Fu Banxian
Provincial-level inheritor of intangible cultural heritage in Hunan. Fourth generation of the Fu family woodcarving line and third generation of the Meishan ritual lineage, based in Huaihua, western Hunan.
What I actually do
Two things, and they have been in the same household for a long time. The first is household reading in the local tradition: birth charts, date selection for weddings and funerals, and the practical business of deciding when a family should move and when it should hold.
The second is carving. Fushi woodcarving is a provincial heritage item, and the reason it survived is unromantic — it was needed. A deity image has to be cut before it can be installed; a shrine has to be built before it can be used. As long as households keep shrines in these valleys, someone has to cut the wood.
The lineages
- Meishan teaching (梅山教) — third generation in this household. Altar work traced to the Republican period in Dongkou County.
- Qinghe Yuan house reading (清荷苑阳宅风水) — fourth generation.
- Baihe lineage of yinzhai geography (白鹤教阴宅地理) — third generation.
- Fushi woodcarving (傅氏木雕) — a provincial-level intangible cultural heritage item of Hunan.
How I work
A reading starts with information, not with a verdict. Birth data, a floor plan, photographs, or simply a description of what has been happening. I ask what changed and when, because the timing of a problem is usually more informative than its shape.
Then I give a written answer with the reasoning visible, so you can see how the conclusion was reached and disagree with it if you want to. Three to five days is typical.
What I decline
It is worth being explicit, because this is where the field has a reputation problem.
- I do not promise cures, wealth, or a change in anyone's fate.
- I do not tell people that something terrible will happen unless they pay.
- I do not advise on medical treatment, legal disputes, investments or land use where a qualified professional is required.
- I do not site a new grave without confirming the land is legally available. Regulations on burial, farmland and protected forest come first, whatever the geomantic reading says.
Writing and documentary
Most of what I know was transmitted by apprenticeship, which means it disappears when a lineage ends — not gradually, but completely. Writing it down accurately, including the limits, is the more useful contribution.
A five-part documentary on Fushi woodcarving was produced in Hunan; the woodcarving feature on this site is based on the first episode, with English translation prepared here.
Contact
Email magicolors@gmail.com for enquiries from outside China. WeChat fubanxian1958 for Chinese-speaking clients. On-site house and land readings within Hunan.