Surmang

Iron Element (lcags)

• One of the five elements according to the system of elemental divination. The iron element is symbolised by a white semi-circle or blade, numerically represented by the number five, and located in the west of the turtle divination chart, along with the trigram Dva, the bird and monkey signs, Venus and the six western constellations. Iron is described as sharp-edged, its function being one of sharpness or incision, inherent in a diet of dairy products and flesh from an animal's ribs, while within the body it is represented by the bone tissue and the lungs. Socially, iron relates to the outcasts, to children, maternal relatives and protector deities. If the hour of a person's birth is governed by the iron destiny element, it is predicted that he or she will be a fair-complexioned villager in whose family a blood feud has occurred, noisy, tall and unrestrained in speech. Vocally, iron is said to cause vocalic sounds to be articulated. Physically, those with a preponderance of iron characteristically may have shaven-heads and moles; and in cases of ill-health an imbalance of iron is indicated by the agitation of king spirits (rgyal po) and Pehar, as well as by colic and bone ailments. GD (from the Glossary to Tibetan Elemental Divination Paintings)