick, with long, thin voices indicating nobility, whereas heavy and muddy suggest low status.

A noble voice originates from the dantian, full of energy and resonance, while a poor one emerges from the lips and tongue, marking a life of toil. A small, loud voice projects far, foretelling success.

A strong voice travels great distances without losing clarity; it remains audible nearby and far, short yet powerful, deep yet rich, and fine yet not chaotic. Follow our WeChat platform, "I Ching World," for more insights. A favorable voice is deep, uplifting, loud, and smooth.

Those with strong voices maintain prosperity and status, while those with poor voices quickly diminish their energy. A voice resembling a low whine is considered unfortunate.

Voices originate from the vital organs, merging their energies to convey meaning. A good voice encapsulates spirit and clarity, but poor voices suggest unrest and misfortune, affecting one's status and familial responsibilities.

"The Great Clarity Divine Mirror" states:

A person's true nature is revealed through their voice, reflecting their energy and responding to the world. The voice should be like the sound of instruments—large ones loud, small ones soft. A harmonious spirit and energy produce a warm, smooth voice. In contrast, a confused spirit and hurried energy lead to a sharp, anxious voice. A noble voice begins at the dantian, flowing outward resonating powerfully. The depth of the root reflects the strength of voice expression.

Conversely, shallow voices are hurried, short, and chaotic, arising from the tongue and not traveling far. They exhibit anxiety and roughness, slow yet harsh. Such voices resemble broken instruments, instinctively indicative of lower status and misfortune.

For a harmonious and prosperous life, the spirit must be stable with harmonious energy, producing calm and well-sequenced speech. Disordered speech with changing faces indicates a troubled spirit, reflecting an inferior character.

A voice like that of a broken instrument hints at wealth, while broken shards imply poverty and low status. A clear voice suggests aspiration and transition from hardship.