<p>No. Fortune telling, astrology, palmistry, divination etc. are considered to be &quot;animal&quot; arts by the Buddha, which is forbidden to monks in <a href="https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.02.0.than.html" rel="noreferrer">DN 2</a> (quoted below).</p>
<p>From <a href="https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.02.0.than.html" rel="noreferrer">DN 2</a>:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>&quot;Whereas some contemplatives &amp; brahmans, living off food given in
faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such &quot;animal&quot; arts
as: reading marks on the limbs [e.g., palmistry]; reading omens and
signs; interpreting celestial events [falling stars, comets];
interpreting dreams; reading features of the body [e.g., phrenology];
reading marks on cloth gnawed by mice; offering fire oblations,
oblations from a ladle, oblations of husks, rice powder, rice grains,
ghee, and oil; offering oblations from the mouth; offering
blood-sacrifices; making predictions based on the fingertips;
geomancy; making predictions for state officials; laying demons in a
cemetery; placing spells on spirits; earth-skills [divining water and
gems?]; snake-skills, poison-skills, scorpion-skills, rat-skills,
bird-skills, crow-skills; predicting life spans; giving protective
charms; casting horoscopes — he abstains from wrong livelihood, from
&quot;animal&quot; arts such as these.</p>
<p>&quot;Whereas some contemplatives &amp; brahmans, living off food given in
faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such &quot;animal&quot; arts
as: determining lucky and unlucky gems, staffs, garments, swords,
arrows, bows, and other weapons; women, men, boys, girls, male slaves,
female slaves; elephants, horses, buffaloes, bulls, cows, goats, rams,
fowl, quails, lizards, rabbits, tortoises, and other animals — he
abstains from wrong livelihood, from &quot;animal&quot; arts such as these.</p>
<p>&quot;Whereas some contemplatives &amp; brahmans, living off food given in
faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such &quot;animal&quot; arts
as [forecasting]: the rulers will march forth; the rulers will not
march forth; our rulers will attack, and their rulers will retreat;
their rulers will attack, and our rulers will retreat; there will be
triumph for our rulers and defeat for their rulers; there will be
triumph for their rulers and defeat for our rulers; thus there will be
triumph this one, defeat for that one — he abstains from wrong
livelihood, from &quot;animal&quot; arts such as these.</p>
<p>&quot;Whereas some contemplatives &amp; brahmans, living off food given in
faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such &quot;animal&quot; arts
as [forecasting]: there will be a lunar eclipse; there will be a solar
eclipse; there will be an occultation of [a conjunction of the moon or
a planet with] an asterism; the sun and moon will be favorable; the
sun and moon will be unfavorable; the asterisms will be favorable; the
asterisms will be unfavorable; there will be a meteor shower; there
will be a flickering light on the horizon [an aurora?]; there will be
an earthquake; there will be thunder coming from dry clouds; there
will be a rising, a setting, a darkening, a brightening of the sun,
moon, and asterisms; such will be the result of the lunar eclipse ...
the rising, setting, darkening, brightening of the sun, moon, and
asterisms — he abstains from wrong livelihood, from &quot;animal&quot; arts such
as these.</p>
<p>&quot;Whereas some contemplatives &amp; brahmans, living off food given in
faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such &quot;animal&quot; arts
as [forecasting]: there will be abundant rain; there will be a
drought; there will be plenty; there will be famine; there will be
rest and security; there will be danger; there will be disease; there
will be freedom from disease; or they earn their living by accounting,
counting, calculation, composing poetry, or teaching hedonistic arts
and doctrines [lokāyata] — he abstains from wrong livelihood, from
&quot;animal&quot; arts such as these.</p>
<p>&quot;Whereas some contemplatives &amp; brahmans, living off food given in
faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such &quot;animal&quot; arts
as: calculating auspicious dates for marriages — both those in which
the bride is brought home and those in which she is sent out;
calculating auspicious dates for betrothals and divorces; for
collecting debts or making investments and loans; reciting charms to
make people attractive or unattractive; curing women who have
