The TaoWards Journal
A closer look at Taoist tradition, the details in our jewelry, and the meaning you bring to them.
Featured story
Learn the meaning of the Tianpeng ruler through Taoist texts and a documented museum example, including its inscriptions, star signs, and modern jewelry forms.
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Learn what bagua means, how to read its eight trigrams, and why their arrangements differ. Includes a clear guide to the symbols and their natural images.
Read the story: Bagua Meaning: Eight Trigrams, Eight Ways to Understand Change
Explore yin yang meaning in life, the two dots in the symbol, and how taiji relates to balance and change in Chinese thought, with everyday examples.
Read the story: Yin Yang Meaning: Reading the Circle, Finding Your Rhythm
Learn the meaning of Shan Gui charm coins through a museum example, their thunder-command inscriptions, and the Bagua trigrams often found on the reverse.
Read the story: Shan Gui Coin Meaning: Thunder Commands, Eight Trigrams, and a Wish for Peace
Explore the Taoist Seven Star Sword, why its seven markings refer to the Big Dipper, and what documented museum examples tell us about this ritual form.
Read the story: Seven Star Sword Meaning: Why a Taoist Sword Carries the Big Dipper
Learn the names and five directions of Wu Lu Cai Shen, the Five Gods of Wealth, and how Zhao Gongming fits into this Chinese prosperity tradition.
Read the story: Five Gods of Wealth: Five Directions and the Hope for a Good Livelihood
Understand Taoist talisman symbols through the Celestial Master tradition: Zhang Daoling, the meaning of fu, and why Tian Shi Fu is not one universal design.
Read the story: Celestial Master Talismans: Sacred Writing and the Wish for a Peaceful Home
Learn what Jin Guang Zhuan refers to, how a Golden Light talisman relates to the invocation, and why a written sign is different from a recited text.
Read the story: Golden Light Talisman: The Meaning of Jin Guang Zhuan
Understand the Taoist Golden Light Mantra, or Jin Guang Zhou: its textual background, religious imagery, and the difference between an invocation and a talisman.
Read the story: Golden Light Mantra: What Its Words Mean in Taoist Practice
Meet Zhao Gongming, a Chinese God of Wealth. Follow his image through museum artworks and learn the meaning of the tiger, ingot, and martial attributes.
Read the story: Zhao Gongming: Why a God of Wealth Rides a Tiger
Who is Zhong Kui? Meet the Demon Queller of Chinese mythology, explore his image in museum art, and learn how a portrait differs from a written talisman.
Read the story: Who Is Zhong Kui? The Fierce Guardian Behind a Wish for Peace
Explore the Ziwei hui sacred-name sign, its written components and northern-sky associations, with research, museum context, and a contemporary jewelry example.
Read the story: Ziwei Talisman Meaning: Protection and the North Star