1st May 2021, the topic on "Wei Wei Bring You HUAT Long Long 薇薇带你旺久久", was on the Duanxi Clear Waters Black Inkstone 端溪静水砚台, also known simply as black inkstone 黑砚.
Host Wei Wei invited two amazing and HUAT friends to join her. Do you know who they are?
They are...父子档 father and son, Mark and Yi Jie!!
Mark and family have two black inkstones. They got their 1st inkstone in 2020 and the 2nd one just this year.
2020 was the year when Yi Jie just started Secondary 1, for sure, a huge change from primary school for him. After placing the black inkstone, Yi Jie diligently mediated with it (will be covering this later). Miraculously, his first year in Secondary school was very smooth, probably as smooth as a Lao Keng 老坑 (highest grade!) black inkstone, and he managed to score good grades for all his subjects!
And recently, Yi Jie just completed his piano exam. He meditated with both black inkstones and managed to overcome new challenges that arose due to the COVID situation.
Mark's life also improved tremendously after placing the black inkstones! Mark regularly meditated with his black inkstones, wanting to achieve greater heights in life. Last year, Mark was promoted from a contract staff to a permanent staff! Furthermore, Mark's promotion occurred during the Circuit Breaker, a period of time when huge number of Singaporeans faced many difficulties in their career. The Black Inkstone indeed helped Mark to reach new heights in his career!
Moreover, just last month, Mark was headhunted and changed jobs, getting a much higher pay!!
But what is so special about this black inkstone? Well, the inkstone has fengshui power, helping to boost your literati (旺文昌), smoothen verbal conflicts (化口舌) and resolve legal conflicts (化官非).
The raw material, which is called Duan 端, is rare and powerful. Comes from the Duan River 端溪, hence the name, is the best of the inkstone, and has the unique ability for ink to evaporate slower during summer and less easy to freeze during winter. We only sell 端 category inkstones because it is the highest quality, and at Lotus on Water, we believe in giving the best for all clients.
During LIVE, we discussed about the 4 categories of Lotus on Water 端 inkstones. YES! 端 inkstones are further classified into subgroups.
The 4 categories are (ranked according to quality, starting from the best):
1. Lao Keng (老坑)
2. Keng Zai (坑仔)
3. Ma Zi (麻子)
4. Mei Hua (梅花)
When choosing your black inkstone, you might wonder, what should I look out for when choosing the right one? Well, there 3 things you should look out for.
1) How SMOOTH is it?
Usually, the smoother the black inkstone, the better. You can pour some water on the inkstone to better feel its smoothness.
2) "Skin" of the Earth
On the black inkstone, there are might be small patches that are rough, like the skin of stones or rocks. The presence of the skin of the earth shows that this black inkstone is carved from a source that's very close to the earths, which means stronger energy!
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| Yi Jie showing the skin of the earth to the audience |
3) Eyes
In Chinese, we call these 眼、睛、晕.
On the black inkstone, there might be little dots on it. These are the "眼 eyes". In the centre of the eye, if there is a little red concentration, that's the "睛 pupil". And on the edge, bluish in hue, that's the "晕 aura". These eyes, other than a testament to the quality of the black inkstone, also symbolize the power for you to look far and capture opportunities.
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| Numerous Eyes on this powerful black inkstone |
At the start of LIVE, Wei Wei, Mark and Yi Jie showcased a majestic black inkstone called 龙舞天庭. That is actually one of the greatest treasures Lotus on Water has. Not only it is super grand, but also big enough for a full grown adult to sit on it!
This mega black inkstone has an interesting story behind it. When the huge inkstone arrived outside the gallery, 10 strong men were called upon to carry the inkstone into the gallery. However, the men couldn't lift it, because the delivery men mistook the weight of the black inkstone as 250kg, instead of 1250kg!
The delivery team and Lotus advisors were in a dilemma, either to send the inkstone back to customs, or use heavy machinery to carry the giant treasure into the galleries. In the end, we decided on the latter.
That day, it was raining heavily, which made the whole issue much more complex and difficult. Bracing the storm, they moved the mega black inkstone. Once the black inkstone touched the gallery floor, the rain stopped immediately.
As if the heavenly conflicts were resolved, and smoothened, with the mega black inkstone in place.
On this 龙舞天庭, there are 9 NINE dragons.
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| There are 9 dragons carved into the inkstone, can you see them? |
"9" is the strongest yang number, and dragons represent status and power, bringing the entire Lotus Family more prosperity!
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| A lot of skill was required to carve such a fine dragon. Beautiful! |
龙舞天庭 also bears the skin of the earth, has many "eyes", and is amazingly smooth. Truly a class above all!
I hope that after reading this post, all of us can better understand the Lotus black inkstone.
Stay tuned as more recaps of "薇薇带你旺久久" be coming soon!
-- Yi Jie
Follower and Intern of Lotus on Water