undergone miscarriages or abortions; reciting spells to bind a man's
tongue, to paralyze his jaws, to make him lose control over his hands,
or to bring on deafness; getting oracular answers to questions
addressed to a spirit in a mirror, in a young girl, or to a spirit
medium; worshipping the sun, worshipping the Great Brahmā, bringing
forth flames from the mouth, invoking the goddess of luck — he
abstains from wrong livelihood, from &quot;animal&quot; arts such as these.</p>
<p>&quot;Whereas some contemplatives &amp; brahmans, living off food given in
faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such &quot;animal&quot; arts
as: promising gifts to deities in return for favors; fulfilling such
promises; demonology; reciting spells in earth houses [see earth
skills, above]; inducing virility and impotence; preparing sites for
construction; consecrating sites for construction; giving ceremonial
mouthwashes and ceremonial baths; offering sacrificial fires;
administering emetics, purges, purges from above, purges from below,
head-purges; ear-oil, eye-drops, treatments through the nose,
ointments, and counter-ointments; practicing eye-surgery [or:
extractive surgery], general surgery, pediatrics; administering
root-medicines and binding medicinal herbs — he abstains from wrong
livelihood, from &quot;animal&quot; arts such as these. This, too, is part of
his virtue.&quot;</p>
<p>&quot;A monk thus consummate in virtue sees no danger anywhere from his
restraint through virtue. Just as a head-anointed noble warrior king
who has defeated his enemies sees no danger anywhere from his enemies,
in the same way the monk thus consummate in virtue sees no danger
anywhere from his restraint through virtue. Endowed with this noble
aggregate of virtue, he is inwardly sensitive to the pleasure of being
blameless. This is how a monk is consummate in virtue.</p>
</blockquote>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-08-22T04:21:35.773Z
@Wayne97 This is a translation of the original Pali sutta. Ven. Thanissaro translates it "animal" arts, while Ven. Bodhi translates it as debased arts. Either way, it carries a negative connotation.
ruben2020
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-08-22T09:26:46.937Z
perhaps i will write a feedback to Sangha in my country about it when i am free, perhaps label it which is Buddhism and which is Taoism in temple (Just my suggestion). Most temple in my city is very commercialize, no Dharma class too. That's how i spent my time there for 10 years. Not sure where my donation money went to. We have to respect other religions practices also. Just some of Taoism practices mixed with Buddhism cause they used to share the Temple especially in Hong Kong.
Wayne97
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-08-22T09:30:38.760Z
i am sort of preparing an article online regarding this . i m collecting info and get Sangha in my country to verify it.
Wayne97
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-08-22T10:51:19.523Z
@Wayne97 Regardless of mixing between Buddhism and Taoism, even in Buddhist-only temples or monasteries, elements of superstition like astrology or the use of talismans has definitely crept into some places. That's unfortunate. You should also consider which Buddhist tradition you're referring to.
ruben2020
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-08-22T12:12:01.803Z
I just get Sangha n some Buddhism brotherhood in my country to verify my online writings and suggestion. n then just inform the temple fb admin to share it f they found it make sense
Wayne97
CC BY-SA 4.0
2020-08-22T03:55:56.667Z
2020-08-22T03:55:56.667Z
ruben2020
<p>Is there a sutra which provides more info on the subject above?</p>
<p>As per wikipedia, some monks should have such abilities as those found in Wikipedia page &quot;<a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miracles_of_Gautama_Buddha" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Miracles of Gautama Buddha</a>&quot;:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Superparanormal powers the historic Buddha was said to have possessed
and exercised include the six higher knowledges (<em>abhiññā</em>): psychic
abilities (<em>iddhi-vidhā)</em>, clairaudience (<em>dibba-sota</em>), telepathy
(<em>ceto-pariya</em>), recollection of one's own past lives
(<em>pubbe-nivāsanussati</em>), seeing the past lives and rebirths of others
(<em>dibba-cakkhu</em>), and the extinction of mental intoxicants
(<em>āsavakkhaya</em>). Miracles found in Mahayana sutras generally play a more
direct role in illustrating certain doctrines than miracles found in
non-Mahayana Buddhist texts.</p>
</blockquote>

