Kau cim
Chinese temple divination in which a worshipper shakes numbered sticks from a cylinder and reads the matching slip.
Also: chim, qiuqian, Chinese fortune sticks, fortune slips
At many Chinese temples a worshipper kneels before the deity, states the question and shakes a bamboo cylinder until one numbered stick falls out. The number matches a printed poem or slip, which a temple keeper may explain; the Cantonese name is kau cim and in Mandarin it is qiuqian. Often the person then asks the god by throwing two crescent blocks, called moon blocks, to confirm the stick was right. The slips are graded and often cryptic, and in Hong Kong, Taiwan and Southeast Asia they are consulted before exams, business decisions and weddings. Temples such as Wong Tai Sin in Hong Kong are known for it. The custom sits within Taoist and folk religion.