<reference-request><psychic-powers><buddhist-miracles>
Is fortune telling allowed in temples?
# Is fortune telling allowed in temples?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2020-08-22)

Is there a sutra which provides more info on the subject above?

As per wikipedia, some monks should have such abilities as those found in Wikipedia page "[Miracles of Gautama Buddha](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miracles_of_Gautama_Buddha)":

> Superparanormal powers the historic Buddha was said to have possessed
> and exercised include the six higher knowledges (*abhiññā*): psychic
> abilities (*iddhi-vidhā)*, clairaudience (*dibba-sota*), telepathy
> (*ceto-pariya*), recollection of one's own past lives
> (*pubbe-nivāsanussati*), seeing the past lives and rebirths of others
> (*dibba-cakkhu*), and the extinction of mental intoxicants
> (*āsavakkhaya*). Miracles found in Mahayana sutras generally play a more
> direct role in illustrating certain doctrines than miracles found in
> non-Mahayana Buddhist texts.

**Tags:** reference-request, psychic-powers, buddhist-miracles


---

## 1 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2020-08-22. Score: 5

No. Fortune telling, astrology, palmistry, divination etc. are considered to be "animal" arts by the Buddha, which is forbidden to monks in [DN 2](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.02.0.than.html) (quoted below).

From [DN 2](https://www.accesstoinsight.org/tipitaka/dn/dn.02.0.than.html):

> "Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in
> faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such "animal" arts
> as: reading marks on the limbs [e.g., palmistry]; reading omens and
> signs; interpreting celestial events [falling stars, comets];
> interpreting dreams; reading features of the body [e.g., phrenology];
> reading marks on cloth gnawed by mice; offering fire oblations,
> oblations from a ladle, oblations of husks, rice powder, rice grains,
> ghee, and oil; offering oblations from the mouth; offering
> blood-sacrifices; making predictions based on the fingertips;
> geomancy; making predictions for state officials; laying demons in a
> cemetery; placing spells on spirits; earth-skills [divining water and
> gems?]; snake-skills, poison-skills, scorpion-skills, rat-skills,
> bird-skills, crow-skills; predicting life spans; giving protective
> charms; casting horoscopes — he abstains from wrong livelihood, from
> "animal" arts such as these.
>
> "Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in
> faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such "animal" arts
> as: determining lucky and unlucky gems, staffs, garments, swords,
> arrows, bows, and other weapons; women, men, boys, girls, male slaves,
> female slaves; elephants, horses, buffaloes, bulls, cows, goats, rams,
> fowl, quails, lizards, rabbits, tortoises, and other animals — he
> abstains from wrong livelihood, from "animal" arts such as these.
>
> "Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in
> faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such "animal" arts
> as [forecasting]: the rulers will march forth; the rulers will not
> march forth; our rulers will attack, and their rulers will retreat;
> their rulers will attack, and our rulers will retreat; there will be
> triumph for our rulers and defeat for their rulers; there will be
> triumph for their rulers and defeat for our rulers; thus there will be
> triumph this one, defeat for that one — he abstains from wrong
> livelihood, from "animal" arts such as these.
>
> "Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in
> faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such "animal" arts
> as [forecasting]: there will be a lunar eclipse; there will be a solar
> eclipse; there will be an occultation of [a conjunction of the moon or
> a planet with] an asterism; the sun and moon will be favorable; the
> sun and moon will be unfavorable; the asterisms will be favorable; the
> asterisms will be unfavorable; there will be a meteor shower; there
> will be a flickering light on the horizon [an aurora?]; there will be
> an earthquake; there will be thunder coming from dry clouds; there
> will be a rising, a setting, a darkening, a brightening of the sun,
> moon, and asterisms; such will be the result of the lunar eclipse ...
> the rising, setting, darkening, brightening of the sun, moon, and
> asterisms — he abstains from wrong livelihood, from "animal" arts such
> as these.
>
> "Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in
> faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such "animal" arts
> as [forecasting]: there will be abundant rain; there will be a
> drought; there will be plenty; there will be famine; there will be
> rest and security; there will be danger; there will be disease; there
> will be freedom from disease; or they earn their living by accounting,
> counting, calculation, composing poetry, or teaching hedonistic arts
> and doctrines [lokāyata] — he abstains from wrong livelihood, from
> "animal" arts such as these.
>
> "Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in
> faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such "animal" arts
> as: calculating auspicious dates for marriages — both those in which
> the bride is brought home and those in which she is sent out;
> calculating auspicious dates for betrothals and divorces; for
> collecting debts or making investments and loans; reciting charms to
> make people attractive or unattractive; curing women who have
> undergone miscarriages or abortions; reciting spells to bind a man's
> tongue, to paralyze his jaws, to make him lose control over his hands,
> or to bring on deafness; getting oracular answers to questions
> addressed to a spirit in a mirror, in a young girl, or to a spirit
> medium; worshipping the sun, worshipping the Great Brahmā, bringing
> forth flames from the mouth, invoking the goddess of luck — he
> abstains from wrong livelihood, from "animal" arts such as these.
>
> "Whereas some contemplatives & brahmans, living off food given in
> faith, maintain themselves by wrong livelihood, by such "animal" arts
> as: promising gifts to deities in return for favors; fulfilling such
> promises; demonology; reciting spells in earth houses [see earth
> skills, above]; inducing virility and impotence; preparing sites for
> construction; consecrating sites for construction; giving ceremonial
> mouthwashes and ceremonial baths; offering sacrificial fires;
> administering emetics, purges, purges from above, purges from below,
> head-purges; ear-oil, eye-drops, treatments through the nose,
> ointments, and counter-ointments; practicing eye-surgery [or:
> extractive surgery], general surgery, pediatrics; administering
> root-medicines and binding medicinal herbs — he abstains from wrong
> livelihood, from "animal" arts such as these. This, too, is part of
> his virtue."
>
> "A monk thus consummate in virtue sees no danger anywhere from his
> restraint through virtue. Just as a head-anointed noble warrior king
> who has defeated his enemies sees no danger anywhere from his enemies,
> in the same way the monk thus consummate in virtue sees no danger
> anywhere from his restraint through virtue. Endowed with this noble
> aggregate of virtue, he is inwardly sensitive to the pleasure of being
> blameless. This is how a monk is consummate in virtue.

> **Comments:**
> **username_1**: @username_0 This is a translation of the original Pali sutta. Ven. Thanissaro translates it "animal" arts, while Ven. Bodhi translates it as debased arts. Either way, it carries a negative connotation.  
> **username_0**: perhaps i will write a feedback to Sangha in my country about it when i am free, perhaps label it which is Buddhism and which is Taoism in temple (Just my suggestion). Most temple in my city is very commercialize, no Dharma class too. That's how i spent my time there for 10 years. Not sure where my donation money went to. We have to respect other religions practices also. Just some of Taoism practices mixed with Buddhism cause they used to share the Temple especially in Hong Kong.  
> **username_0**: i am sort of preparing an article online regarding this . i m collecting info and get Sangha in my country to verify it.  
> **username_1**: @username_0 Regardless of mixing between Buddhism and Taoism, even in Buddhist-only temples or monasteries, elements of superstition like astrology or the use of talismans has definitely crept into some places. That's unfortunate. You should also consider which Buddhist tradition you're referring to.  
> **username_0**: I just get Sangha n some Buddhism brotherhood in my country to verify my online writings and suggestion. n then just inform the temple fb admin to share it f they found it make sense  

---

